Kirkwood Mall drastically changed Bismarck's retail landscape when it opened in April 1971.
Kirkwood Plaza Shopping Center, known more commonly as Kirkwood Mall, is an enclosed regional shopping center that features more than 90 tenants, including five full-line anchors: Target, Scheels Sporting Goods, Herberger’s, JCPenney, and I. Keating Furniture; and two mini-anchors, both of which are currently vacant. At approximately 850,000 square feet, Kirkwood Mall is the largest shopping center in central and western North Dakota, second in the state only to Fargo’s West Acres.
Opened in April 1971 with 39 stores, Kirkwood Mall was the city’s largest single development up to that point. The center was conceived and developed by Paul H. Wachter, who had been considering the idea for nearly a decade.
With the opening of Kirkwood came the decay of downtown Bismarck, as retailers began to migrate to the new shopping center. The area around the mall quickly became the main economic hub of the region. Montgomery Wards, Woolworths, Herbergers, and Osco Drug were original anchors, all of whom, except newcomer Herbergers, had previous downtown locations.
In 1977, Kirkwood began construction of a new south wing, which, when completed in 1980, would include two new anchors, Target and J.C. Penney. Scheels Sporting Goods was soon established as a mini anchor upon its relocation from Arrowhead Plaza in 1984.
Atrium Area Inside of Kirkwood Mall.
Woolworths was replaced with Daytons in 1985, which went onto become Marshall Fields in 2001 prior to closing in 2005; immediately after the Fields space was torn down to be replaced by a new Target store. Scheels soon relocated into the former Target space, which was adjacent to Scheels original location in the mall. The three-screen movie theater closed in 2001, and McDonalds departed in 2003. KB Toys and Wilson Leather have also since closed as a result of each company’s bankruptcy.
Kirkwood has always been able to maintain high occupancy rates, with a number of original and long-time tenants still located inside the mall. After the closing of Montgomery Ward in 1998, however, the space sat mostly empty until 2002 when I. Keating Furniture World occupied the space.
CVS/pharmacy, an original tenant (as Osco Drug), relocated into a brand new freestanding store located directly northwest of Kirkwood Mall in January 2010. As of April 2010, both the former CVS and Scheels Sporting Goods mini-anchor spaces are sitting vacant.
Kirkwood Mall is named for Robert Kirkwood, who had served as Chairman and CEO of F.W. Woolworth Company. Mr. Kirkwood had previously served as store manager for the Bismarck Woolworth store from 1932-1939.
NOTE: The Woolworth store was the first section of the mall to be completed, opening in November 1970; however, the majority of the mall did not open to the public until April 1971. A grand opening celebration was held the following month with Robert Kirkwood in attendance.
Former Anchor Stores:
- F.W. Woolworth (1971-1985)
- Montgomery Wards (1971-1998)
- Osco Drug (1971-2010; converted to CVS/pharmacy in 2006)
Current Anchor Stores:
- Scheels Sporting Goods (1984-Present)
- Target (1980-Present)
- Herbergers (1971-Present)
- JCPenney (1980-Present)
- I. Keating Furniture (2002-Present)
External Link:
www.kirkwood-mall.com
