MacArthur Center is a

shopping mall A shopping mall (or simply mall) is a North American term for a large indoor shopping center, usually anchored by department stores. The term "mall" originally meant a pedestrian promenade with shops along it (that is, the term was used to refe ...

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

, in the center of the Hampton Roads metropolitan area. Built by the

Taubman Company Taubman Centers, Inc. is an American real estate investment trust headquartered in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. The company invests in shopping centers, and is a subsidiary of Simon Property Group since 2020. History The company was founded in 19 ...

, the mall is owned by Starwood Capital Group since October 2014. The mall currently features a large Dillard's which is also a regional flagship.

Mall history

Plans were first announced in June 1994. The original mall was intended to have

Macy's Macy's (originally R. H. Macy & Co.) is an American chain of high-end department stores founded in 1858 by Rowland Hussey Macy. It became a division of the Cincinnati-based Federated Department Stores in 1994, through which it is affiliated wi ...

, who had signed a letter of interest during the early stages of development for the property. The 140-store mall opened on March 12, 1999, with the region's first

Nordstrom Nordstrom, Inc. () is an American luxury department store chain headquartered in Seattle, Washington, and founded by John W. Nordstrom and Carl F. Wallin in 1901. The original Wallin & Nordstrom store operated exclusively as a shoe store, a ...

department store as well as a Dillards and over 70 new-to-market stores. The mall was notable for having stores that could not be found across the rest of the Hampton Roads Region. Some notable opening day tenants included Rainforest Cafe,

Restoration Hardware RH (formerly Restoration Hardware) is an upscale American home-furnishings company headquartered in Corte Madera, California. The company sells its merchandise through its retail stores, catalog, and online. As of August 2018, the company operate ...

Abercrombie and Fitch Abercrombie & Fitch (A&F) is an American lifestyle retailer that focuses on casual wear. Its headquarters are in New Albany, Ohio. The company operates three other offshoot brands: Abercrombie Kids, Hollister Co., and Gilly Hicks. As of Februa ...

, United Colors of Benetton, Discovery Channel Store, and a Jeepers indoor amusement park. The mall is adjacent to the

General Douglas MacArthur Douglas MacArthur (26 January 18805 April 1964) was an American military leader who served as General of the Army for the United States, as well as a field marshal to the Philippine Army. He had served with distinction in World War I, was ...

Memorial. The mall currently maintains the East Coast flagship store for Dillard's . There are of mall tenant shops and of food and entertainment offerings, including the Regal MacArthur 18 movie theater. The late 2010s saw multiple classic chain anchors retreat from brick and mortar after being challenged by digital retailers in recent years. Multiple shootings that occurred at the mall also lead to the mall decreasing in popularity. In 2019 During a wave of store closures, it was announced Nordstrom would be closing their location at the mall. In 2018 and 2019,

J Crew J.Crew Group, Inc., is an American multi-brand, multi-channel, specialty retailer. The company offers an assortment of women's, men's, and children's apparel and accessories, including swimwear, outerwear, lounge-wear, bags, sweaters, denim, dre ...

,Fossil,

Yankee Candle The Yankee Candle Company (referred to simply as Yankee Candle) is an American manufacturer and retailer of scented candles, candleholders, accessories, and dinnerware. Its products are sold by thousands of gift shops nationwide, through cat ...

Banana Republic In political science, the term banana republic describes a politically unstable country with an economy dependent upon the export of natural resources. In 1904, the American author O. Henry coined the term to describe Honduras and neighboring c ...

Williams Sonoma Williams Sonoma is an American retailer of cookware, appliances, and home furnishings. It is owned by Williams-Sonoma, Inc. and was founded by Charles E. (Chuck) Williams in 1956. History In 1947, Chuck Williams settled in Sonoma, Californ ...

, Pottery Barn,

Eddie Bauer Eddie Bauer, LLC is an American clothing store chain headquartered in Seattle, Seattle, Washington. Eddie Bauer sells its merchandise via retail stores, outlet stores, and online and via phone, with a call center in Groveport, Ohio. Its flagship ...

, Charlotte Russe, Forever 21, Brighton Collectables, Chicos, Zales and many other stores announced their closure at the mall following the departure of Nordstrom. In 2019 Gameworks announced it would open a storefront in MacArthur Center the spring of 2020. In March 2020, MacArthur Center closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The mall later reopened for business at 11am on May 21, 2020. Primarily due to impacts the COVID-19 pandemic, Express, Victorias Secret, Talbots,

, Papyrus, Francescas,

The Walking Company The Walking Company, Inc. (sometimes referred to as TWC), is a United States-based comfort footwear company and subsidiary of The Walking Company Holdings, Inc., that was founded in 1991 in Chatsworth, California. History Co-founders Steve Adler ...

Justice Justice, in its broadest sense, is the principle that people receive that which they deserve, with the interpretation of what then constitutes "deserving" being impacted upon by numerous fields, with many differing viewpoints and perspective ...

, J Jill,

New York & Company New York & Company, Inc. (NY&C) is an American workwear retailer for women. New York & Company apparel and accessories are sold through a nationwide network of retail stores, and through its e-commerce site. New York & Company was founded ...

, and others closed at the mall. After Starwood Capital Group defaulted on a $750,000,000 loan for the mall, management was temporarily handed over to JLL until Spinoso Real Estate Group began managing the mall in 2021. In March 2021 the city of Norfolk announced plans to tear down the mall by 2030 to make room for new developments. The mall will continue to operate normally until then. In May of 2021,

Apple An apple is an edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus domestica''). Apple trees are cultivated worldwide and are the most widely grown species in the genus ''Malus''. The tree originated in Central Asia, where its wild ancestor, ' ...

announced they would be closing their Macarthur Center location leaving the

Lynnhaven Mall Lynnhaven Mall is an enclosed super-regional shopping mall in Virginia Beach, Virginia, USA. It opened in August 1981. At of gross leasable area, it is the largest mall in the Hampton Roads metropolitan area of southeastern Virginia and one of t ...

location as the only store in the Hampton Roads area. Following a shooting in April 2022, Texas De Brazil closed its location at the mall. In December of 2022, Barnes & Noble closed at the mall leaving another large anchor space vacant. The Mall currently has around 75 stores and services with space for 140.

MacArthur on Ice

Every winter since 2005, MacArthur Center has operated a

ice skating Ice skating is the self-propulsion and gliding of a person across an ice surface, using metal-bladed ice skates. People skate for various reasons, including recreation (fun), exercise, competitive sports, and commuting. Ice skating may be per ...

rink on the property.

References

External links

{{Shopping malls in Virginia Downtown Norfolk, Virginia Economy of Norfolk, Virginia Shopping malls in Virginia Buildings and structures in Norfolk, Virginia Tourist attractions in Norfolk, Virginia Shopping malls established in 1999 1999 establishments in Virginia