The Orchards Mall facts for kids
| Location | Benton Township, Michigan |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 42°05′07″N 86°25′26″W / 42.0853°N 86.424°W |
| Address | 1800 Pipestone Road |
| Opening date | October 24, 1979 |
| Developer | Westcor |
| Management | Vacant |
| Owner | Durga LLC and Bedi & Associates LLC |
| No. of stores and services | 11 (as of November 2020[update]) |
| No. of anchor tenants | 3 (all vacant) |
| Total retail floor area | 624,972 square feet |
| No. of floors | 1 |
The Orchards Mall is a shopping center located near Benton Harbor, Michigan. It first opened its doors in 1979. This mall used to have three large main stores, called "anchor stores," which were Carson's, Sears, and JCPenney. These big stores are now empty. However, the mall still has other stores like Slackers Family Fun Center, Doctor ZZZZ'Z Mattress Center, and Jo-Ann Fabrics.
Contents
History of The Orchards Mall
How the Mall Started
The idea for a mall in Benton Harbor began in 1974. It was first called Pipestone Mall. By 1976, there were talks that a big department store called Hudson's might join. A company named Westcor bought the land for the mall in August 1976.
The mall was part of a bigger building project along Pipestone Road, close to Interstate 94. This area also included a strip mall with a Kmart store. By 1977, it was confirmed that Sears and JCPenney would be the main anchor stores. They were also talking with Carson Pirie Scott to be the third main store.
Opening and Early Years
The Orchards Mall was built by Westcor and opened in 1979. Its first main stores were JCPenney and Sears. Other popular stores inside included Walgreens and York Steak House.
In 1992, another large store, Elder-Beerman, became the mall's third anchor. Walgreens moved out of the mall in the mid-1990s. Its space was empty for a while until Jo-Ann Fabrics opened there in the late 2000s.
Changes Over Time
In 1999, a company called General Growth Properties started managing the mall. The next year, new stores like Bath & Body Works opened. Other stores like Casual Corner and Finish Line, Inc. were updated.
General Growth sold the mall to Sequoia Investments in 2002. After this, four more businesses opened, including a Subway and a Chinese restaurant in the food court. KB Toys, a toy store that had been there since the beginning, closed in 2004. A restaurant called Ponderosa, which closed in 1997, became an Italian restaurant in 2007. The Subway restaurant also changed to a local restaurant that same year.
Recent Years and Closures
The Sears store at the mall closed in 2009. In 2011, the Elder-Beerman store changed its name and became a Carson's store.
In 2012, Sears returned to the mall with a smaller store called Sears Hometown. This store sold things like kitchen appliances and tools. It opened in the spot where an FYE music store used to be. Also, the old Sears Auto Center, which was a separate building near the mall, reopened as a local car repair shop.
The mall was put up for sale in 2014. A company called Kohan Retail Investment Group bought it on December 9, 2014.
Sears Hometown closed its doors in July 2017. On January 31, 2018, The Bon-Ton company announced that its Carson's stores, including the one at The Orchards Mall, would close. This store closed in April 2018.
The mall was sold again to Durga LLC on November 30, 2018. A company called Bedi & Associates LLC took over managing the mall in June 2020. On March 4, 2019, it was announced that JCPenney would also be closing its store. This store closed on July 7, 2019. The Bath & Body Works store has also moved out of the mall.
