Florence Mall
Encyclopedia
Florence Mall is an enclosed shopping 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...

 in Florence, Kentucky
Florence, Kentucky
Florence is a city in Boone County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 29,951 at the 2010 census.-History:The Florence area was originally known as Crossroads, because of the convergence of several roads from Burlington and Union at Ridge Road...

, USA. The mall, opened in 1976, comprises more than 100 stores, including four anchor store
Anchor store
In retail, an anchor store, draw tenant, anchor tenant, or key tenant is one of the larger stores in a shopping mall, usually a department store or a major retail chain....

s (JCPenney, Sears
Sears, Roebuck and Company
Sears, officially named Sears, Roebuck and Co., is an American chain of department stores which was founded by Richard Warren Sears and Alvah Curtis Roebuck in the late 19th century...

 and two Macy's
Macy's
Macy's is a U.S. chain of mid-to-high range department stores. In addition to its flagship Herald Square location in New York City, the company operates over 800 stores in the United States...

 stores) as well as a food court
Food court
A food court is generally an indoor plaza or common area within a facility that is contiguous with the counters of multiple food vendors and provides a common area for self-serve dining. Food courts may be found in shopping malls and airports, and in various regions may be a standalone development...

. The mall is managed by General Growth Properties
General Growth Properties
General Growth Properties, Inc. is a publicly traded real estate investment trust in the United States. It is based in Chicago, Illinois at 110 North Wacker Drive, a historic building designed by architectural firm Graham, Anderson, Probst & White...

 of Chicago, Illinois, and is noted for an adjacent water tower
Florence Y'all Water Tower
The Florence Y'all Water Tower is an approximately water tower owned by the city of Florence, Kentucky that stands between the Florence Mall and interstate highways 75 and 71. Millions of interstate motorists pass by the bold declaration every year, some who know the story behind the tower, and...

 which is painted with the phrase "Florence Y'all".

History

The Florence Mall opened in 1976 on a site along Interstate 75
Interstate 75
Interstate 75 is a major north–south Interstate Highway in the Great Lakes and Southeastern regions of the United States. It travels from State Road 826 and State Road 924 in Hialeah, Florida to Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, at the Ontario, Canada, border...

 just south of Kentucky Route 18
Kentucky Route 18
Kentucky Route 18, also known as Burlington Pike, is a state highway that serves as a major road through Florence and Burlington in the U.S. state of Kentucky. The western terminus of the route is at KY 338 in Rabbit Hash...

. The two-story mall was constructed by Homart Development, a former real estate division of Sears, Roebuck and Company
Sears, Roebuck and Company
Sears, officially named Sears, Roebuck and Co., is an American chain of department stores which was founded by Richard Warren Sears and Alvah Curtis Roebuck in the late 19th century...

. Sears also served as one of the anchor stores, opening on March 10, 1976. The mall itself opened six months later, with Pogue's serving as the second anchor. Two more anchors — Shillito's and JCPenney — were added in 1977 and 1978, respectively. At the time of opening, the mall featured 87 stores. The mall's opening led to the development of several retail stores in Florence, and as a result, the city became a retail hub for northern Kentucky.

While JCPenney and Sears remained the same throughout the mall's history, the other two anchors would change repeatedly as chains were acquired and merged. The Shillito's chain was merged with Rike's, and all former Shillito's and Rike's stores briefly carried the dual branding of Shilllito-Rike's from 1982 until 1986, when the chain was merged into Lazarus
Lazarus (department store)
F&R Lazarus & Company — commonly known as Lazarus — was a regional department store retail chain operating primarily in the U.S. Midwest, and based in Columbus, Ohio...

. Pogue's was then converted to L.S. Ayres
L.S. Ayres
L. S. Ayres & Company was an Indianapolis, Indiana, department store founded in 1872 by Lyman S. Ayres and taken over by his son Frederic in 1896...

 in 1983, which in turn sold its store to Hess's
Hess's
Hess's was a department store chain based in Allentown, Lehigh County, Pennsylvania in the United States.- History :The department store known as Hess Brothers was founded on February 19, 1897, by Charles and Max Hess. Max Hess came to Allentown in 1896 on a business trip and envisioned a...

 five years later. Also in the mid-1980s, the food court
Food court
A food court is generally an indoor plaza or common area within a facility that is contiguous with the counters of multiple food vendors and provides a common area for self-serve dining. Food courts may be found in shopping malls and airports, and in various regions may be a standalone development...

 was renovated.

Hess's closed in 1993, and one year later, Lazarus moved its home goods into the former Hess's space. Throughout the 1990s, the mall underwent an $8 million renovation, including the addition of 64 new tenants. In 2003, the mall was sold to General Growth Properties
General Growth Properties
General Growth Properties, Inc. is a publicly traded real estate investment trust in the United States. It is based in Chicago, Illinois at 110 North Wacker Drive, a historic building designed by architectural firm Graham, Anderson, Probst & White...

 of Chicago, Illinois, in association with the Teachers' Retirement System of Illinois, although General Growth had managed the property for several years prior. Both Lazarus stores were converted to Lazarus-Macy's in 2003, then to just Macy's in 2005. In addition, the mall's food court was renovated in 2004.

The mall comprises more than 130 tenants on two levels, and is the largest mall in northern Kentucky
Northern Kentucky
Northern Kentucky is the name often given to the northernmost counties in Kentucky...

.

Water tower

Prior to the mall's opening, a water tower
Water tower
A water tower or elevated water tower is a large elevated drinking water storage container constructed to hold a water supply at a height sufficient to pressurize a water distribution system....

with the words "FLORENCE MALL" was built between the mall and interstate 75. However, this commercial advertisement was considered a violation of federal and state laws - the mall had not even yet opened. As a result, the "M" in "Mall" was partially painted over, converting it to a "Y" and an apostrophe was added, changing the text to "FLORENCE Y'ALL". This inscription was never changed and has become a local landmark.

External links

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