METRO NORTH MALL: KANSAS CITY, MO
Deadmalls.com Update
In August 2016, it was announced that redevelopment plans by property owner Metro North Crossing LLC had received the proper re-zoning necessary to demolish and replace the existing mall structure with a mixed-use site consisting of retail, office and living space. Demolition is underway. Macy's will remain for the foreseeable future.
Nick Brim's Commentary
Posted November 20, 2006 (user submitted)
Metro North Mall is a 2-story, large mall, built in 1977. Metro North features
4 anchors: JCPenney, Montgomery Wards, Dillard's, and The Jones Store (a May
Dept. Store, only in Missouri and Kansas). The mall had a very large parking
lot, 2 pretty fountains; one by Wards, one by Jones, and a courtyard with a
stage. The courtyard was a special feature, that I have never seen in any other
mall, it was a stage surrounded by water, with hot-air balloons floating up and
down around it. They hold magic shows, singing contests, and Santa in the
courtyard stage. Metro North was decorated with lamposts, benches, plants, and
many other decorative items. The lamposts and walls are supposed to look
'retro', they are a pastel green color. The mall did well, until about 2000.
Metro North lost Montgomery Wards in 2000-2001, when the company went bankrupt,
and the Wards end died off, especially the top level. The lower level did a little better, but it lost quite a few stores.
There was a movie theater inside mall, at Wards end, but it closed in late 90s.
They built a small, 6-screen theater outside, behind Wards and they had both
theaters running at once, but they closed all of a sudden, at same time. With
the 2-screen movie theater, they boarded up and planned on opening it up as a
food court (mall never was built with one), a carroseul, and bouncy toys, like
Independence Center had. The food court was to open in July 2003, but never
did. It is now 3 years later, so I doubt it will ever open.
The mall continues losing stores at a steady pace, losing the clothing stores,
The Buckle and The Avenue after the Christmas season in early 2006. Famous
Footwear, Hat Zone, and Trade Secret all closed recently, within about last 3
months. The mall continues to get a fairly decent business, but it is slowly
dying. The parking lot remains at about 25-50% full, even on a Saturday. Metro
North is still my favorite mall, and I hope it does well and stays alive, but
it doesn't look so good for it.
In September 2006, The Jones Store was renamed Macy*s, due to a merger of
Macy*s and May Dept Stores. Metro North still has some popular stores in it
including; Helzberg Diamonds, Foot Locker, New York & Co., Bath & Body Works,
Regis Hairstlyists, Pretzel Time, Gamestop, Original Pizza, Mr. Bulky's Candy
Store, Lane Bryant, Hallmark, EyeMasters, The Limited, and more. The mall is
probably about 45-50% occupied, and contains about 60 stores, of the 125
storefronts.
A good thing about the mall, is that it has tons of holiday shops, because it
has room, but it still does enough business to support them. Country Parlor and
Country Hearts sell beautiful candles, paintings, christmas figurines, lawn
ornaments, and other cute items, They have a Halloween store, selling many
halloween decorations, as well as costumes and make-up products. They have a
Throws n' Such, selling large throws and rugs, and a Writer at Large, selling
poetic-themed items and wall hangings.
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Bill Kirkpatrick’s Commentary:
User submitted Jul 2010This mall, which used to be my second home, is on the track for redevelopment:
http://www.metronorthredevelopment.com/
http://kansascity.bizjournals.com/kansascity/stories/2010/04/05/story1.html
Robert Frye’s Commentary:
User submitted Sep 2009I currently work at the Macy's Department store at Metro North and the mall has died almost completely off. There is still a few stores but they keep closing. Mr. Bulkeys Candy closed a couple weeks ago and I have heard that the Payless Shoe store will be closing. I have also heard that Santa will not be coming to Metro North this year due to lack of stores and business. Macy's stays fairly busy but not like it once has been. Macy's has bought the building from the mall itself in plans of staying there even if the mall does not. I have heard from several people that they have seen plans where the mall is torn down and Macy's is the only thing left and I have also heard that they are thinking about tearing the mall down to build a strip mall, but with what stores, I have no idea. I have also heard that Metro North's management company charged too high of rent for the area which is when companies started leaving to find new locations in the area. Famous foo
twear for example moved just across the street and JC Penny moved to the new Tiffany Springs Shops and the Dillards moved into a larger, nicer, and newer building in Zona Rosa and is so beautiful and has a larger selection than they once had. I remember shopping at the old Dillards at Metro North and how dark it was that I couldn't really see the clothing and merchandise to decide if I wanted to buy it so I often left without buying anything. Metro North has gone downhill very quickly and I just hope that they can find a way to save the mall and bring businesses back there. The mall is in need of a remodel because the old "retro" fixtures are not pleasing to the eyes and when I walk to the restroom by the Kay Jewelers store, I feel like I am in a horror film and am walking to my demise...I think that Metro North needs to hold more activities there and maybe need to bring in small boutiques to fill some store fronts. They also need to find more "anchor"
stores to make the mall seem stable because I know just from hearing the customers that come into Macy's, they are only there to shop at Macy's and don't even bother with the mall. It will be interesting to see what happens with the mall over the next few months and years, hopefully they will save the mall and keep some peoples memories of shopping and "hanging" out there alive.
Nick Brim’s Commentary:
User submitted Feb 2007After the 2006-2007 holiday shopping season, the mall suffered a few store losses. Waldenbooks closed in late January, because of their recent merger with Border's. The Waldenbooks was closed, rather than having the name changed to Borders Express like in some malls, because a Border's is approximately 5 miles away, in the nearby Boardwalk. The women's clothing stores; Express and Lane Bryant, closed recently. There are very few specialty clothing stores at Metro North, and this just makes less. The Dillard's has converted to an outlet store, and re-organized their merchandise. The lower level entrance is now shuttered, with their stuff being moved to the upper level and the front of the lower level; Dillard's still is accessible from the upper level inside the mall. The Eldridge Fine Jewelry had Everything Must Go! Sales on their jewelry, attracting a lot of attention during the holi
day shopping, and closed. The specialty jewelry store, Sandy's, has put up signs announcing their Going Out Of Business. The mall still attracts people, and the mall will probably last a couple of years before it really struggles.