As Independence Mall turns 45 this year, Wilmington locals know the mall has transformed a lot over the years to become what it is now. The mall has shifted to a more open-air shopping experience under its owners and management Brookfield Properties, but here's a look the mall prior to those changes.
1979
Independence Mall opened on Aug. 1 on Oleander Drive across from Hanover Center. Advertisements in the StarNews from Hanover Center, the mall's competitor, congratulate the mall on its opening. On the same day, however, Hanover Center opened a Roses store and featured celebrity guest Stella Parton, the sister of Dolly Parton.
2000
Independence Mall Cinemas was demolished to make way for a new mall wing. The cinema was a three-screen theater complex that was located in a separate building at 1843 Independence Blvd.
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2001
An expansion added the mall's fourth anchor with the Dillard's department store. This expansion also included a 400-seat food court and other stores throughout the new wing.
2004
Mayfaire Town Center opened on Military Cutoff Road and some business moved over toward the new open-air shopping center, one of those stores being Gap.
2012
The iconic carousel at Independence Mall was dismantled and removed on Jan. 5. Now, a popular attraction is a small train that takes shoppers on rides through the mall.
2017
Brookfield Properties, formerly Rouse Properties, purchased the mall for $45 million and started redevelopment of the mall into a more modern open-air shopping center that now includes restaurants like Jersey Mike's, Masa Sushi and Eastern Kitchen and many others.
2018
Sears, one of the anchors at Independence Mall, closed, and its wing made way for what is now Dick's Sporting Goods, Lidl, Spectrum, F45 Training, Lenscrafters and Five Below.
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