Mountain Farms Mall facts for kids
View of one end of the mall in 2007
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| Location | Hadley, Massachusetts, United States |
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| Coordinates | 42°21′14″N 72°33′13″W / 42.35389°N 72.55361°W |
| Address | 335 Russell Street |
| Opening date | 1973-11-23 |
| Developer | Pyramid Corporation |
| Management | Ed Cabitt |
| Owner | WS Development |
| No. of stores and services | 20+ |
| No. of anchor tenants | 9 |
| Total retail floor area | 395,065 square feet (36,703 m2) |
| No. of floors | 1 |
| Parking | 1745 |
| Owner's page on this mall | |
Mountain Farms Mall is a shopping center in Hadley, Massachusetts, United States. It has about 12 stores. You can find it on Route 9, at 335 Russell Street. This location is between the towns of Amherst and Northampton. It is also about five miles east of Exit 19 off I-91. The mall is currently owned by S.R. Weiner and WS Development.
Mall History
Mountain Farms Mall first opened its doors on November 23, 1973. It started as an indoor shopping mall. Some of its first big stores were Woolco and Almy's.
Changes Over Time
In 1978, another mall called Hampshire Mall opened nearby. After this, fewer people visited Mountain Farms Mall. In its early days, the mall had about 40 stores. By 1990, many people called Mountain Farms Mall "the dead mall." It had very few stores left. It even had a hot tub place and a weekly flea market. By spring 1994, only four of its original 35 stores remained.
A New Beginning
In June 1997, a company called WS Development became interested in the mall. They wanted to fix it up. Their plan included bringing in a large Walmart store. Some local leaders were worried about a big Walmart. They preferred smaller, unique shops for Hadley. However, in 1998, permission was given for Walmart to open.
In August 1998, the mall was sold to companies connected to WS Development. Construction to rebuild the mall started in February 1999.
New Stores Arrive
Walmart opened its store in February 2000. Linens 'N Things opened in September 2000, but it closed later in 2008. An Old Navy store opened in October 2000. In 2001, Barnes & Noble opened a bookstore in the updated mall. Michael's, an arts and crafts store, opened in 2002. It was located between Marshall's and the Bread & Circus supermarket.
In 2003, the Bread & Circus store got bigger. It was later renamed Whole Foods Market. An Econo Lodge hotel also opened in front of the mall in 2003. Around this time, Mountain Farms Mall became very popular. Other stores like Eastern Mountain Sports, Pier 1 Imports, Panera Bread, and Famous Footwear opened in 2004. The new, larger Whole Foods Market opened in June 2004.
In 2007, construction began for a Planet Fitness gym at the back of the mall. It opened in 2008. Bed, Bath, and Beyond opened in November 2009. It took over the space where Linens N' Things used to be.
Today, there is no main indoor entrance to the mall. You can only enter through separate store entrances.
