Southdale Center

Southdale Center
View of the center court prior to 2012 renovation
Map
LocationEdina, Minnesota, U.S.
Coordinates44°52′50″N 93°19′34″W / 44.88056°N 93.32611°W / 44.88056; -93.32611
Address6901 France Avenue South
Opening dateOctober 8, 1956; 68 years ago (October 8, 1956)
DeveloperDayton Company (now Target Corporation)
ManagementSimon Property Group
OwnerSimon Property Group
ArchitectVictor Gruen Associates
No. of stores and services111[1]
No. of anchor tenants5 (4 open, 1 vacant)
Total retail floor area1,297,608 square feet (120,551.7 m2; 29.7890 acres; 12.05517 ha)[2]
No. of floors4
Public transit accessBus transport Metro Transit: 6, 515, 537, 538, 578
Bus transport SouthWest Transit: 600
WebsiteOfficial website

Southdale Center is a shopping mall located in Edina, Minnesota, a suburb of the Twin Cities. It opened in 1956 and is the first[3] fully enclosed, climate-controlled[4] shopping mall in the United States.[5] Southdale Center has 1,297,608 square feet (120,551.7 m2; 29.7890 acres; 12.05517 ha) of leasable retail space, and contains 106 retail tenants. The mall is owned by Simon Property Group and the anchor stores are Macy's, Dave & Buster's, AMC Theatres, Hennepin Service Center, and Life Time Athletic.

Victor Gruen, the center's architect, designed the mall to challenge the "car-centric" America that was rising in the 1950s. Since its opening in 1956, Southdale has suffered through high vacancy rates and several store closures, but has been able to recover in recent years. Several additions have been performed on the building, including a 2011 renovation which involved the construction of a brand new food court. Southdale Center continues to use much of its original structure despite these renovations, and has been the host of several charity and community events throughout the years.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference simon.com was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ "Do Business at Southdale Center, a Simon Property". Archived from the original on 2019-01-03. Retrieved 2019-01-02.
  3. ^ Hardwick, M. Jeffrey (2015). Mall Maker: Victor Gruen, Architect of an American Dream. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press. p. 144. ISBN 9780812292992. Archived from the original on 8 November 2021. Retrieved 14 July 2020.
  4. ^ Cf. Westminster Arcade, which is the oldest fully enclosed, but not climate-controlled, shopping mall in the United States.
  5. ^ Newton, Matthew (2017). Shopping Mall. New York: Bloomsbury. p. 5. ISBN 9781501314827. Archived from the original on 8 November 2021. Retrieved 14 July 2020.