Ford City Mall

Ford City Mall is a shopping mall located on the southwest side of Chicago in the West Lawn neighborhood on 73rd Street and Cicero Avenue. [cite book| last = Mayer| first = Harold| authorlink = Harold Mayer| title = Chicago: Growth of a Metropolis| publisher = University of Chicago| date = 1969| pages = 428| id = ISBN 0226512738 ]

History

Originally, the building was a factory that manufactured bomber engines during World War II. It was later retrofitted for automobile production for Tucker Corporation and then Ford Motor Company. Once abandoned, developers cut into the building to separate a portion for a mall. The mall opened in 1965 as Ford City. [cite web| last = Knox| first = Douglas| title = West Lawn| url=http://www.encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org/pages/1339.html| accessdate = 2007-01-04 ] The mall consists of two halves - a strip mall and enclosed mall. Sears anchors the strip-mall portion, which is connected to the main building by a tunnel called "The Connection". It utilizes the basement between the severed halves of the buildings directly below the parking lot. The Connection used to be called Peacock Alley in the late 60s and early 70s, until a gangland murder forced the name change. Wieboldt's occupied the western-facing space until 1987 when Carson Pirie Scott moved in. The southern-facing space was last occupied by Montgomery Ward until that chain's bankruptcy and is empty to this day. JCPenney occupies the eastern facing space.

Until February 2008, the mall was managed by General Growth Properties Inc. for a private investment company. [ [http://www.ggp.com/properties/MallSearchList.asp General Growth Properties - Illinois Malls] ] . The Mall is now owned by CBL & Associates and is planning to redevelop the mall, including the former Montgomery Ward.

Anchors

Enclosed

* Carson Pirie Scott (156,349 sq ft.)
* JCPenney (182,624 sq ft.)

trip mall

* Marshalls (38,959 sq ft.)
* Office Depot (20,796 sq ft.)
* Sears (148,460 sq ft.)

Former anchors

*Minnesota Fabrics
*Montgomery Ward - vacant (being redeveloped in 2009 by CBL malls)
*National Tea Supermarket
*Turn Style ("in strip portion")
*Wieboldt's - now Carson Pirie Scott
*Woolworth

Transportation

Chicago Transit Authority Buses

* #54B South Cicero
* #79 79th

Pace Buses

* #379 West 79th Street
* #382 Central/Clearing
* #383 South Cicero
* #384 Narragansett/Ridgeland
* #385 87th/111th/127th

Orange Line Extension

Original plans for the Orange Line called for the terminus to be at Ford City. Due to lack of funding the line was truncated at Midway with a layout allowing for future expansion. [Chicago-l.org. (2008). "Operations - Line > Midway", [http://www.chicago-l.org/operations/lines/midway.html Chicago-l.org] ] The CTA recently undertook an Alternatives Analysis for the Orange Line extension to Ford City and determined that the project currently stands at an estimated $200 million. Community meetings are currently being held in neighborhoods surrounding Midway and Ford City to judge the level of public support for the extension. [Chicago Transit Authority. (2008). "Orange Line Extension Alternatives Analysis Study Screen 1 Analysis", [http://www.transitchicago.com/news/whatsnew2.wu?action=displaynewspostingdetail&articleid=100261 CTA Analysis Study] ]

Links

* [http://www.shopfordcity.com/ Official Site]

References