Merle Hay Mall opened in 1959, it is the oldest regional shopping center in Iowa, and was the largest mall in Iowa in terms of gross leasable area before the 2004 opening of Jordan Creek Town Center in neighboring West Des Moines.
Sears, Younkers, Kohl’s, and Target are the mall’s anchor stores, while Applebee’s, IHOP, and Starbucks operate on the outparcels of the mall. Most of the mall is in the northwest part of Des Moines, but the wing that contains Younkers, Kohl’s, and the food court is inside the city limits of neighboring Urbandale.
Merle Hay Mall owned by the Merle Hay Mall Limited Partnership, and the family of one of its original developers continues to manage the mall.
