Kansas City begins major mixed-use center

Three Trails Redevelopment has begun demolishing the Bannister Mall in Kansas City, Mo. The organization plans to redevelop the area with a $1 billion mixed-use complex that includes a sports arena, 1.5 million square feet of office space and 1 million square feet of retail. American City ...

See full story here: Business Journals/Kansas City, Mo.. (1/21)

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Closed as of 5/31/07

Mary Sanchez of the KC Star has an interesting commentary.

KMBC's Chris Nagus, after seeing our reports on Bannister Mall did a package about this very website.

This just in from KSHB...Bannister Mall is closing 5/31/07. The report we have indicates there are less than 50 stores in the mall and the mall manager is quoted as saying 'things have to change'. Louis Garrett, a tenant in the mall complains about the management of the mall saying, "We get the mall management changed and get proper mall management in here, we'll get new stores in here". No comment on what management plans to do with Bannister Mall. Deadmalls.com is considering one last field trip to Bannister.

The former Wal-mart HyperMart prototype closed 1/19/07 according to Fox 4/WDAF, after 17 years.

Editorial: I have to wonder what KMCI's sales department is gonna do now!
Exclusive Deadmalls.com photos taken 4/21/07 by our roving correspondent

Jenny Rahija's Commentary

I remember my parents taking me when I was growing up to Bannister Mall. The mall is located off of Hilcrest and Bannister road in Kansas City, Missouri just east of I 435 North.

The mall opened up in 1980. I remember so much about this mall. The department stores that were there before I was born were Macy's, Jones Store (May Dept Store Company), Sears, and JC Penney. The other stores that were in the mall were Petland, KB Toys, Musicland, Pretzel Time, Saturday Matinee which is a video store, Kinder Photo, Tiny Treasures (a store for little girls), Things Remembered, Mr. Bulky's ,Lady Foot Locker, Foot Locker, Two Claires Stores, a bunch of fine Jewelry Stores, Kids Foot Locker, Waldenbooks, B Dalton Books.

There was a huge food court with the following restraunts in it, One Potato and Two, Big Al's Hamburgers, Tippins Pies, Original Pizza ,Original Greek, Natures Table, Egg Roll House which became a Panda Express, Mrs.Fields Cookies, Karmelkorn ,Orange Julius, A and W , and The Great Steak and Fry Company. remember eating in the food court and getting a cookie or popcorn afterwords.

The Macy's closed and then became a Dillards. Then the Tiny Treasures store, and Petland went out of business. When I was in high school the mall started to decline. My freshman year the mall was almost full and by the time I was a senior the mall was almost completely empty. The mall started having problems with crime because there was so many problems with shoplifting, purse snatching, robbery, and auto theft. The first anchor store to leave the mall was JC Penney which closed in the summer of 2000. The movie theatres closed because people were having fights inside the theatres. The Dillards Store closed in 2002. Then the Jones Store Closed in 2004. The Sears store is closed now. Most of the small stores in between the department store building are now vacant.The food court which is by where the Jones Store used to be only has one restraunt in it. The reason that the mall is in the way it is today is because the owners didn't have enough security to make the mall safe. One time I went in there after the Dillards closed and I saw to women fighting and screaming in the middle of the mall. I was worried somebody may pull out a weapon and hurt somebody. Across the street in the Wal Mart there is a police station inside the store.

TK's Commentary

And it gets worse, kids. I'm aware of the Clothing store that opened (KC Clothing on the upper level), as well as the flea market in the former Penney's space. (I've actually seen TV ads airing locally in Kansas City, god help us all..the production value is minimal at best.)
The Wal-Mart across the street (an original HyperMart) is being relocated to the site of another dead mall, Blue Ridge (which was torn town and rats abounded!), in the very near future. All I can say is...mmmkay?

Shad Bailey's Commentary

Terry that wrote the last commentary sounds racist and negataive. True Bannister Mall is not like it once was its now an Urban mall and most of the businesses are minority owned and yes there is a flea market there. But its hardly dead. There are still over 100 businesses in it and i would appreciate it if you could please point that out.Comments like the ones on this web site are hurting the businesses in the mall. Please just add my comments thats all I ask.The clothing store that opended in the mall is great and I enjoy the flea market. If you are interested in retail history come out and visit the Bannister mall...you will have the time of your life!!!

TK's Response

The facts on this mall speak for themselves. People (other than the KMCI-TV sales representative who spends time trying to get Bannister's tenants to advertise) are scared out of their minds to go there (Maybe that has to do with the security towers in the parking lot). There are NO anchors! Sears took over the Kmart up the street, and put in its Sears Grand concept. You know its bad when even Wal-Mart, which owns a dead mall or two themselves *cough* North Town Mall *cough*, doesn't want to be anywhere near this mall. I said it before and I'll say it again, Bannister is dead.

User known as Prshack

Bannister Mall is dead, there are NO anchors and there's definently not 100 stores in it. The last time I went there was in the middle of a weekday, and it was obvious that some stores were out of business, even though they were full with merchandise, because it was in the business hours and they weren't open. One store said it was reopening in June 2005, wasn't empty, and this was in 2006! The only chain stores left are 3 (yes 3!) Foot Lockers and a Lenscrafters. As I remember, the rental is only 60 cents a square foot a month. Way back in 2001, there was a plan to bring a Bass Pro Shop to the mall, but the proposal was later defeated. The only new developement is a Fire Station being built in the parking lot of the mall. The old one was in the parking lot too. A lot of a huge plaza opposite of the mall is dead also. Stores no longer there include: Best Buy, Some department sized store (I want to say Wards), Hobby Lobby, Toys "R" Us and now... Wal-Mart. End note: I'm scared to go there!

Say Yes to Soccer!

The KC Star and FOX 4 (WDAF) are reporting that the Kansas City Wizards Soccer Team is looking at Bannister Mall as a possible place to put its new stadium.
The Star goes on to report that Bannister Mall as well as the Great Mall of the Great Plains are being considered for potential locations for the Wizards home.
The deadmalls.com research staff is working on this development.

Goodbye to an old friend.

Editorial note: This was sent to us by Joe Gunn and is a fitting farewell to Bannister

I am not going to get in to why the mall died and who if anyone is to blame. I haven't been inside the building for years but I drive by Bannister Mall every now and then and think about what it once was. There are many memories for me there. I was a teenager while the mall was still in it's heyday and of course spent more then my share of time there. After hearing the other day that it will soon be closed for good I decided I will definitely be making one last trip there before the doors are locked for good. Now that I think about it the place holds so many memories from my teenage years. I think it only fitting to go and say good by to an old friend.