Everett Mall facts for kids
 |
|
Front view of Everett Mall
|
|
| Location | Everett, Washington, United States |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 47°54′37″N 122°12′47″W / 47.91035°N 122.21309°W |
| Opening date | October 1974 |
| Closing date | July 1, 2025 (indoor mall) |
| Developer | Earl Cohen & Associates Hanson Development Company |
| Management | JLL |
| Owner | Brixton Capital |
| Architect | Law Construction Company MulvannyG2 Architecture |
| Total retail floor area | 673,000 sq ft (62,500 m2) |
| No. of floors | 1 |
Everett Mall was an indoor and outdoor shopping mall in Everett, Washington, United States. It first opened its doors to shoppers in October 1974. Over the years, it grew into a major shopping center with many stores. The original indoor section closed its doors on July 1, 2025. It is now changing into an outdoor shopping center named The Hub @ Everett. It has held many popular stores such as Sears, The Bon Marché, and Macy's. People also visit the area to shop at Burlington, Best Buy, and Trader Joe's. Movie fans could watch fun movies at a large theater run by Regal Cinemas.
Exploring the Location and Layout of Everett Mall
The mall stands in south Everett in a neighborhood called Twin Creeks. It sits on a huge piece of land covering 62-acre (25 ha). The location is very easy for cars and buses to reach. It runs right along Everett Mall Way, which is part of State Route 99. Drivers can also reach it from Interstate 5, also called I-5. Other busy local highways meet nearby, including SR 526 and SR 527. Because it is centrally located, the property serves as a major bus station for Everett Transit.
The Early Construction Journey from 1968 to 1972
The idea for this shopping center began back in the middle of the 1960s. Builders originally called the plan "Broadway Mall." In 1968, developers from Tacoma and Beverly Hills bought a 60-acre (24 ha) plot of land. They wanted to build a modern shopping destination close to US 99. The first business to join the property was the Sears, Roebuck and Company department store. Sears had operated in downtown Everett for forty years before moving. A manager explained to The Seattle Times that suburban areas were growing quickly. Sears opened its doors on February 12, 1969. The huge store had fifty departments, an auto shop, and a coffee shop.
Soon after Sears opened, a discount department store chain named White Front joined the site. It opened on May 13, 1971, as a large anchor store from California. The developers planned an enclosed mall building to connect Sears and White Front. However, local airplane maker Boeing faced severe business cutbacks at the time. This slow economy forced mall construction to stop completely in 1972. A new company from Hackensack, New Jersey, bought the unfinished property to restart construction.
Opening Setbacks and How the Mall Survived 1973–1977
New builders took charge in 1973 to finish the inside shops. The Law Company from Wichita, Kansas, handled the architectural plans for the center. Local designers from Seattle, including Douglas Mulvanny, designed the individual store spaces. Entertainment came to the mall when General Cinema Corporation built a three-screen indoor theater. It was the very first triple-screen cinema in the state of Washington. When it opened in February 1974, it showed popular movies like The Sting, Serpico, and American Graffiti.
Trouble struck again in 1974 when the White Front company closed down. This left the shopping center with a massive empty building right before opening. When Everett Mall finally opened in October 1974, it felt almost like a ghost town. Barely half of the retail spaces were occupied by shops. Large canvas curtains were hung across the hallways to hide the empty spaces. Kids sometimes played tag through tears in the curtains because the halls were quiet.
Big Expansions and Golden Years from 1977 to 1992
Better times arrived when the department store The Bon Marché bought the old White Front building. It opened its brand new store on February 25, 1977. Shoppers were thrilled, and many new retailers rushed to rent space in the mall. Workers also built a second movie theater building right next to Sears. In 1979, the mall began a $20 million expansion to build a south wing. This new section opened in August 1980 with many exciting stores.
The main attraction of the 1980 expansion was the upscale Frederick & Nelson store. This famous store was owned by Marshall Field and had two grand shopping floors. The new wing also brought in a large Payless Drug store. For many years, the mall remained a bustling and happy shopping destination. Frederick & Nelson closed in 1991, but another clothing store named Mervyn's quickly replaced it. Mervyn's moved from an outdoor strip mall into Everett Mall in July 1992.
Ownership Changes and Modern Renovations Since 1998
By 1998, mall managers planned an even bigger expansion to rival the nearby Alderwood Mall. However, financial problems hit the owners, Titanic Associates of Morristown, New Jersey. In 2001, the mall was transferred to the Equitable Life Assurance Society. Equitable hired the company Madison Marquette to manage stores and plan future upgrades.
In 2004, the shopping center was sold to Steadfast Commercial Properties of Newport Beach, California. Steadfast began constructing a new outdoor shopping area called Everett Mall Village. This outdoor shopping area opened with popular shops like Best Buy and PetSmart. Inside the mall, Old Navy and Borders Books opened large new stores. The Village was later sold to Stockbridge Capital Group from San Francisco before changing hands again. Meanwhile, Regal Cinemas built a huge 16-screen theater in 2006 to replace the older theaters.
Hungry shoppers gained many exciting food options around the property during this expansion period. Delicious snack shops like Cinnabon and Sbarro served shoppers inside the mall halls. Full-service dining arrived as well, with a Famous Dave's restaurant opening in 2008. The popular Italian restaurant Olive Garden moved onto the mall grounds in July 2014. Sports fans also enjoyed visiting a Buffalo Wild Wings that opened in October 2015.
Changing Stores and Modern Shopping Shifts
Shopping habits began to change across the country over the next decade. Mervyn's closed in late 2006, and its building was split into two separate spaces. One half became a fitness gym called LA Fitness. The other half was taken by a clothing retailer named Steve & Barry's. After Steve & Barry's closed down, the space became a Burlington Coat Factory in 2013. The mall owner partnered with Canyon Partners from Los Angeles to help pay for updates. This funding brought new stores like Party City and Ulta Beauty to the mall.
More changes occurred when the giant department store Macy's closed in 2017. A home improvement retailer named Floor & Decor moved into that building the next year. Brixton Capital purchased the main mall in 2017 and hired JLL to run it. The original Sears store, which stood for fifty years, closed in December 2019. In the Village area, an empty building reopened as a HomeGoods home decor store in 2023.
How Everett Mall Rebuilt for the Future
Brixton Capital launched an ambitious project in 2023 to completely transform the shopping center. They hired architects from MG2 to create an open-air community center. The plan involved taking down the indoor corridors and the old food court. The developers decided to replace those indoor spaces with outdoor parking and modern storefronts. The former Sears building was remade to hold multiple stores, including At Home.
Several popular stores quickly agreed to move into newly remodeled spaces. Ulta Beauty relocated into part of the former Sears building in early 2024. The grocery favorite Trader Joe's moved across town into the same building soon after. Next door, a new Chick-fil-A restaurant opened to serve diners along the outer edge. The discount toy and variety store Five Below opened a vibrant new shop in late 2024.
City leaders announced that the redeveloped complex would be called The Hub @ Everett. The owners shared plans to add a massive sports venue called Topgolf. On July 1, 2025, the interior hallways of Everett Mall closed permanently to shoppers. Construction crews worked hard to turn the space into a modern outdoor center. New plans included business offices, modern apartments, and a self storage facility. Delicious restaurants and popular stores like Shake Shack and Boot Barn signed on to join the brand new Hub.
