CBL & Associates developed and opened Southaven Towne Center in October 2005 in Southaven, Mississippi, marking the company’s first venture into the open-air lifestyle center format after building enclosed malls for decades. The project was expected to contribute roughly 1,000 jobs to the local economy at opening and brought department-store retail to Southaven for the first time.
At roughly 520,828 sqft, the property carries JCPenney and a two-story Dillard’s as its two anchors, alongside roughly 45 specialty stores including Urban Air and Sportsman’s Warehouse. Kay Jewelers and Zales carry jewelry, with Journeys, Lane Bryant and Rack Room Shoes among the fashion tenants.
That “first lifestyle center” designation for CBL & Associates, a company otherwise known for conventional enclosed malls, reflects how even established regional mall developers had to adapt their standard format by the mid-2000s, testing an open-air, town-center-style layout in a smaller Mississippi market before applying the format more broadly elsewhere.
