The Maine Mall facts for kids
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| Location | South Portland, Maine |
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| Address | 364 Maine Mall Road, South Portland, ME 04106 |
| Opening date | 1971 |
| Management | Brookfield Properties |
| Owner | Brookfield Properties |
| No. of stores and services | 120 |
| No. of anchor tenants | 7 (5 open, 2 vacant) |
| Total retail floor area | 1,009,044 square feet (93,743.3 m2) |
| No. of floors | 1 with partial upper level (2 in Jordan's Furniture and Macy's) |
The Maine Mall is a large indoor shopping mall located in South Portland, Maine. It is the biggest shopping mall in the state of Maine. It's also the second largest in northern New England, right after The Mall at Rockingham Park.
The mall has several main stores, called Anchor stores. These are like the biggest shops that attract many people. The current anchor stores are Best Buy, JCPenney, Jordan's Furniture, Macy's, and Round One Entertainment. Two other large spots used to be home to Forever 21 and Sears, but they are now empty.
Contents
History of The Maine Mall
The Maine Mall has grown and changed a lot over the years.
Early Days and Growth
In 1969, a store called Jordan Marsh opened. This was the first Jordan Marsh in Maine. Two years later, in 1971, the main indoor shopping mall was built. A large department store called Sears also opened at this time.
In 1983, the mall became much bigger. Its size doubled with a major expansion. During this time, a new department store called Porteous opened. JCPenney and Filene's also joined the mall.
Changes and New Stores
A big update happened in 1994. The mall spent $6.5 million to add a food court. This is a place where you can find many different restaurants. They also added a store called Lechmere and a larger arcade for games.
In 1996, Porteous closed down. Its space was replaced by two new stores. A Filene's Home Store opened on the lower floor. Sports Authority opened on the upper floor. This new section even had escalators, which were rare in Maine malls. Also, the Jordan Marsh store became a Macy's.
More changes came in 1997. F. W. Woolworth Company and Lechmere both closed. Soon after, Linens 'n Things and Best Buy took their places. In 2003, a company called General Growth Properties bought the mall.
Recent Store Openings and Closures
In 2005, the Filene's stores closed. This was because Macy's already had a store there. In late 2008, Forever 21 and H&M opened in part of the old Filene's space. Sports Authority stayed on the upper floor.
Linens 'n Things closed in 2009. In 2012, The Bon-Ton announced they would open a store in the old Filene's space. It opened in September 2013. This made Bon-Ton the fourth big department store at the mall.
However, some stores closed again. Sports Authority closed in August 2016. Bon-Ton also closed in August 2017. In December 2017, it was announced that Round One Entertainment would open in the old Sports Authority spot.
In May 2019, Jordan's Furniture announced they would open in the former Filene's/Bon-Ton space. They opened in July 2020. Sadly, Sears closed its Maine Mall store in September 2020. Forever 21 also closed in 2020.
The Future of The Maine Mall
Malls across America have faced challenges. Online stores like Amazon and big retailers like Walmart have changed how people shop. The recent COVID-19 pandemic also made things harder for many malls.
New Ideas for the Mall Area
In November 2020, a new plan was suggested for The Maine Mall. This plan aims to change some of the empty parking lots. The idea is to use this land for new housing and fun activities.
The plan is called the Maine Mall Transit Oriented District Concept Plan. It wants to make the mall area more sustainable. This means it will be better for the environment and the community. The plan hopes to:
- Reduce urban sprawl (when cities spread out too much).
- Reduce traffic congestion (too many cars on the road).
- Increase public transportation options around the mall.
Building a Community Hub
City planners want to build on ideas from other projects. They are using new zoning rules that allow homes to be built near the mall. A key part of the plan is Transit-oriented development. This means making it easy for people to walk or use buses to get to the mall. The mall already has five bus routes that stop there.
The mall would still be the main attraction. But it would also become a community center. Through infill development, people could live, work, see doctors, and have fun activities all close to the mall. The goal is to make people want to visit the mall more often.
The mall's owner, Brookfield Properties, is doing similar projects elsewhere. For example, at North Point Mall in Georgia, they are adding apartments and a bike system.
Exciting New Features
The proposed plan for The Maine Mall includes many new features. The big parking lots might be replaced with parking garages. These garages could even have green spaces or parks on their roofs. The plan also suggests adding a hotel, a convention center, more parks, and even a baseball field.
To make all these changes, South Portland will need to update its roads and traffic patterns. This is a big and exciting plan. It's part of a larger goal to make South Portland one of the most sustainable cities in Maine. It's not clear when these changes will start, but they aim to make the mall a lively place for the future.
