Springfield Town Center

Springfield Town Center is an enclosed shopping center located in the Springfield census-designated place (CDP) of unincorporated Fairfax County, Virginia. It opened in 1973 as Springfield Mall, an enclosed shopping mall, which closed on June 30, 2012 as part of a multimillion-dollar redevelopment plan to turn it into a multifaceted "Town Center"-style shopping center with a main indoor area similar to the nearby Tysons Corner Center and Dulles Town Center, while transforming the exterior into a pedestrian friendly environment with restaurants with cafe style outdoor seating and entrances.[1][2] It is located at the intersection of Interstate 95 and Franconia Road (Route 644), which is part of the Springfield Interchange, 1/4 mile north of Franconia-Springfield Parkway (State Route 289) and the Franconia-Springfield Metro station. The mall reopened on October 17, 2014 following its two-year renovation.

The main entrance of the revitalized Springfield Town Center
Springfield Town Center
Interior of the Springfield Town Center, second level
LocationSpringfield, Virginia, United States
Coordinates38.774558°N 77.1749812°W / 38.774558; -77.1749812
Address6500 Springfield Mall, Springfield, VA, 22150
Opening dateMay 7, 1973 (1973-05-07) (as Springfield Mall)
October 17, 2014 (2014-10-17) (as Springfield Town Center)
DeveloperArthur M. Fischer Inc. and Franconia Associates
ManagementPREIT
OwnerPREIT
No. of stores and services155
No. of anchor tenants8
Total retail floor area1,700,000 sq ft (160,000 m2)
No. of floors2 (3 in Macy's)
Parking8,100 parking spaces (four levels in the Loisdale garage and six levels in the Frontier garage plus uncovered lots)
Public transit accessBus transport Fairfax Connector: 310, 321, 322, 334, 350, 351, 401, 402, 494
Websitespringfieldtowncenter.com

Original anchors were Lansburgh's (later E.J. Korvette),[3][4] Garfinckel's (later Sports Authority), J.C. Penney, and Montgomery Ward (later Target). Macy's was added in 1991.[5] The mall was notable for having one of the top two performing locations of the Time Out chain of amusement arcades, which featured in its mall rat culture during the 1980s golden age of arcades.[6][7]

Prince Charles and Princess Diana visited the JCPenney store at the mall on November 11, 1985, during their famous American tour.[8] However, the mall's fortunes declined in the 1990s and 2000s. Its DMV office was where Hani Hanjour and Khalid al-Mihdhar, two of the hijackers in the September 11 attacks, illegally obtained state identification.[9] The mall also experienced two gang-related stabbings in 2005,[10] two fatal shootings, one in December 2007 and one in June 2022[11] [12] and a fatal carjacking in September 2008.[13]

One of the largest malls in Northern Virginia, it was owned and operated by Vornado Realty Trust. In 2005, Vornado purchased an option valued at $36 million to buy the mall from the previous owners Franconia Two LP.[14] In early 2006, Vornado purchased the mall for an additional $80 million along with plans to redevelop.[15]

In March 2012, Vornado announced plans to close all but the three anchor stores starting on July 1, ahead of the two-year renovation and redevelopment, which is part of a decade-long plan intended to turn the Mall and its surrounding area into the new Springfield Town Center.[16] Springfield Town Center re-opened on October 17, 2014.[17][18]

In March 2014, Vornado announced plans to sell Springfield Town Center to Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust (PREIT) for $465 million, with the deal slated to close in March 2015.[19] In late 2015, Dave and Buster's, a popular family owned entertainment and sports bar opened.

In February 2022, PREIT announced that the property would open a LEGO Discovery Center in 2023. The 32,000 square foot indoor attraction will be co-created by Merlin & the LEGO Group and will be located at the main entrance to the property.[20]

References
  1. Stewart, Amanda. "Springfield Mall reopens as Springfield Town Center".
  2. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2013-10-04. Retrieved 2013-10-02.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  3. ""springfield mall" "lasburgh's" – Google Search". google.com. Retrieved 13 March 2015.
  4. "Chain Store Age, Executives Edition Combined with Shopping Center Age". google.com. July 1973. Retrieved 13 March 2015.
  5. "NewsLibrary Search Results".
  6. "article". Funworld Magazine. 1995. p. 16. Retrieved 2018-05-08.
  7. Latimer, Leah (1983-02-21). "MALL RATS". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2018-05-08.
  8. "1985: America welcomes Charles and Diana". BBC News. November 9, 1985.
  9. Carney, Timothy P. "Hijackers' Helper Faces Two Years Max". Human Events. 57 (48). Retrieved 11 September 2015 – via EBSCOhost.
  10. "Police Make Arrest In Springfield Mall Stabbing Incident". nbc4.com. 1 December 2005. Archived from the original on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 11 September 2015.
  11. Jackman, Tom (April 26, 2008). "2 Indicted in Alleged Gang Killing at Springfield Mall". The Washington Post. Retrieved May 23, 2010.
  12. Constantino, Abigail (October 13, 2022). "No charges for officers who shot, killed armed man at Springfield mall". wtop.com. Retrieved October 20, 2022.
  13. Duggan, Paul (September 15, 2008). "Woodbridge Man Charged In Fatal Virginia Carjacking". The Washington Post. Retrieved November 20, 2014.
  14. Hedgpeth, Dana (November 1, 2005). "Firm Makes Deal For Springfield Mall". The Washington Post. Retrieved May 23, 2010.
  15. "Real Estate Review". Commercial Real Estate Review. Divaris Real Estate. Archived from the original on 25 October 2006. Retrieved 11 September 2015.
  16. "Aging Springfield Mall to close all stores but anchors for renovations". WTOP. 8 March 2012. Retrieved 11 September 2015.
  17. Bhattarai, Abha (4 September 2014). "Springfield Town Center reopens Oct. 17. Here's what it looks like now". The Washington Post. Retrieved 11 September 2015.
  18. "Springfield Town Center Reopens". NBC4 Washington. 8 March 2012. Retrieved 11 September 2015.
  19. Van Allen, Peter (March 4, 2014). "PREIT will pay $465M for Virginia mall". Philadelphia Business Journal. Retrieved March 13, 2014.
  20. "PREIT and Merlin Entertainments to Bring Next Generation of LEGO® Discovery Centers to Serve the Washington DC Market at Springfield Town Center". PREIT. 2022-02-04. Retrieved 2022-08-24.
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