A dead mall
(Source)
Northwest Plaza is one of those old school shopping malls that I would have absolutely loved to have seen in its heyday. Unfortunately, by the time I got to see it on my first and only visit to what was at one time the largest and most successful retail destination in the Saint Louis metro area, it was just a fragment of what it used to be. Literally.
Northwest Plaza Mallmanac ca. 1983. View the full PDF version here.
Only two of what was once six anchor spots remain. Thankfully, one of those previously belonged to Saint Louis based institution Famous Barr. Their famed and distinctive rotunda survives as a focal point and main entrance for what is now called The Crossings at Northwest. The only other extant anchor spot was that of JCPenney, which now serves as offices for Save A Lot.
The interior of the old mall. (Source)
Just to the northwest of the Famous Barr’s venerable rotunda is the other most noticeable landmark of Northwest Plaza, the twelve story modernist office tower, still decked out in all of its seventies glory. Abutting the monolithic skyscraper is the old JCPenney, which originally boasted no real architectural significance, but just happened to be in the right location to be retained.
1 to 6- The renowned rotunda of the former Famous Barr anchor.
What exists today as, using their description, a mixed-use commercial center began life in 1965 as an open-air complex boasting 1.6 million square feet of gross leasable area. It was touted as the largest retail facility in the world at its debut. The four anchors at its ribbon cutting were the previously mentioned Famous-Barr and JCPenney as well as Sears and Woolworth.
1 to 3- The southern face of the former Famous Barr building. 4 to 6- The eastern side of Famous Barr, now the entrance to county offices.
The office tower was added in 1969 while Saint Louis based Stix Baer & Fuller joined the lineup in 1971. Dillard’s later took over the former Stix space after their acquisition of the locally owned brand in 1984 while Famous-Barr expanded to a second location focused on home goods when they took over a space once occupied by junior anchor Vandervoort’s.
1 to 6- What used to be the mall common area just north of Famous Barr including the mid-mod office tower.
The biggest changes to Northwest Plaza since the sixties took place in the late eighties when the concourses were enclosed and the complex was expanded to close to two million square feet. Famous-Barr’s second location was converted into a comprehensive entertainment complex while in the nineties, labels such as Oshman’s, OfficeMax and PharMor moved in.
1 to 4- More shots of the tower, a striking example of mid century modern architecture.
By the mid-2000s, however, it was becoming clear that the expansive hodge-podge of different styles and brands was being rendered more and more irrelevant in an increasingly competitive market. By the end of 2004, Northwest Plaza had one of the lowest occupancy rates of any Westfield mall. Still, newer stores such as Burlington and Steve & Barry’s found homes within the aging facility.
The Crossings at Northwest pamphlet ca. 2021. View the full PDF version here.
JCPenney departed in 2008, and the rest of the anchors began to depart in a rush with many of the smaller retailers leaving not long afterward. Macy’s, once Famous-Barr, and Sears both shuttered in 2010, leaving Northwest Plaza with no anchors as Stix Baer & Fuller and Woolworth had gone out of business years earlier. The final interior shop darkened in late 2010, leaving the expansive complex completely empty and dead.
1 to 4- Shots of the northern end of the facility where JCPenney was located. The rest of the mall to the north was demolished.
Demolition of most of the northeastern sections of Northwest Plaza began in 2012. The interior concourse was eliminated and the newly christened Crossings at Northwest opened in 2015. A power center anchored by Menard’s rose to the northeast of the Crossings while offices for Saint Louis County, Save A Lot and American Family took up much of the balance of the remaining square footage. It’s sad that I never got to see the old Northwest Plaza, but at least a significant portion of it remains.
The western facing portion of the former mall from what was JCPenney to Famous Barr.
