A dead mall
(Source)
In southwestern Madison, in the middle of an established residential area filled with mid-twentieth century ranch style homes, several multi-story apartment buildings rise from the landscape like mountainous islands in a sea of undeveloped soil. It would be difficult to tell that this was once home to an enclosed shopping mall.
1- The plot of land where Westgate Shopping Center would one day reside before its construction. 2- The Westgate Mall at its height. 3- One of the main entrances. 4- Wisconsin Craft Market and Hancock Fabrics served as a couple of the center’s largest stores. (Source for all)
Being the mall geek that I am, I knew of Westgate Mall’s existence about the same time that I learned of West Towne’s and East Towne’s, and well before I discovered Hilldale. Unfortunately, I was unable to visit any of them on my first run through Wisconsin’s state capital in early 1994.
Westgate Mall lease plan ca. 2002. View the full PDF version here.
By the time I made my return in the winter of 2026, Westgate Mall was in the history books. Long overshadowed by nearby West Towne Mall, I would have loved to have seen the unassuming, single level retail destination when it still made its home in the Midvale Heights neighborhood.
Inside the Westgate Mall. (Source for all)
Westgate Mall began its life as Madison’s first large scale shopping center, the open-air retail complex known simply as Westgate Shopping Center, in 1960. A 30,000 square foot JCPenney as well as Chicago based Montgomery Ward served as the dual anchors.
Westgate Mall pamphlet plan ca. 2009. View the full PDF version here.
At some time during the ensuing decades, perhaps as a response to the construction of West Towne Mall or the expansion of Hilldale, a small, enclosed portion was added where the two wings of the L-shaped building met. Exactly when has been difficult to ascertain as an extensive history of Westgate has been hard to find.
Inside the Westgate Mall. (Source for all)
By the turn on the millennium, Westgate Mall was already showing signs of distress. The two traditional department store anchors had been long departed while smaller entrants such as TJMaxx, Hancock Fabrics and Dunham Sports has taken their spots. The racetrack designed interior portion never proved successful and remained mostly vacant.
Westgate Mall pamphlet plan ca. 2011. View the full PDF version here.
Westgate Mall was the first of Madison’s enclosed centers to meet its fate when it was demolished in 2021. While Hilldale ceased to be an enclosed facility just a few years prior, the remaining two traditional shopping malls seem to be doing well enough to hopefully avoid Westgate’s fate in the near term.
(Source)
No comments:
Post a Comment