GREELEY MALL : GREELEY, CO
Raymie Humbert's Commentary
User submitted December 22, 2012
The one-level Greeley Mall in Greeley, Colorado opened in 1973 with the original anchor tenants of Sears (north), JCPenney (southwest), Joslin's (east) and Montgomery Ward (west), plus a junior anchor space (south) whose original occupant has not yet been determined. Joslin's became Dillard's in the 1998 buyout of Mercantile Stores and expanded to take up two anchor spaces; the east Joslin's became the women's store, while men's and home departments were to be found in the south side junior anchor.
The mall was renovated in 2004. This last renovation added skylights, freshened up the interior, introduced a modern entrance, added space for restaurants near the new entrance, and added the 12-screen Cinemark movie theater on the west end of the mall. The Cinemark theater replaced the dead Montgomery Ward on that side of the mall. However, the trouble began for the mall when The Gap left its large inline space vacant after an early 2005 closure. American Eagle followed suit the next year. Competition, which came in 2005 in the form of a lifestyle center due west on US 34 at the junction with Interstate 25, The Shops at Centerra (featuring Macy's, a movie theater, and prominent national chains), was probably one of the defining factors in the mall's decline. Northern Colorado is a competitive and expanding retail market and population area, but Greeley Mall is an aging property dating back to a very different era of the region.
The biggest blow, however, was Dillard's closing the Greeley Mall store(s) in May 2008 along with underperforming stores in other malls, some of which were dead malls. 124,000 square feet ' that's over one-fifth of the mall was left empty.
The fierce competition, poor economy and loss of a very large anchor tenant in two spaces have taken their toll: the mall has been sold several times (including, most recently, a foreclosure auction) after once being owned by Macerich, stores have fled in droves and traffic has decreased considerably. The mall's value reflects this stunning decline; the mall was sold at auction in March 2012 for a mere $6.1 million when it was valued at $41 million in 2006.
The mall covers 578,000 square feet with room for 70 stores.