The Shops on Steeles and 404 facts for kids
| Location | Markham, Ontario, Canada |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 43°48′48″N 79°21′30″W / 43.813206°N 79.358438°W |
| Opening date | 1977 |
| Management | Wycliffe Property Management |
| No. of stores and services | 70 |
| No. of anchor tenants | 1 |
| No. of floors | 2 |
| Parking | outdoor street level and above former Sears (closed off) |
| Public transit access | TTC 51 Leslie, 53 Steeles East, and 25 Don Mills; YRT 3 Thornhill and 90 Leslie |
The Shops on Steeles and 404 is a shopping mall located in Markham, Ontario. It's a smaller mall with about 70 stores. Many of these stores are unique, independent shops. You'll find it at the corner of Steeles Avenue East and Don Mills Road.
Contents
Mall History and Changes
This section tells you about the mall's past. It covers changes to its main stores. It also explains plans for new buildings.
Sears Store: From Big to Gone
A big store called Sears Canada used to be a main attraction here. A main attraction store is often called an "anchor store." It helps bring many shoppers to the mall.
Sears started as a full department store. Later, it became a Sears Home store, selling things like furniture. In its final years, it was a Sears Outlet. This type of store sells items at lower prices. The Sears Outlet closed in April 2017.
After Sears left, a store called Bobby's Liquidation Outlet moved in. A liquidation outlet sells items from businesses that are closing or have too much stock. Another similar store, Closeout King, was there for a short time. Bobby's Outlet later closed in January 2019. The mall owners are now planning new uses for that large space.
Future Plans: New Buildings and Transit
In 2007, there were big plans for the mall area. Developers wanted to build new homes and apartments. This type of project is called "residential re-development." The plans also included some new shops on the ground floor.
There was also talk of a new transit hub. This would be a central spot for buses from the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) and York Region Transit (YRT). It would make it easier for people to get to the mall.
Why the Plans Stopped
The land for the mall is in Markham, Ontario. However, part of it is very close to Steeles Avenue. The city of Toronto owns Steeles Avenue. Because of this, Toronto has some say over building plans near the road.
A Toronto city councilor named David Shiner used this rule. He disagreed with the number of new homes planned. He thought too many homes would cause too much traffic. This is called a "veto," which means he could stop the plans.
Markham officials and the developers disagreed. They said they needed a certain number of homes to make the project work. Because of this disagreement, the plans for new buildings have not moved forward. The original mall is still open and running today.
