Meridian Mall is a regional full-line enclosed shopping mall located in Meridian Township, a suburb of Lansing, Michigan, United States. It opened in 1969, the same year that its main competitor, Lansing Mall, opened on the other end of the Lansing metropolitan area. Meridian Mall features about 125 stores plus a a food court. Anchor stores include JCPenney, Macy’s and two Younkers stores, with other major tenants including Schuler Books & Music, Bed Bath & Beyond, Dick’s Sporting Goods and Old Navy. Meridian Mall is owned and managed by CBL & Associates Properties. The mall is near Michigan State University.
1990s and 2000s
On August 27, 1998, CBL & Associates Properties acquired Meridian Mall from Samuels & Associates. Service Merchandise declared bankruptcy a year later and closed all of its stores. The former Service Merchandise was demolished for a two-story Jacobson’s department store in 2000, replacing an existing Jacobson’s in nearby East Lansing which was closed and converted to a Barnes & Noble bookstore.
Bed Bath & Beyond, Steve & Barry’s and Old Navy were added to the mall in the early 2000s, while MC Sports was closed. The former MC Sports was soon demolished for a new wing angling off the center court. This wing featured a new food court with new restaurants such as A&W and Blimpie, as well as a Galyan’s sporting goods store, which opened in August 2001. At the time, this was the chain’s closest location to a college campus (specifically, Michigan State University). Schuler Books & Music subsequently replaced the mall’s former food court, having moved from a smaller store nearby. Also in 2001, Hudson’s was renamed Marshall Field’s by parent company Target Corporation.
Jacobson’s declared bankruptcy in 2002 and closed. A year after closing, the former Jacobson’s was converted to Younkers, which had also opened at Lansing Mall that same year. Due to space limitations in the old Jacobson’s space, Younkers operated its men’s and children’s departments in a separate storefront adjacent to the former Jacobson’s, and as a result, the mall’s offices and Steve & Barry’s were both relocated.
The mall’s original theater complex, Meridian 4 West, closed in 2003 and was converted to retail space. Also, in 2004, Dick’s Sporting Goods acquired and renamed all of the Galyan’s stores. Two more changes came to the mall’s anchors in 2006; first, in early 2006, Mervyns closed all of its Michigan stores, and later the same year, Marshall Field’s was one of several chains to be acquired and renamed by Macy’s.
Younkers announced in 2007 that it would add a second store in the former Mervyns space. The second store, opened in September 2008, comprised the men’s, children’s and home goods departments, while the women’s departments were retained at the existing Younkers. Also in September 2008, Steve & Barry’s announced the closure of several stores nationwide, including their Meridian Mall location.
