The Oaks Mall facts for kids
Aerial view of the mall in 2010
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| Location | Gainesville, Florida |
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| Address | 6419 W. Newberry Road |
| Opening date | February 1978 |
| Developer | Alan Squitieri & David Hocker |
| Management | Brookfield Properties |
| Owner | Brookfield Properties (51%), Ivanhoe Cambridge (49%) |
| No. of stores and services | 119 |
| No. of anchor tenants | 5 (4 open, 1 vacant) |
| Total retail floor area | 906,104 sq ft (84,179.8 m2) |
| No. of floors | 1 (2 in Belk and both Dillard's locations) |
The Oaks Mall is a large indoor shopping center located in Gainesville, Florida. It's a popular spot for shopping and fun.
This mall has many different stores. Some of its biggest stores are Belk, two Dillard's stores, and J. C. Penney. You can also find a University of Florida Health clinic here. Most of the mall is on one floor. However, the Belk and Dillard's stores have two floors inside.
The Oaks Mall serves a very large area. Many people from different counties come to shop here. It's also close to the University of Florida and Santa Fe College. This means over 64,000 students are nearby. They often visit the mall too!
Contents
Mall History: How It Started
The idea for The Oaks Mall began in 1974. Two big stores, JCPenney and Belk-Lindsey, were the first to agree to open there. Both of these stores are still at the mall today.
The Oaks Mall officially opened its doors in February 1978. It was the second major indoor mall in Gainesville. Before it, there was the Gainesville Mall, which operated from 1969 to 1993.
New Stores Join the Mall
More stores joined The Oaks Mall in 1983. These included Burdines, Sears, and Ivey's. Sears moved to The Oaks Mall from the older Gainesville Mall.
In 2015, the company that owned Sears made a change. They created a new company called Seritage Growth Properties. This new company took over many Sears stores, including the one at The Oaks Mall.
Changes to Anchor Stores
On January 4, 2018, Macy's announced it would close its store at the mall. This was part of a plan to close several stores across the country. The Macy's store had a big sale and closed in March 2018.
After Macy's closed, Dillard's decided to expand. They moved into the old Macy's space. Dillard's also kept its original store location. This allowed them to offer even more products. The new, bigger Dillard's opened in November 2018.
Later in 2018, on April 20, Sears also announced it would close its store. This was part of a plan to close 42 Sears stores nationwide. The Sears store at The Oaks Mall closed in July 2018.
New Health Clinic Opens
In June 2018, UF Health shared plans for the former Sears space. They decided to open a large clinic there. This clinic would house their eye care (ophthalmology) and ear, nose, and throat (otolaryngology) departments. The new UF Health clinics had their grand opening on January 25, 2020.
