River Valley Mall facts for kids
| Location | Lancaster, Ohio, U.S. |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 39°43′55.7″N 82°37′41.1″W / 39.732139°N 82.628083°W |
| Address | 1635 River Valley Circle South |
| Opening date | 1987 |
| Developer | Glimcher Realty Trust |
| Owner | RVM LLC |
| No. of stores and services | 55+ |
| No. of anchor tenants | 6 (4 open, 2 vacant) |
| Total retail floor area | 521,587 square feet (48,457.0 m2) |
| No. of floors | 1 |
River Valley Mall is a popular shopping center located in Lancaster, Ohio, United States. It first opened its doors in 1987. This mall is a great place to find many different stores and places to eat.
Some of the main stores at River Valley Mall are Cinemark Theatres, Dick's Sporting Goods, Ulta Beauty, and JCPenney. There are also two large empty spaces that used to be home to Elder-Beerman and Sears. The mall is currently owned by RVM LLC and managed by the Woodmont Company.
Contents
Mall History: How It Started
The idea for River Valley Mall began in 1985. Officials in Fairfield County, Ohio approved a plan from a company called Glimcher Realty Trust. They wanted to build a new mall along Memorial Drive, which was then part of US 33.
Building the mall was a big project. Construction started in June 1986. The plans showed that the mall would have almost 500,000 square feet (46,000 m2) of space. This included about 80 shops, restaurants, and a movie theater.
First Stores and Grand Opening
Two major stores, called anchor stores, agreed to be part of the mall early on. These were Lazarus and J. C. Penney. J. C. Penney even moved from another shopping center to be in the new mall.
By August 1986, Hills was confirmed as the third anchor store. Then, in March 1987, Elder-Beerman joined as the fourth. The mall officially opened for business on October 1, 1987. More than 50 stores were ready for shoppers on opening day.
Growing Bigger: Adding Sears
The mall continued to grow after it opened. By 1989, over 25 more stores had joined. A big expansion also happened that year. This added a movie theater and a fifth anchor store, Sears. Sears opened in October 1989 and also moved from the Plaza Shopping Center.
Changes Over Time: Stores Come and Go
Over the years, some stores at River Valley Mall have changed.
- In 1999, Ames took over the Hills store. However, Ames closed its store in 2001.
- Lazarus became Macy's in 2005. But Macy's closed in 2007 because sales were not strong enough.
- Steve & Barry's opened in the old Ames spot in 2003. This store closed in 2009 when the company went out of business.
- Around 2009, the mall added new places like IHOP and Old Navy. These new stores helped keep people coming to the mall. This was important because a new highway bypass for US 33 was built in 2005, which changed traffic patterns.
Recent Changes and New Anchors
More changes happened in the 2010s:
- In 2010, Dick's Sporting Goods opened in the large space that used to be Lazarus/Macy's.
- In 2014, Regal Cinemas closed the mall's movie theater. This happened because Cinemark planned to build a brand new theater. The new Cinemark theater was built where the old Steve & Barry's store used to be.
- The mall's ownership also changed. In 2016, Glimcher Realty Trust gave up ownership to Woodmont Company. Then, in 2017, Woodmont Company sold the mall to RVM LLC.
- Sears closed its store in April 2017. This was part of a plan to close many Sears stores across the country.
- Elder-Beerman closed on August 29, 2018. Its parent company went out of business.
As of 2019, River Valley Mall was still a busy place. Over 80 percent of its store spaces were filled.
