Eastwood Mall
Encyclopedia
Eastwood Village, formerly Eastwood Mall, is a shopping mall
located in Birmingham
, Alabama
, United States
. It is located between Montclair Road and Crestwood Boulevard (U.S. Highway 78), adjacent to I-20, between Mountain Brook
and Irondale
.
When it opened on August 25, 1960, Eastwood Mall was the second enclosed shopping mall in the Southeastern United States
after North Carolina's Charlottetown Mall
, which opened on October 28, 1959. It remained one of the leading malls in Birmingham for nearly three decades and continued to hold its own into the 1990s.
and S.S. Kresge Corporation dime stores, as well as J.C. Penney
, a Kroger
supermarket, and Colonial Stores supermarket, (which became a Hill's Food Store, and eventually evolved into Winn-Dixie
). The mall had no major department stores until the mid-to-late 1960s. Anchors that have been connected to the center over time include the local chains Parisian, Pizitz
, and Yielding's, as well as Service Merchandise
.
A movie theater
opened on Christmas Day 1964 and was equipped to show Cinerama movies such as 2001: A Space Odyssey
and Ice Station Zebra
. Eastwood Mall Theatre was also the site of the world premiere of the 1976 film Stay Hungry
, which was set -and filmed- in Birmingham.
In 1967, Newman Waters sold Eastwood Mall to Alabama Farm Bureau (today known as ALFA), which owned the property until the mid 1980s. A competing mall, Century Plaza
, opened across the street in 1975.
, and a larger space for Parisian. When larger cinemas came into favor, the Eastwood Mall Theatre was closed.
However, the renovations came with a cost. Mismanagemaent involved with the mall renovations led to overcharged rents, which drove many of Eastwood's old-time tenants out, therefore turning the mall into a virtual dead mall.
Wal-Mart
bought the property from Lehman Brothers (the last owner of Eastwood Mall), and demolition of the mall began on June 23, 2006. It was completed about 10 weeks later. A Wal-Mart Supercenter opened on the site on October 22, 2007. This replaced the smaller Wal-Mart in Irondale.
It serves of one of the anchors of what is now called Eastwood Village. Other anchors are: Party City
, Ross Dress For Less, Office Depot
, Old Navy
, and Shoe Carnival
. Inside the "Retail Center" entrance of Wal-Mart is a historical tribute to Eastwood Mall that contains a brief history of the mall, as well as several photos. The display was the work of Friends of Eastwood Mall in cooperation with Wal-Mart. Many Eastwood Mall fans, as well as the Friends of Eastwood Mall, hope to see an official historical marker placed on the site of Eastwood Village honoring Eastwood Mall.
Shopping mall
A shopping mall, shopping centre, shopping arcade, shopping precinct or simply mall is one or more buildings forming a complex of shops representing merchandisers, with interconnecting walkways enabling visitors to easily walk from unit to unit, along with a parking area — a modern, indoor version...
located in Birmingham
Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham is the largest city in Alabama. The city is the county seat of Jefferson County. According to the 2010 United States Census, Birmingham had a population of 212,237. The Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Area, in estimate by the U.S...
, Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It is located between Montclair Road and Crestwood Boulevard (U.S. Highway 78), adjacent to I-20, between Mountain Brook
Mountain Brook, Alabama
Mountain Brook is a city in southeastern Jefferson County, Alabama, and a suburb of Birmingham. According to 2005 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the city is 20,821. Mountain Brook is a particularly affluent city within the Birmingham metropolitan area and has appeared in several lists...
and Irondale
Irondale, Alabama
Irondale is a city adjacent to Birmingham, Alabama, United States northeast from Homewood and Mountain Brook. At the 2010 census the population was 12,349. The book Fried Green Tomatoes, by Irondale native Fannie Flagg, is loosely based around the town and the landmark Irondale Cafe, known as The...
.
When it opened on August 25, 1960, Eastwood Mall was the second enclosed shopping mall in the Southeastern United States
Southeastern United States
The Southeastern United States, colloquially referred to as the Southeast, is the eastern portion of the Southern United States. It is one of the most populous regions in the United States of America....
after North Carolina's Charlottetown Mall
Charlottetown Mall
Charlottetown Mall was a shopping mall located in Charlotte, North Carolina. The first enclosed shopping mall in the Southeast, it opened in on October 28, 1959. Atlanta's Lenox Square opened two months earlier, but it was an open-air mall at first. The mall was situated on a parcel on the...
, which opened on October 28, 1959. It remained one of the leading malls in Birmingham for nearly three decades and continued to hold its own into the 1990s.
History
Eastwood Mall was the creation of Newman H. Waters, who owned a chain of drive-in theaters in the Birmingham area, including one adjacent to where Eastwood was built. Eastwood Mall's original tenant list included J.J. NewberryJ.J. Newberry
J.J. Newberry's was an American five and dime store chain in the 20th century. It was founded in Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania, United States, in 1911 by John Josiah Newberry . J.J. Newberry had learned the variety store business by working at S.H...
and S.S. Kresge Corporation dime stores, as well as J.C. Penney
J.C. Penney
J. C. Penney Company, Inc. is a chain of American mid-range department stores based in Plano, Texas, a suburb north of Dallas. The company operates 1,107 department stores in all 50 U.S. states and Puerto Rico. JCPenney also operates catalog sales merchant offices nationwide in many...
, a Kroger
Kroger
The Kroger Co. is an American supermarket chain founded by Bernard Kroger in 1883 in Cincinnati, Ohio. It reported US$ 76.7 billion in sales during fiscal year 2009. It is the country's largest grocery store chain and its second-largest grocery retailer by volume and second-place general retailer...
supermarket, and Colonial Stores supermarket, (which became a Hill's Food Store, and eventually evolved into Winn-Dixie
Winn-Dixie
Winn-Dixie Stores, Inc. is an American supermarket chain based in Jacksonville, Florida. Winn-Dixie has ranked number 24 in the 2010 "Top 75 North American Food Retailers" based on 2009 fiscal year estimated sales of $7.3 billion by Supermarket News. and was ranked the 43rd largest retailer in the...
). The mall had no major department stores until the mid-to-late 1960s. Anchors that have been connected to the center over time include the local chains Parisian, Pizitz
Pizitz
Pizitz was a major regional department store chain in Alabama, with its flagship store in downtown Birmingham. At its peak it operated 12 other stores, mostly in the Birmingham area with several locations in Huntsville and other Alabama cities....
, and Yielding's, as well as Service Merchandise
Service Merchandise
Service Merchandise is an online retailer and former retailer chain of catalog showroom stores carrying fine jewelry, toys, sporting goods, and electronics that existed for 68 years...
.
A movie theater
Movie theater
A movie theater, cinema, movie house, picture theater, film theater is a venue, usually a building, for viewing motion pictures ....
opened on Christmas Day 1964 and was equipped to show Cinerama movies such as 2001: A Space Odyssey
2001: A Space Odyssey (film)
2001: A Space Odyssey is a 1968 epic science fiction film produced and directed by Stanley Kubrick, and co-written by Kubrick and Arthur C. Clarke, partially inspired by Clarke's short story The Sentinel...
and Ice Station Zebra
Ice Station Zebra (film)
Ice Station Zebra is a 1968 action film directed by John Sturges, starring Rock Hudson, Patrick McGoohan, Ernest Borgnine, and Jim Brown. The screenplay by Alistair MacLean, Douglas Heyes, Harry Julian Fink, and W.R. Burnett is loosely based upon MacLean's 1963 novel of the same name. Both have...
. Eastwood Mall Theatre was also the site of the world premiere of the 1976 film Stay Hungry
Stay Hungry
Stay Hungry is the third album by American heavy metal band Twisted Sister. Released on May 10, 1984, the album features the band's two biggest hits, "We're Not Gonna Take It" and "I Wanna Rock" and the power ballad "The Price." According to RIAA certification, Stay Hungry gained Multi-Platinum...
, which was set -and filmed- in Birmingham.
In 1967, Newman Waters sold Eastwood Mall to Alabama Farm Bureau (today known as ALFA), which owned the property until the mid 1980s. A competing mall, Century Plaza
Century Plaza
Century Plaza was an enclosed shopping mall in Birmingham, Alabama, USA. Opened in 1975, the mall originally included four anchor stores and more than one hundred tenants, but lost three of those anchors in the mid-2000s. In May 2009, the mall was completely closed as Sears and the rest of the...
, opened across the street in 1975.
Decline
In 1989, Eastwood Mall received a facelift, adding a food court with a glass atrium and a wall of video screens that made one big image, a Books-A-MillionBooks-A-Million
Books-A-Million, Inc., also known as BAM!, is a company that owns the second largest U.S. bookstore chain and is headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama. The company operates over 200 stores in the South, Midwest, Northeast...
, and a larger space for Parisian. When larger cinemas came into favor, the Eastwood Mall Theatre was closed.
However, the renovations came with a cost. Mismanagemaent involved with the mall renovations led to overcharged rents, which drove many of Eastwood's old-time tenants out, therefore turning the mall into a virtual dead mall.
Wal-Mart
Wal-Mart
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. , branded as Walmart since 2008 and Wal-Mart before then, is an American public multinational corporation that runs chains of large discount department stores and warehouse stores. The company is the world's 18th largest public corporation, according to the Forbes Global 2000...
bought the property from Lehman Brothers (the last owner of Eastwood Mall), and demolition of the mall began on June 23, 2006. It was completed about 10 weeks later. A Wal-Mart Supercenter opened on the site on October 22, 2007. This replaced the smaller Wal-Mart in Irondale.
It serves of one of the anchors of what is now called Eastwood Village. Other anchors are: Party City
Party City
Party City is the largest retail party supply store in the United States, including Puerto Rico, with more than 500 corporate and franchised locations...
, Ross Dress For Less, Office Depot
Office Depot
Office Depot is a supplier of office products and provides many services. The company's selection of brand name office supplies includes business machines, computers, computer software and office furniture, while its business services encompass copying, printing, document reproduction, shipping,...
, Old Navy
Old Navy
Old Navy is an American clothing brand as well as a chain of stores owned by Gap, Inc., with corporate operations in San Francisco and San Bruno, California. It is one of the first major corporations to house headquarters in the new Mission Bay district of San Francisco.Gap, Inc. was run by...
, and Shoe Carnival
Shoe Carnival
Shoe Carnival is a retailer of family footwear in the United States. The company operates over 400 stores throughout the midwest, south, and southeast regions. It was founded by David Russell in 1978 and is headquartered in Evansville, Indiana....
. Inside the "Retail Center" entrance of Wal-Mart is a historical tribute to Eastwood Mall that contains a brief history of the mall, as well as several photos. The display was the work of Friends of Eastwood Mall in cooperation with Wal-Mart. Many Eastwood Mall fans, as well as the Friends of Eastwood Mall, hope to see an official historical marker placed on the site of Eastwood Village honoring Eastwood Mall.