Crossroads Mall (Oklahoma) facts for kids
Overhead satellite image of Crossroads Mall
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| Location | Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States |
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| Coordinates | 35°23′44″N 97°29′25″W / 35.3956°N 97.4904°W |
| Opening date | February 17, 1974 |
| Closing date | October 31, 2017 |
| Owner | Raptor Properties |
| No. of stores and services | 0 |
| No. of anchor tenants | 0 (4 at peak) |
| Total retail floor area | 1,268,000 sq ft (117,800 m2) |
| No. of floors | 2 |
Crossroads Mall, also known as Plaza Mayor, was a very large shopping mall in south Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States. It covered about 1.2 million square feet, which is a huge area! It opened in 1974 and was a popular place for shopping for many years before it closed its doors in 2017.
The Mall's Beginning
Crossroads Mall first opened on February 17, 1974. It had four big department stores called "anchor stores": John A. Brown, Dillard's, Montgomery Ward, and JCPenney. The mall was named Crossroads because it was built at a major intersection of two highways, I-35 and I-240. This was a very important spot in the city.
When it opened, Crossroads Mall was one of the biggest building projects ever in Oklahoma. It was also among the top ten largest shopping malls in the entire United States. A newspaper article from 1974 even called it "the most magnificent enclosed and air-conditioned shopping mall in the Southwest."
For over twenty years, Crossroads Mall was one of the most popular shopping spots in Oklahoma City. It had about 36 stores and services inside. There were also many other shops, restaurants, two hotels, and a movie theater around the mall building. The mall became so popular that many shops moved away from Downtown Oklahoma City to be closer to it.
Why the Mall Changed
Over time, Crossroads Mall started to face some challenges. In 2001, one of its main anchor stores, Montgomery Ward, closed down. Even though the mall had been popular, it didn't get many big updates or new stores for over 30 years.
Newer shopping centers also opened in nearby areas like Moore. These new places attracted many shoppers away from Crossroads Mall. The area around the mall also started to have more safety concerns, which made some people feel less comfortable visiting. Because of these issues, the mall even put a rule in place in 2006. On Fridays and Saturdays after 6 PM, teens under 18 had to be with a parent or guardian to shop. This was an effort to make the mall feel safer for families.
Stores Start to Leave
In the late 2000s, all four of the original anchor stores, along with many smaller shops, eventually left the mall. This happened partly because of money problems during the 2008 economic downturn and ongoing safety worries.
In 2011, a video was posted online showing a tour of the mall. It showed many empty spaces where big stores like Dillard's, JCPenney, Macy's, and Steve & Barry's used to be. Some stores were still open, like Eyemasters, Journeys, Champs Sports, Victoria's Secret, GameStop, and Bath & Body Works. However, many of these remaining stores also closed before the mall shut down completely. Many shops moved to other malls in Oklahoma City, which made it harder for Crossroads Mall to bring back its past popularity.
New Owners and Plans
In 2009, the mall property was taken over by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. This happened because of a big financial situation involving a company called Bear Stearns. In 2010, a report showed that about 75% of Crossroads Mall was empty.
Then, on September 14, 2011, a company called Raptor Properties, LLC bought the mall for $3.5 million. This was much less than the $24 million it had been valued at before.
In April 2013, Raptor Properties announced exciting plans to give Crossroads Mall a new look and a new name: Plaza Mayor at the Crossroads. The idea was to make it a place that would especially welcome and serve the local Hispanic community, similar to a successful mall in Texas called La Gran Plaza.
The new plans included many changes. They wanted to add space for a grocery store, a nightclub, and even a rodeo arena that could hold 3,500 people! The mall's entrances and bathrooms were going to be updated. They also planned to move the carousel to create a new stage and entertainment area with new sound and lighting. However, these big plans were never fully completed before the mall closed.
On September 29, 2017, the owners announced that they would not be able to fix up the mall. They decided to close it for good on October 31, 2017. The reason given was to build new schools on the land.
