CENTURY PLAZA: BIRMINGHAM, AL
JT's Commentary:
Posted March 11, 2007 (off site)
http://georgiaretailmemories.blogspot.com/2007/03/century-plaza-mall.html
Robert McNeill's Commentary:
Posted November 20, 2006 (user submitted)
As of November 10 2006 Belks and JC Penney have closed down.There was a cheap clothing store occupying one of the vacant anchor stores,from what I saw,it looked as if it was out of business.This leaves only 1 anchor store, Sears, still open.I've heard speculation that Sears was thinking about moving.
I was last in the mall back in August and it seemed to have a alot of shoppers, but my latest visit 11/10/06 shows differently.The mall only had one lit sign on it,that was the sign of Sears.The rest of the front part of the mall was dark.The back of the mall is pretty much lifeless since Belks and JC Penneys moved,the only thing back here are the cars of people who used the Back Entrance.
In Trusville, The Pinnacle has opened, and a Wal-Mart along with a few other big-box retailers are curently under construction at the old Eastwood site.I feel that both of these will cause Century Plaza's life support to run dry.I dont think it will be long until Century turns into a clone of Eastwood.When those anchor stores move out,the other stores are soon to follow.
Kathy Jefferson's Commentary:
Posted April 23, 2004 (user submitted)
Century Plaza is presently on the verge of death. For the moment, it is a second-tier mall. Once the premier shopping center for the eastern Birmingham area (its opening paved the way for Eastwood Mall's demise - see Eastwood Mall entry), it is now swiftly down spiraling toward certain death.
Century Plaza, built in 1975, once was home to four anchor stores - JC Penney, Sears, Pizitz (now McRae's), and Rich's. In its heyday, it contained a McDonald's, Aladdin's Castle (a superb video arcade), Gap, Express, Karmelkorn, Chess King, Ormond's, Baker's Shoes, Butler's Shoes, B. Dalton's, Bookland, Musicland, Camelot Music, 5-7-9, Stuarts/Stuarts Plus, Merry Go Round, Spencers, Radio Shack, Hickory Farms, Pearle Vision, Snow's gifts, Hallmark, very nice pet store, Hello Kitty/Sanrio store (always my favorite, as a pre-adolescent shopper) and much more I can't recall at the moment.
The mall was a prototypical 70s dark wood/dark tile/lots of ferns & ficus type structure. It centered around a circular middle, which was home to the India Shoppe (almost a sort of head shop, one could purchase their reggae/alternative/punk t-shirts, incense, bongs, etc. here - and get pierced) and a jewelry store.
In the late 80's the mall was remodeled to resemble every other mall of the time period - skylights, white paint over the wood finish, lighter tiles, etc. Many of the best tenants began to leave - among them B. Dalton, Bookland, Musicland.
Not much changed at Century until rather recently.
Subtle changes occurred at first - the tobacco shop and Regis Hair Salon closed, making way for a no-name barber shop and generic nail salon.
Other chains started to leave - where Family Christian Bookstore stood, Eden's Gifts now stands, with a wide assortment of cheap home interiors.
Even Frederick's of Hollywood left - its replacement? A storefront where you can have your photograph transferred onto a T-shirt.
Piccadilly's Cafeteria closed up shop, as did Famous Footwear. Both stores are vacant. Deck the Walls closed, making way for some low-rent picture shop, which has since closed.
The final nail in the coffin - Rich's closing.
Rich's-Macy's, once a bustling haven of teens, ladies who lunch, and everyone in between, has closed for good. I believe its final business day was earlier this month. This especially saddens me, as I worked there for a time in the mid 90s. I bought my prom dress there, got my first store credit card there - I was devastated.
Admittedly, the mall does still boast some major chain stores: Radio Shack, Bath & Body Works, Victoria's Secret, Lane Bryant. And three of the four anchor stores are still going strong. But I can hear the death knell in the distance.
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Jennifer Franklin’s Commentary:
User submitted Jun 2008I guess now Century Plaza would be considered close to a dead mall. All but one it's anchors are now shuttered. I hear Sears is next to close. Century Plaza was THE mall to go shop back in the 80's. The interior was brown glossy floor...well, kind of like the mall in the movie "Fast Times at Ridgemont High." I used to love going there when I was a kid. They had every kind of shop and you could buy all of your school clothes there. There used to be a Hibbet Sports and a sports/shoe store called Hang Ten. I remember when I used to look at the tennis shoes at the Hibbets and Hang Ten with my mom back in the early 80's. My mom thought it outragious to pay $40.00 for a pair of shoes. &nb
sp;(Remember, this was 80's prices for Nikes and Reeboks.) But she would sometimes give in and buy me the shoes I wanted....like the Kaepa shoes with the removable triangle snap-ons where you could buy different color triangles and change them out. There was a store called Gee Wiz that sold mainly little girls stuff, like Hello Kitty novelties. My aunt would always have to make a stop at the Orange Julius to get a drink, I hated those orange drinks. Back when I was very small, there was a Mexican restaraunt called El Chico's right across the hall from Rich's department store...we used to go in there and eat. I know I was very little because I would always get a coloring book with crayons in there. I got my ears pierced for the first time at the India Shoppe, a jewelry store that was located out in the middle of the mall. The India Shoppe is still in the mall, but in a different location.&
nbsp; It now sells mostly punk and merchandise for "stoners." There was an arcade called Aladin's Castle where I used to spend time and a lot of quarters playing Gallaga and PacMan, and of course, ski-ball. Around the mid-nineties, some shops started closing. They closed the big McDonalds that had been in there since the mall was built. They closed most of the candy stands and the Hickory Farms. They had a small food court which was relocated in the mall a couple of times, and one by one, those food establishments started shutting down. The first anchor to go was Rich's, followed by JC Penny, and McRaes. To make a long story short, now there are only sneaker stores, and shops that carry cheap beauty products. The mall is now referred to as the "ghetto mall". Need I even state the reason for mall's demise. But Century Plaza will
be missed...I only wish I had pictures of the mall back in it's heyday!
Tim Berneche’s Commentary:
User submitted Jul 2007This former mall is now doing well as a collection of individual stores, which appears to be the trend in retail. I first visited the Century Mall in the early 1990's as it had Ward's, Service Merchandise, and Burlington Coat Factory as its anchors. The latter is the only remaining store.
There is a Wikipedia entry on the mall:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Century_Consumer_Mall
Apparently opened in 1979, its architecture was very progressive for the time, lots of skylights in cylindrical shafts and tons of diagonal wood siding on the corridor walls. But it was no match for the mighty Southlake Mall, the two-story behemoth built in 1971 with much nicer finishes (white terrazzo corridors) and excellent landscaping.
Service Merchandise moved to a strip center across the street from Southlake Mall and did exceptionally well, until SM overall evaporated.
The death of Montgomery Wards rapidly accelerated the death of this mall. They kept the Wards building and Burlington Coat Factory/Service Merchandise buildings and tore down the mall between them.
The former Century Mall is now thriving as Century Plaza, but a mall no longer.
http://nwitimes.com/articles/2007/02/28/news/lake_county/doc918068149f3cfd488625729000144069.txt
I will try to see if I have any photos. Obviously I would have to scan them as they are the good old fashioned prints, as are all of my pre-2002 shots. I am an architect and while it was very dated when I visited it, I found it very interesting because it was never remodeled from its original opening in 1979, which in 1995 was not good news. Wood walls and orange carpet were definitely out by then.
fats’s Commentary:
User submitted Apr 2007Malls of America has a great picture of CP from 1976, for what it's worth.
http://mallsofamerica.blogspot.com/2007/02/century-plaza-mall.html
I used it on my blog as well as a photo of the remodeled version. The Old Brown Lady is all but dead now.
http://sageford.blogspot.com/2007/04/old-brown-lady.html
(the mall's nickname, which is all brown brick out side, is a take on the nickname of our largest football stadium, Legion Field, which is the "old Gray Lady." by the way, she'll probably be on her way out in the near future too.)