Fox Valley Mall Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids
Fox Valley Mall

Location	Aurora, Illinois, United States
Coordinates	41°45′30″N 88°12′45″W / 41.7583628°N 88.2125683°W / 41.7583628; -88.2125683
Address	195 Fox Valley Center
Opening date	1975
Developer	Metropolitan Structures, Inc./ Westbrook Venture
Management	Centennial Real Estate
Owner	Centennial Real Estate Montgomery Street Partners USAA Real Estate Westfield Corporation
No. of stores and services	150
No. of anchor tenants	3 (2 open, 1 vacant)
Total retail floor area	1,404,987 square feet (130,527.6 m²)
No. of floors	2 with partial basement (3 in Macy's)

Fox Valley Mall is a big shopping mall located in Aurora, Illinois. It used to be called Westfield Fox Valley. This mall is a popular place for shopping and fun.

Its main stores are JCPenney and Macy's. You can also find other large stores like H&M and Forever 21. A fun place called Round One Entertainment is now where the old Sears store used to be.

The Westfield Group bought the mall in 2002. They changed its name to "Westfield Shoppingtown Fox Valley." Later, in 2005, they shortened the name to "Westfield Fox Valley." In 2015, the Westfield Group sold most of their share in the mall.

History of Fox Valley Mall
Mall Location and Nearby Stores
Gallery
Bus routes
See also

History of Fox Valley Mall

Original Logo of the Fox Valley Center Mall. It changed when the mall became Westfield Fox Valley.

Planning for Fox Valley Mall started way back in 1968. The idea was to build a large community with shops and homes. This would help manage how cities grew.

Construction began in June 1973. The mall was built on a large piece of land. It was located between the towns of Naperville and Aurora.

The Fox Valley Mall officially opened in 1975. It was a very big enclosed mall, about 1.5 million square feet. When it first opened, it had major stores like Sears and Marshall Field's. Soon after, JCPenney and Lord & Taylor also opened. There were also about 150 other shops and services.

Over the years, some stores changed. Lord & Taylor closed in 1996. Its spot was taken by Carson Pirie Scott, which later became known as Carson's. In 2006, Marshall Field's changed its name to Macy's.

In 1989, a shopping area called New York Square was built outside the mall. It had stores like Kohl's. A year later, in 1990, another shopping center called Fox Valley Commons opened across from the mall. It has stores like International Food Market and Petland.

For a while, the mall had many beautiful gardens and plants inside. These were removed after Westfield bought the mall.

After Westfield bought the mall, they changed all the signs. The old Fox Valley Center logo was replaced. The mall also got a big makeover, its first ever. In 2015, when Centennial Real Estate bought most of the mall, the "Westfield" signs were changed back to "Fox Valley Mall" signs.

New restaurants and entertainment spots have opened over time. A Tilted Kilt Bar & Grill opened in 2009. In 2012, Tony Sacco's Pizza and Books-A-Million opened. Round 1, a popular arcade and entertainment center, opened in 2017.

In 2018, two big stores closed. Carson's closed in August 2018 because its parent company went out of business. Sears also closed its Fox Valley Mall location in September 2018. This left JCPenney and Macy's as the main big stores.

In 2019, for Halloween, Halloween City used the old Sears space temporarily.

A new area called "Center Park" opened in November 2019. It turned an unused outdoor space into a fun gathering spot. It has green areas, places to sit, and art. Before Center Park, there was an indoor ice skating rink. This rink moved to an empty store and will open again in November 2020.

In early 2020, construction began on a "treehouse" at Center Park. This two-level space will connect to the mall. It will be another fun spot for people to gather.

Later in 2020, the old Sears building began to be taken down. This is part of a big plan to add luxury apartments and other new features to the mall area.

Mall Location and Nearby Stores

The mall is located on Illinois Route 59. It is between U.S. 34 and East New York Street. There are over 8,000 parking spaces for cars.

The area around the mall has grown a lot. On the Naperville side of Route 59, you can find Westridge Court. This shopping center has more than 30 stores. Other stores nearby include Meijer, Target, Guitar Center, Petsmart, At Home, Marshalls, Ross Stores, Dollar Tree, Jo-Ann Fabrics, and Burlington Coat Factory. There are also many restaurants in the area.