Lincoln Mall

Lincoln Square in Urbana, Illinois, the repurposed former enclosed regional mall at the corner of Vine Street and University Avenue whose transformation from a standard 1960s suburban enclosed mall into a mixed-use community hub reflects the Urbana-Champaign community’s commitment to adaptive reuse and local civic investment in former retail infrastructure, serves the Urbana and University of Illinois corridor as a community resource and local commerce centre. The Urbana Free Library, whose primary building is located adjacent to the Lincoln Square complex on Green Street and whose civic presence gives the immediate surrounding blocks a public community anchor, draws daily foot traffic to the Vine Street corridor that supports the independent businesses operating within the commercial sections of the repurposed complex. Common Ground Food Co-op, the member-owned natural food cooperative whose Urbana-Champaign community roots reflect the university city’s progressive and cooperative purchasing culture, anchors the specialty food and organic provisions identity within the mall.

The Bike Project of Urbana-Champaign, the non-profit community bicycle shop and education centre whose refurbished bicycle sales and cycling skills programming reflect the university city’s bicycle commuter culture, gives the property a community cycling and sustainability identity. Record Swap gives the property a vinyl record and music collector identity. Independent bookshops Priceless Books and Benjamins Bookstore give the property a community literary and second-hand books identity. Enchantment Alley gives the property a specialty and metaphysical gifts identity. Lazee Daisy Diner and Café serves the sit-down community dining occasion. Local artisan retailers, independent boutiques, and community service vendors give the property an independent operator character whose tenant concentration reflects the Urbana community’s preference for locally-rooted commerce over national chain formats.

The property’s commercial role in Urbana-Champaign is the Lincoln Square community hub: a Common Ground Food Co-op cooperative food anchor whose Bike Project sustainability identity, independent bookshop and record store culture, and University of Illinois adjacent catchment give the Urbana and Champaign-Urbana community a locally-operated civic retail destination in the heart of east-central Illinois’ university city.