Valley West Mall

Valley West Mall
Location West Des Moines, Iowa, United States
Opening date August 4, 1975
Developer Frederick Watson
Management Watson Centers
Owner Valley West DM
No. of stores and services 117 (as of June 2008)[1]
No. of anchor tenants 3
Total retail floor area 859,399 square feet (79,841 m2)[2]
No. of floors 2
Parking 4,200 spaces[2]
Website www.valleywestmall.com

Valley West Mall is an enclosed super-regional shopping mall in West Des Moines, Iowa.

History

Frederick Watson, a developer from Minneapolis, Minnesota, first unveiled plans for Valley West Mall in 1971. The Meredith Corporation initially objected to the mall since it was right next to a site where Meredith planned to build its new corporate headquarters, but Meredith withdrew its plan to relocate there in June 1971.[3] A dispute with Dayton Hudson Corporation over plans to put a Dayton's department store at Valley West Mall also delayed construction. After Davenport-based Petersen Harned Von Maur signed a lease agreement to anchor the mall in mid-1974, Dayton Hudson unsuccessfully sued Watson, claiming it was promised a spot in the mall. The legal battle against Dayton Hudson also led to a delay in signing a third anchor store after Von Maur and Omaha-based Brandeis, as JCPenney refused to sign a lease agreement until the suit was settled.[4] Valley West Mall opened August 4, 1975, with about 20 stores and its first anchor, Brandeis. The mall's grand opening ceremony was held on July 28, 1976, with the opening of the second anchor, Petersen Harned Von Maur, and an additional 40 specialty stores. JCPenney, the third anchor, opened in March 1977 to complete the mall.[4] Brandeis was acquired by Younkers in 1987. Petersen Harned Von Maur changed its name to Von Maur in 1989. By 2000, Valley West was the Des Moines area's most-visited mall with an average of 40,000 shoppers per day.[5]

Plans for a fourth anchor store at Valley West Mall were announced on two separate occasions but never materialized. In March 1999, Dillard's signed a letter of intent with Watson Centers to build a $30 million store and parking ramp, but the letter of intent expired in August 2000,[6] and Dillard's located in the new Jordan Creek Town Center instead. In May 2001, Galyan's (now Dick's Sporting Goods) announced a plan to build an 84,000-square-foot (7,800 m2) anchor store, but by January 2003, it backed out of its plan to enter the Des Moines market.[7]

While Jordan Creek was under construction, Valley West underwent an interior renovation that was completed in August 2003.[8]

On December 24, 1998, a group of activists passed out handbills outside of Valley West Mall's JCPenney store that accused Phillips-Van Heusen, whose clothing line was sold at JCPenney, of promoting sweatshop conditions. The activists were removed by West Des Moines police and arrested for trespassing. Two of them sued the city of West Des Moines and took their case to the Iowa Supreme Court, arguing that malls like Valley West had become large public gathering places where they had the right to freedom of speech. West Des Moines, on the other hand, argued that Valley West was a private property and the owners would lose control of their property if handbill distribution was allowed.[9] On April 3, 2002, the Iowa Supreme Court ruled in favor of West Des Moines.[10]

Valley West Mall and Merle Hay Mall were plaintiffs in a lawsuit against the city of West Des Moines over the construction of Jordan Creek Town Center. The suit, which claimed that West Des Moines was illegally using tax increment financing money to improve the infrastructure around Jordan Creek, was dismissed by the Iowa Supreme Court on February 27, 2002.[11]

Anchors

References

  1. ↑ Watson Centers. "Valley West Mall: Complete Listing By Name". Retrieved 2007-03-11.
  2. 1 2 Jones Lang LaSalle. "Valley West Mall" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on October 6, 2007. Retrieved 2008-06-07.
  3. ↑ Nwobodo, Ike (1971-06-11). "W.D.M. Zoning OK On Shopping Center". The Des Moines Register. pp. 1,11.
  4. 1 2 Erb, Gene (1976-07-22). "Business Is Slow At Valley West, But Bright Future Seen". Des Moines Tribune. p. 3.
  5. ↑ Erb, Gene (2000-07-23). "New malls vs. old malls". The Des Moines Register. p. 1D.
  6. ↑ Ryberg, William (2000-08-30). "Dillard's and mall scratch project". The Des Moines Register. p. 1D.
  7. ↑ Johnson, Patt (2003-01-10). "Galyan's passes on mall location". The Des Moines Register. p. 1D.
  8. ↑ Johnson, Patt (2003-08-21). "Valley West upgrades its look". The Des Moines Register. p. 1D.
  9. ↑ Santiago, Frank (2002-01-18). "Students say mall denied free speech". The Des Moines Register. p. 4B.
  10. ↑ Iowa Supreme Court (2002). "Supreme Court Opinion". Retrieved 2007-03-11.
  11. ↑ Iowa Supreme Court (2002). "Supreme Court Opinion". Retrieved 2007-03-11.

Coordinates: 41°35′49″N 93°44′58″W / 41.596944°N 93.749444°W / 41.596944; -93.749444

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