An extant asset
-UPDATE BELOW-
5 October 2024
In SouthPark, we have another mazelike, single level sprawl mall, ala Orlando’s The Florida Mall. Although the angles are a bit cleaner than the afore mentioned center, the developers can’t seem to get enough of tagging on new anchors and corridors, tearing down older parts before rebuilding in newer formats. Today, the original footprint can be difficult to make out amongst the crisscrossing and expansive concourses.
-UPDATE- 1- The original SouthPark main entrance shortly after its opening. 2- The mall’s original fountain at center court. 3- An aerial view of the original building looking toward the northwest. (Source for all)
I first became fascinated with SouthPark when I picked up a postcard featuring the whitewashed monolith under the catchphrase Shop Til You Drop, Charlotte NC. The photo shows a mall with oversized porticos, rectangular vaulted ceilings and simple box skylights covering what I’m sure was a gorgeously dark accented interior, where shoppers could shun almost all natural light while browsing the sales at Thom McCan or B Dalton.
-UPDATE- The evolution of early SouthPark.
1- SouthPark lease plan ca. 1970. View the full PDF version here.
2- SouthPark lease plan ca. 1990. View the full PDF version here.
3- SouthPark lease plan ca. 2005. View the full PDF version here.
Nothing truly great lasts forever, so it wasn’t long before designers of the day added a bit here and a bit there before dropping the word Mall from the official name entirely, leaving us with the upscale Franken-Mall that dominates the Charlotte retail scene today.
1- SouthPark lease plan ca. 2010. View the full PDF version here.
2- SouthPark lease plan ca. 2014. View the full PDF version here.
-UPDATE-
-5 October 2024
(Source)
Today’s SouthPark hasn’t changed its footprint much since the original post. However, this doesn’t discount the considerable history of what is now the area’s largest retail destination. The shopping center debuted on the southern outskirts of Charlotte in 1970 with anchors Belk, Ivey’s and Sears. The first expansion, a wing built between Sears and Ivey’s capped with new anchor Thalhimer’s, opened in 1988. This department store addition was soon usurped by Hecht’s not long after Ivey’s was replaced by Dillard’s.
SouthPark lease plan ca. 2021. View the full PDF version here.
SouthPark began its upscale skew in 2004 when another new wing opposite the Thalhimer’s concourse was introduced in 2004, bringing upmarket Nordstrom to the Charlotte market for the first time. Around this time, Sears shuttered their store which was soon demolished. Just a year later, Dick’s Sporting Goods made its appearance on the former Sears pad. The addition of Neiman Marcus in 2006 completed SouthPark’s transition toward opulence.
1- SouthPark’s main entrance today. (Source) 2- Looking down the Belk wing. (Source) 3- One of the mall’s outdoor seating areas. (Source) 4- Modern day center court. (Source) 5- Looking outward from the main entrance. (Source) 6- Inside SouthPark. (Source)
What was once farmland surrounding the monolith is now packed with more well-to-do shops and residences for the metro area’s wealthier clientele. In 1970, SouthPark had its skeptics who were unsure that the development’s location on the southern fringes of the city would see any success. However, today it is highly regarded as the most upscale retail destination between Atlanta’s Phipps Plaza and the Northern Virginia area of DC, and it seems well positioned to continue this success.
SouthPark Mallmanac ca. 2023. View the full PDF version here.
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