Uptown Janesville facts for kids
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| Location | Janesville, Wisconsin, United States |
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| Coordinates | 42°42′42″N 88°59′55″W / 42.71167°N 88.99861°W |
| Opening date | September 1973 |
| Developer | M. H. Hausman Co. |
| Management | RockStep Capital |
| Owner | RockStep Capital |
| No. of stores and services | 68 (+ kiosks) |
| No. of anchor tenants | 6 |
| Total retail floor area | 627,128 square feet (58,262 m2) |
| No. of floors | 1 |
| Parking | 2,700 spaces |
Uptown Janesville is a popular shopping mall in Janesville, Wisconsin, United States. It first opened its doors in 1973. This mall, once known as Janesville Mall, has over 68 different shops and places to visit. Today, its main stores, called "anchor stores," are Dick's Sporting Goods, Ulta Beauty, and Kohl's. Some big spaces are currently empty, but they used to be home to famous stores like Sears, Boston Store, and JCPenney.
Contents
How Uptown Janesville Started
Finding the Perfect Spot
Back in 1970, a developer named Roger Benjamin was looking for a good place to build a shopping center. He flew over southern Wisconsin and saw lots of open land. This land was in the Town of Harmony, right by Milton Avenue. It was a great spot, located between the main downtown streets and Interstate 90.
Benjamin realized that the Janesville area had enough people. Nearly 200,000 people lived nearby, and they had enough money to support a large mall. He also noticed that another big store, Montgomery Ward, was already building nearby.
From Idea to Reality
Roger Benjamin and two friends started a company called Janesville Properties Company. They bought about 40 acres (160,000 m2) of land next to the Montgomery Ward store. At first, Benjamin thought about building a "strip mall." This is a row of stores with outside entrances.
But with Montgomery Ward's help, he changed his plan. They decided to build an enclosed mall instead. This meant all the stores would be inside one big building. Welles, a discount store, and Montgomery Ward would be the first main "anchor" stores.
Within a year, another department store, Charles V. Weise, joined the plan. It was owned by Bergner's. Their store was placed in the middle of the mall. A large open area, called a central courtyard, was built right outside its entrance. In November 1970, they announced plans for the $10 million mall. Construction was set to begin in spring 1971.
A Last-Minute Change
Welles discount store was supposed to be one of the original anchor stores. But while the mall was still being built, Welles's parent company ran into financial trouble. So, their space was given to J. C. Penney. J. C. Penney even had to make their store a bit bigger, extending it into the mall itself.
The Early Years: 1970s and 1980s
Grand Opening and Growth
The Janesville Mall officially opened its doors in September 1973. It had three main anchor stores and 12 other shops. Unlike some older shopping centers nearby, Janesville Mall was fully enclosed. This was a big deal, especially in Wisconsin's cold winters! Being inside made it a much more comfortable place to shop. Soon, all the empty spaces inside the mall were filled with popular national stores.
New Names for Stores
In 1985, a company called Bergner's bought the Boston Store chain. Because of this, the Charles V. Weise stores, including the one at Janesville Mall, changed their name to Bergner's. Also in 1985, Montgomery Ward closed its store. Later that same year, Kohl's took over that space.
Changes in the 1990s
A New Look and More Stores
The Janesville Mall became very popular. It even caused some nearby shopping centers to lose stores. In 1991, Bergner's faced some financial problems. Their store at a different mall closed, but the Bergner's at Janesville Mall changed its name to Boston Store.
The mall got a fresh new look in 1991. It was remodeled with brighter, softer colors. They even removed the large fig trees that were part of the original design.
Welcoming Sears
In 1996, the mall's management tried again to bring the Sears store to Janesville Mall. This time, Sears was offered a great deal. They could close their store at another location and open a brand new one at Janesville Mall. They also received some financial help. Sears agreed!
By 1997, a new, two-story Sears store was built onto Janesville Mall. It was about 110,000-square-foot (10,000 m2) in size. This made Sears the fourth main anchor store at the mall.
New Owners and Additions
In 1998, a real estate company called CBL & Associates Properties, Inc. bought the mall. That same year, Kohl's made its store even bigger by taking over some smaller shops next to it. The mall's movie theater closed down, and a fun family restaurant called Chuck E. Cheese's opened in its place.
The 2000s and 2010s
Mall Size and Store Closures
Since the Sears store was added, the mall has been about 627,128 square feet (60,000 m2) in size. On May 3, 2014, the J. C. Penney store at Janesville Mall closed. This was part of a bigger plan by J. C. Penney to close 33 stores across the country.
In December 2014, CBL announced plans to spend millions of dollars to update Janesville Mall. On October 2, 2015, Dick's Sporting Goods opened in a large part of the old J. C. Penney space.
New Ownership and Renaming
On July 27, 2018, CBL sold Janesville Mall to a company called RockStep Capital for $18 million. CBL had bought the mall for $33 million back in 1998.
The Boston Store anchor closed in August 2018. This happened because its parent company, The Bon-Ton, closed all its stores. On November 8, 2018, Sears Holdings announced that the Sears anchor store and its Auto Center would close in February 2019. This left Dick's Sporting Goods and Kohl's as the only two main anchor stores. Unlike some other stores, Sears actually owned its building at the mall.
In July 2020, the Janesville Mall got a new name: Uptown Janesville.
Images for kids
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Leute, Jim. "My, How Time Flies". The Janesville Gazette, February 3, 1997.
