White Oaks Mall (Springfield, Illinois)
 White Oaks Mall from the southeast | |
 | |
| Location | Springfield, Illinois |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 39°46′02″N 89°42′13″W / 39.76723°N 89.70358°W |
| Address | 2501 Wabash Ave |
| Opening date | August 24th, 1977 |
| Owner | Simon Property Group (80.7%) |
| No. of stores and services | 77 |
| No. of anchor tenants | 6 (4 open, 2 vacant) |
| Total retail floor area | 928,772 square feet (86,285.7 m2) |
| No. of floors | 2 |
| Public transit access |  SMTD |
| Website | simon.com/mall/white-oaks-mall |
White Oaks Mall is a shopping mall in Springfield, Illinois, United States. It is located on the southwest side of Springfield, approximately five miles (8 km) southwest of the city center, at the junction of Illinois Route 4 (Veterans Parkway) and Wabash Avenue. With 928,772 square feet (86,285.7 m2) of retail space, it is the largest shopping mall in Central Illinois.[1] The mall's anchors are Macy's and Malibu Jack’s. Junior anchors in the former Montgomery Ward anchor building are Michaels, Esporta Fitness and Dick's Sporting Goods The mall's former Sears anchor store was remodeled in 2025 as state government offices.
History
[edit]Construction began in 1974.[2][3] The original planned name of the mall was Westroads Mall. Ed McMahon and Billy Carter attended the grand opening, on August 24, 1977.[3][4] The four original anchor stores were Sears, Montgomery Ward, Famous-Barr and Myers Brothers. Myers Brothers was bought by Bergner's in 1978 and the store was rebranded.
In the early 1990s, it underwent a $14 million renovation which included the addition of a new food court.[5] A carousel was installed in 1997.
White Oaks Mall houses over 100 stores.[6] Its operator, the Simon Property Group, which owns 80.7% of the mall, describes White Oaks Mall as a "super-regional shopping mall".[2] The mall shares its name with the White Oak, the state tree of Illinois.
White Oaks Mall has a children's play area. The Children's Place and Carter's specialize in juvenile clothing.[7]
In 2001, the Montgomery Ward anchor store closed, after the chain went out of business.[8] In 2006, all Famous-Barr stores were rebranded as Macy's.[9]
In July 2018, the Bergner's anchor store closed when the chain went out of business. In September 2018, the Sears anchor store closed, as part of a plan to close 78 stores nationwide. This left Macy's as the only anchor store.
In 2020, the Illinois Department of Central Management Services, the custodian of Illinois state government real estate, purchased the 120,000 sq ft Sears anchor store, to be remodeled as office space for the Illinois Department of Innovation and Technology, Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, and Illinois Pollution Control Board.[10] In January 2025, after $80 million in remodeling work, the Illinois EPA moved into the building.[11]
After Bergner’s closed, the space was replaced with an entertainment facility known as Malibu Jack’s in 2023. Malibu Jack’s has since become the primary anchor tenant for the space.
On January 9, 2025, it was announced that Macy's store would close as part of a plan to close 66 stores nationwide. The store closed in March 2025, leaving the mall with no traditional anchors but with non-traditional anchor tenants with more of a focus on entertainment and office space.[12]
References
[edit]- ^ "Springfield: Shopping". Springfield Convention and Visitors Bureau. Retrieved November 7, 2009.
- ^ a b "White Oaks Mall: Springfield, IL". Simon Property Group. Retrieved November 7, 2009.
- ^ a b "White Oaks Mall (1993)". SpringfieldRewind.com. December 11, 2007. Retrieved November 9, 2009.
- ^ "History of White Oaks Mall". The State Journal-Register (Springfield, Illinois). February 1, 2009. Retrieved November 9, 2009.
- ^ Bill Ward (October 17, 1993). "White Oaks Mall a travel adventure: Just when you think you've shopped it all... whoomp, there it is!". Herald & Review (Decatur, Illinois). Retrieved November 9, 2009.
- ^ Simon Property Group, L.P. "About White Oaks Mall - A Shopping Center in Springfield, IL - A Simon Property". Retrieved January 29, 2020.
White Oaks Mall offers more than 100 specialty stores
- ^ White Oaks Mall. OutletStoresMalls.com. Retrieved: 9 February 2015.
- ^ https://www.sj-r.com/story/news/2009/01/20/white-oaks-at-glance/43087490007/
- ^ https://bgdailynews.com/2006/04/22/famous-barr-to-become-macys/
- ^ Rushton, Bruce (December 3, 2020). "Moving to the mall: State of Illinois buys Sears space". Illinois Times. Springfield, Ill. Retrieved December 5, 2020.
- ^ https://www.springfieldbusinessjournal.com/columns/epa-prepares-to-move-to-white-oaks-mall-15545307
- ^ Tyko, Kelly (January 9, 2025). "Macy's closing 66 more stores in 2025. See the closure list". Axios. Retrieved January 9, 2025.