The Avenues (shopping mall) facts for kids
| Location | Jacksonville, Florida, United States |
|---|---|
| Address | 10300 Southside Boulevard |
| Opening date | September 26, 1990 |
| Developer | CBL & Associates Properties |
| Management | Simon Property Group |
| Owner | Simon Property Group (25%) |
| No. of stores and services | 138 |
| No. of anchor tenants | 5 (4 open, 1 vacant) |
| Total retail floor area | 1,112,428 sq ft (103,347.9 m2) |
| No. of floors | 2 (3 in Parking Garage) |
The Avenues is a large shopping mall located in Jacksonville, Florida. It is often called Avenues Mall. This mall opened its doors in 1990. You can find it near Interstate 95 and U.S. Route 1 (Philips Highway). The mall has a parking garage on its northwest side. It is managed by Simon Property Group.
The Avenues is home to many popular stores. Its main stores, called anchor stores, include Belk, Dillard's, Forever 21, and JCPenney. Other well-known shops you can find there are Aldo, H&M, LOFT, MAC, LUSH Fresh Handmade Cosmetics, Jos. A. Bank, The Buckle, Express, PacSun, Skechers, and The Walking Company.
Contents
Mall History: How The Avenues Grew
The Avenues mall first opened on September 26, 1990. When it first opened, it had a few main stores. These included JCPenney, Maison Blanche, and Sears.
In 1991, another big store, Dillard's, joined the mall. Later, in 1994, the department store Parisian also opened. Over the years, some of the original stores changed their names or became new stores. For example, Maison Blanche became Gayfers in 1992. Then, in 1998, Gayfers changed to Belk.
Mall Upgrades and New Features
The Avenues got a big makeover in 2005. This renovation cost almost $10.5 million. It was finished in April of that year.
The changes made the mall look more modern and inviting. They added a new entrance with pretty stained glass. The walls were painted in calm colors. The ground floor got new Italian limestone. The mall also updated its restrooms, ceilings, and lighting. New benches and comfy lounge chairs were added for shoppers to relax. The glass elevator was also made more modern. A fun new play area for children was also part of the upgrades.
Store Changes Over Time
In 2006, the Parisian store at The Avenues was sold to Belk. For a short time, the Parisian store closed. It then reopened as a Belk store just for men's and children's clothing. The women's clothing sections stayed in the main Belk store. By 2010, all of Belk's departments were together in one large store.
On November 18, 2010, Forever 21 opened a huge store in the space where the Belk Men and Kids store used to be. This Forever 21 was the second-largest in the entire country at the time. It was also the biggest Forever 21 store in all of Florida. It covered a very large area, about 116,000 square feet.
In 2019, Sears announced that it would be closing many of its stores. The Sears store at The Avenues was one of them. It closed its doors in December 2019.
Main Stores at The Avenues Today
These are the large anchor stores that are currently open at The Avenues:
- Dillard's (about 210,104 square feet)
- Forever 21 (about 116,298 square feet)
- JCPenney (about 123,029 square feet)
- Belk (about 181,460 square feet)
Past Main Stores at The Avenues
Over the years, some main stores have changed or left The Avenues:
- Maison Blanche (later became Gayfers)
- Gayfers (later became Belk)
- Parisian (later became Belk Men's, Children's and Home)
- Belk Men's, Children's and Home (later became Forever 21)
- Sears (about 125,330 square feet, now empty)
