Midtown DeSoto Square Mall facts for kids
| Location | Bradenton, Florida, United States |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 27°27′57″N 82°34′00″W / 27.4657°N 82.5668°W |
| Address | 303 301 Boulevard West |
| Opening date | August 15, 1973 |
| Developer | Edward J. DeBartolo, Sr. |
| Management | Dave Marcinko |
| Owner | Madison Properties |
| No. of stores and services | 30+ |
| No. of anchor tenants | 4 (1 open, 3 vacant) |
| Total retail floor area | 678,000 square feet (63,000 m2) |
| No. of floors | 1 |
Midtown DeSoto Square Mall is a shopping mall in Bradenton, Florida, USA. It used to be called DeSoto Square Mall. The mall first opened in 1973. Today, its main store is Hudson's Furniture.
Contents
A Look Back: The Mall's Story
How It Started
The mall was built in 1973 by Edward J. DeBartolo, Sr.. It was almost named Bradenton Mall. However, city officials didn't like the name. This was because the mall was not inside the city limits.
When it first opened, the mall had three big main stores. These were Sears, JCPenney, and Maas Brothers. The mall officially opened on August 15, 1973. About 37 shops were ready, and 47 more were still getting set up.
Growing Bigger
In 1976, Ronald Reagan visited the mall. He was campaigning to become president. In 1979, another large store, Belk-Lindsey, joined the mall. It became the fourth main store.
Later, in 1991, Burdines took over the Maas Brothers store. A year after that, in 1992, Dillard's bought the Belk store. In 2000, a popular clothing store called Old Navy opened. Burdines changed its name to Burdines-Macy's in 2003. Then, in 2005, it became just Macy's.
Changes Over Time
Around 2009, many stores closed. This happened because of a tough economy. Old Navy, Foot Locker, Waldenbooks, and the Dillard's main store all closed. The Old Navy space later became a fun family place called Saturn 5 in 2010.
In 2012, the company that owned the mall, Simon Property Group, decided to sell it. Later that year, Mason Asset Management bought the mall for $25 million. Macy's announced in 2014 that its store would close. It moved to a new mall nearby. The movie theater also closed a month later.
In 2015, Sears made a change to its business. It separated its store at DeSoto Square Mall into a different company. In 2017, Mason Asset Management sold the mall again. A new owner, Meyer Lebovitz, bought it for $25.5 million. He chose Madison Properties USA LLC to help manage and update the mall.
Recent Years
In 2018, a new store called Your Treasure House opened. It was a retail and auction store. It took over part of the old Macy's spot. In July 2018, the mall got a new name. It became "Midtown DeSoto Square Mall."
On October 15, 2018, it was announced that the Sears store would close. This was part of a plan to close many Sears stores across the country. After Sears closed, only about 30 shops were left. This included the food court.
Your Treasure House closed in late 2019. This left the former Macy's space empty again. In December 2019, plans were announced to turn the old Sears building into a storage facility.
On June 4, 2020, JCPenney announced it would close its store. It closed on October 18, 2020. This left Hudson's Furniture as the only main store still open in the mall.
Main Stores
Here are the main stores that have been at the mall:
| Store | Opened | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Current Main Store | ||
| Hudson's Furniture | 2014 | This building was first a Belk store. |
| Empty Main Store Spaces | ||
| Vacant Anchor Space #1 | N/A | This used to be Sears. It will become a self-storage facility. |
| Vacant Anchor Space #2 | N/A | This used to be JCPenney. |
| Vacant Anchor Space #3 | N/A | This space was Maas Brothers, then Burdines, then Macy's, and most recently Your Treasure House. |
Former Main Stores
