City Place facts for kids
City Place is a large building complex in Fort Worth, Texas, United States. It has two tall, 20-story buildings. This complex is a "mixed-use" place, meaning it has different kinds of spaces, like offices and shops.
For many years, City Place was known as Tandy Center. It was the main office for a company called RadioShack, which used to be known as Tandy Corporation. When it was Tandy Center, it even had a shopping mall and an ice skating rink inside!
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History of City Place
From Department Store to Headquarters
The story of City Place began with a big store called Leonard's Department Store. It opened in this spot on February 12, 1963.
In 1967, the Tandy Corporation bought Leonard's stores. As Tandy Corporation grew bigger, it needed a new main office. So, in 1974, they tore down the department store. In its place, they built their new headquarters, which they called Tandy Center.
Tandy Center's Features
The new Tandy Center had two tall office buildings. It also included a shopping mall with a cool indoor ice skating rink. Many people enjoyed visiting the mall and skating there.
However, in the 1990s, the mall started to become less popular. A major store that attracted many shoppers moved out in 1995. The mall then became a place for outlet stores, but eventually, it was torn down.
The Unique Tandy Center Subway
Did you know that Tandy Center had its own subway? It was built by Leonard's Department Store in 1963. This special subway carried people between the main building and its parking lots. It ran until 2002. It was quite unique because it was thought to be the only privately owned subway in the entire country!
A New Name and New Beginnings
In 2000, a tornado hit Fort Worth. It caused some damage to buildings downtown, including the Tandy Center.
In 2001, RadioShack Corporation sold the Tandy Center to a new owner. RadioShack then moved its main office to a new building nearby. The new owner decided to rename the complex City Place.
The old shopping mall area was completely removed in 2011. In its place, a new parking garage was built, with shops on the ground floor. One of the City Place buildings is being updated. Both buildings were expected to be fully open in 2014.
