The Kravco Company opened Montgomery Mall on February 26, 1977, in Montgomery Township near North Wales, Pennsylvania, with a 10 a.m. ribbon-cutting attended by local television personalities Captain Noah and Al Alberts. Wanamaker’s and JCPenney anchored the mall at opening, with Bamberger’s added in 1978 (becoming Macy’s in 1986) and Sears joining in 1980.
The Wanamaker’s space cycled through several conversions: Hecht’s in 1995, then Strawbridge’s in 1997 after May Department Stores acquired that chain. Simon Property Group acquired the mall in 2003, holding a 79.4 percent stake, before the property later passed to current owner Kohan Retail Investment Group and Summit Properties USA.
At roughly 1,102,755 sqft, the property has lost several of its historical anchor positions to vacancy over time, and industry commentary has at times described it as a struggling or “dead” mall given its high vacancy rate. Dick’s Sporting Goods relocated to a standalone store at 1261 Knapp Road, with its own discount concept, “Going, Going, Gone!,” opening in the vacated mall space that December.
That department-store-to-department-store-to-sporting-goods-to-sporting-goods-outlet anchor progression, occupying the same physical space across five decades, reflects how thoroughly Montgomery Mall’s anchor tenancy has cycled through nearly every major retail format available, even as the property’s overall vacancy rate has climbed alongside that continuous churn.
