Jordan Creek Town Center

Jordan Creek Town Center is a shopping mall in the city of West Des Moines, Iowa. It is the largest shopping complex in the state of Iowa with a total gross leasable area of 1,340,000 square feet (124,000 m2).[2] It is also the fourth largest shopping complex in the Midwest, and the 24th largest shopping complex in the United States. The center is named after Jordan Creek, a tributary of the Raccoon River that was named after James Cunningham Jordan, the first person to settle in what is now West Des Moines.[3] The mall's anchor stores are Century Theatres, Dillard's, Von Maur, and Scheels All Sports and includes the only Apple Store in Iowa.

Jordan Creek Town Center
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LocationWest Des Moines, Iowa, United States
Coordinates41°34′11″N 93°48′12″W / 41.569722°N 93.803333°W / 41.569722; -93.803333
Opening dateAugust 4, 2004; 20 years ago (2004-08-04)
DeveloperGeneral Growth Properties
ManagementBrookfield Properties
OwnerBrookfield Properties
No. of stores and services150 [1]
No. of anchor tenants12
Total retail floor area2,000,000 sq ft (190,000 m2) [2]
No. of floors2
Parking8,900 spaces[2]
Public transit accessDART
Websitejordancreektowncenter.com

History

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Former Younkers store

Proposal 1995 - 2004

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Around 1995, the family of local businessman Art Wittern proposed the "Village at Oakbrook" to the city of West Des Moines on the 200-acre (0.81 km2) site that the Witterns owned at 74th Street (later renamed Jordan Creek Parkway) and E.P. True Parkway. The village would have contained a mixture of commercial, residential, and office development that was intended to attract upscale retailers similar to those at Country Club Plaza in Kansas City. In 1999, following the success of Coral Ridge Mall in eastern Iowa, General Growth Properties chose the Wittern site for its proposed "town center" concept.[4]

General Growth unveiled plans for Jordan Creek Town Center in May 2000. Two of the Des Moines metropolitan area's existing malls, Merle Hay Mall and Valley West Mall, promptly sued the city of West Des Moines, claiming that it was illegal to use public money from tax increment financing to make improvements around the mall. The Iowa Supreme Court dismissed the lawsuit on February 27, 2002,[5] allowing construction of the $200 million complex to begin later that year.

2004–present

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Jordan Creek Town Center opened on August 4, 2004, attracting nearly 17 million shoppers in its first year.[6] Jordan Creek led to short-term sales declines at the three existing regional malls in the Des Moines area (Merle Hay, Valley West, and Southridge) while accounting for nearly 37 percent of taxable sales at the four malls during the last three months of 2004.[7] Jordan Creek also affected sales tax revenues in Dallas County, which jumped from $16.7 million in fiscal 2004 to $33.7 million in fiscal 2006.[8] It has also spawned other new commercial developments in West Des Moines such as the West Glen Town Center near Interstate 35 and a new Wells Fargo office complex south of the mall.

In May 2007, Iowa State University economists David Swenson and Liesl Eathington released a study showing that retail sales in the Dallas County portion of West Des Moines had increased by over $310 million, or 503.7 percent, during Jordan Creek's first two years of operation. At the same time, sales in the city of Des Moines decreased by nearly $194 million (5.2 percent) while sales in the Polk County portion of West Des Moines decreased by $22 million (2.4 percent). Smaller Dallas County cities like Adel and Perry also experienced declines in retail sales during this period.[9][10]

In February 2018, Iowa-based department store Von Maur announced it would construct a new location at the mall, with a planned opening in 2022.[11] In April 2018, the parent company to the mall's Younkers department store announced it would cease operations and close all stores.[12] The Jordan Creek store closed on August 29, 2018.[13]

On June 10, 2021, a 2-story H&M would open right next to the main atrium.[14]

On November 5, 2022, Von Maur opened in the former Younkers location.[15]

References

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  1. ^ "Store Directory". Retrieved 2008-05-10.
  2. ^ a b c "Jordan Creek Town Center Information".
  3. ^ "What's in a name? | Iowa Living Magazines". www.iowalivingmagazines.com. Retrieved 2018-11-05.
  4. ^ Erb, Gene (2000-06-19). "Mall's size takes some by surprise". The Des Moines Register. p. 1A.
  5. ^ Iowa Supreme Court (2002). "Supreme Court Opinion". Retrieved 2006-05-05. [dead link]
  6. ^ Johnson, Patt (2005-07-31). "Jordan Creek redirects competition". The Des Moines Register.
  7. ^ Johnson, Patt; David Elbert (2005-05-27). "Jordan Creek provides retail spark". The Des Moines Register. p. 1A.
  8. ^ Bzdega, Sarah (2007-02-25). "Jordan Creek area shows no signs of slowing". Des Moines Business Record.
  9. ^ Eathington, Liesl; Swenson, David. "Recent Trade Shifts in the Des Moines/West Des Moines Metropolitan Region" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2009-02-23. Retrieved 2007-05-19.
  10. ^ Johnson, Patt (2007-05-19). "Study: Shoppers bypass D.M." The Des Moines Register. pp. 1A, 4A.
  11. ^ Patt Johnson (February 7, 2018). "Von Maur bucks retail trend, plans new store at Jordan Creek mall". Des Moines Register. Retrieved April 22, 2018.
  12. ^ "Department-store chain Bon-Ton is going out of business — here's the list of the 212 stores that will close". Business Insider. Retrieved 2018-11-05.
  13. ^ Aaron Smith (April 19, 2018). "Every Bon-Ton department store is closing". CNN. Retrieved April 22, 2018.
  14. ^ "H&M opens Jordan Creek Town Center location".
  15. ^ "Von Maur sets opening date at Jordan Creek Town Center".
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