An extant asset
The capital of the state of Wisconsin was founded on a narrow isthmus between two lakes. The geographic feature runs from the southwest to the northeast so as the city expanded, more suburban areas sprouted where land opened up on each end.
1 & 2- The former Sears store, now home to Total Wine, Dave & Buster’s and Hobby Lobby. 3 & 4- The recessed southern front entrance to West Towne Mall. 5 & 6- Shops adjoining the main entrance with no mall access. 7 & 8- The main entrance. 9 & 10- The food court entrance and adjoining stores.
The area to the southwest, known colloquially as the west side or Madison West, was home to some of the city’s first retail centers such as Hilldale and Westgate shopping centers. But it wasn’t until the early seventies that the city received its first major enclosed development, West Towne Mall.
West Towne Mall Mallmanac ca. 1970. View the full PDF version here.
Located in a rather extensive, suburban retail zone just north of Madison’s beltline freeway, West Towne Mall blends into the flat southern Wisconsin landscape and can easily be missed by most from that vantage point. It was from here where I got my first look at the city’s oldest extant enclosed complex.
1 to 5- The JCPenney store, a near clone of the East Towne Mall outlet. 6 to 8- The small greenspace between JCPenney and Von Maur.
I arrived just before the shops were slated to open for the day, but the doors to the common areas had yet to be unlocked. Luckily, the temperatures had warmed into the mid-twenties so I began my exterior exploration from Dick’s anchor spot walking counter-clockwise past the former Sears and to the front façade.
West Towne Mall lease plan ca. 2002. View the full PDF version here.
The former Sears store had been subdivided to house smaller tenants Hobby Lobby, Dave & Busters and Total Wine. Just to the north was one of my favorite features of these first and second generations mall- a recessed entryway adorned with West Towne Mall’s, in my opinion, dated script logo.
Passing smaller store additions lacking interior access for Sushi Lover, Maurice’s and a vacant Sephora, I arrived at the center’s main entrance. From an earlier time itself, I was glad to see that one of its glass doorways was propped open, allowing me pre-opening access.
West Towne Mall lease plan ca. 2011. View the full PDF version here.
The interior reflected the design elements of its day. Of course, there was white on white on white, but they were joined by welcome accents of greens and grays in the ceiling and walkways. Other than that, there really was anything that stood out as remarkable to me, unlike at East Towne Mall.
1 to 4- Von Maur, the newest addition to West Towne Mall. 5 to 7- Dick’s Sporting Goods. 8- The southwestern rear entrance.
Upon my exit, I continued my way around West Towne’s walls. JCPenney, one of only two traditional department store anchors remaining, showed off the same unique and distinctive façade as its sister store at East Towne. Around the flanking side was the home of luxury retailer Von Maur with their newly constructed store where Younker’s once stood.
1- The corridor leading to Dick’s mall entrance. 2- The former mall access to Sears. 3 to 6- The southern half of West Towne Mall’s main concourse. 7 to 10- The corridor leading to the main entrance.
Further to the south was Dick’s Sporting Goods standard store façade with the double tiered building overlooking a Planet Fitness. Just around the corner from Dick’s, I had completed my trek at the southern rear entrance to West Towne Mall.
West Towne Mall lease plan ca. 2019. View the full PDF version here.
Envisioned by the predecessor of the Richard E. Jacobs Group, West Towne Mall first debuted in the autumn of 1970. The single level, straight line facility housed spaces for four anchors- Sears on the south end, JCPenney on the north side, Sheboygan based Prange’s in the rear and locally based Manchester’s in the front.
1 to 3- West Towne Mall’s basic center court. 4 & 5- Von Maur’s entrance at center court. 6 to 10- The northern half of the main concourse.
Over the decades, West Towne Mall received its first large scale expansion when a short wing was built just to the building’s northwest that was capped by new entrant Boston Store. In 2004, not long after Chattanooga based CBL Properties had taken over, the store was demolished to make way for another expansion.
West Towne Mall lease plan ca. 2023. View the full PDF version here.
Boston Store, however, had not exited West Towne Mall completely. Younker’s, which had taken over the spot originally housing Prange’s, was itself usurped by Boston Store’s relocation from their original building. At the same time, their former corridor was lengthened and capped by a two level Dick’s Sporting Goods and a Forever 21 outlet.
1 & 2- The concourse heading to West Towne Mall’s northern anchor. 3 to 6- JCPenney’s mall entrance. 7 & 8- Junior anchor H&M. 9 & 10- The corridor leading to the food court runs where Manchester’s was originally located.
Boston Store finally called it quits in 2018 while Sears downsized their space just a year earlier, subdividing it to make room for Total Wine and Dave & Buster’s, which remain in the same spots to this day. The venerable retailer fully exited in 2018 with Hobby Lobby making their debut in 2021.
West Towne Mall lease plan ca. 2025. View the full PDF version here.
In the early 2020s, the former Prange’s, Younkers and Boston Store, still sporting its original brutalist façade, was destroyed to make way for Davenport based, upscale department store retailer Von Maur. Their single level, striped exterior standard store now sits in its place with an interesting park-like greenspace just to its north.
West Towne Mall’s food court and adjoining concourse.
Even though it was just a Monday, the parking lot started to fill with patrons just after all of the entrances had been made accessible. I started to make my way toward Metcalf’s located just behind West Towne Mall content in knowing that this enclosed center doesn’t seem to be going anywhere, even after more than 55 years.
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