Panama City Mall facts for kids
The Panama City Mall Entrance Sign
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| Location | Panama City, Florida, United States |
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| Coordinates | 30°11′13″N 85°38′51″W / 30.187°N 85.6476°W |
| Address | 2150 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. |
| Opening date | August 10, 1976 |
| Closing date | December 5, 2018 |
| Developer | Charles N. Agree |
| Owner | Hendon Properties |
| No. of stores and services | 13 (at its peak) |
| No. of anchor tenants | 3 |
| Total retail floor area | 608,339 square feet (57,000 m2) |
| No. of floors | 1 |
The Panama City Mall was a large, single-story shopping center in Panama City, Florida. It opened in 1976. Big stores like J. C. Penney, Gayfers, and Sears were its main attractions, called "anchor stores." Hendon Properties owned and managed the mall from 2013. The mall closed permanently in 2018 because of serious damage from Hurricane Michael. There are plans to build new shops, homes, and offices on the land where the mall once stood. This new area might be similar to Pier Park in Panama City Beach, Florida.
History of Panama City Mall
The Panama City Mall was built by Charles N. Agree. It first opened its doors in August 1976. At that time, its main "anchor stores" were Sears and Gayfers.
In November 1982, the mall grew bigger. A new section called the East Wing was added. This new part also brought in another major store, J.C. Penney. Later, in 1999, the Gayfers store changed its name and became Dillard's.
During the late 2000s, two more stores joined the mall: Cost Plus World Market and Linens 'n Things. Some existing stores had to move to make space for them. Linens 'n Things later changed to Bed Bath & Beyond. Cost Plus World Market eventually moved to Pier Park in Panama City Beach. Also, a gym called Planet Fitness opened next to Dillard's.
In 2015, the company that owned Sears made some changes. The Sears store at Panama City Mall became part of a different property company.
On October 15, 2018, Sears announced it would close its store at the mall. This happened after Sears faced financial difficulties.
The mall officially closed forever on December 5, 2018. The owners, Hendon Properties, said it was too expensive to fix the mall after Hurricane Michael caused a lot of damage. However, the Dillard's and J.C. Penney stores were repaired. They reopened as stand-alone stores in 2019. Dillard's reopened in October 2018, and J.C. Penney reopened on August 30, 2019. Bed Bath & Beyond closed its mall location in Spring 2019 and moved to Pier Park North.
On July 31, 2020, the J.C. Penney store at this location was put up for sale.
Mall Anchor Stores
Anchor stores are usually the largest stores in a shopping mall. They help attract many shoppers.
Current Anchor Stores
- Dillard's (since 1999)
- J.C. Penney (since November 1982)
- Planet Fitness (since 2015)
Former Anchor Stores
- Bed Bath & Beyond (2008-2019)
- Cost Plus World Market
- Gayfers (August 10, 1976-1999)
- Linens 'n Things (until 2008)
- Sears (August 10, 1976-October 15, 2018)
