Dulles Town Center

Dulles Town Center
Map
LocationDulles, Virginia, U.S.
Coordinates39°1′55.7″N 77°25′25.8″W / 39.032139°N 77.423833°W / 39.032139; -77.423833
Opening dateAugust 12, 1999; 25 years ago (August 12, 1999)
DeveloperLerner Enterprises, Cigna
OwnerSrinivas Chavali
No. of stores and services150
No. of anchor tenants6 (3 vacant)
Total retail floor area1,400,000 square feet (130,000 m2)
No. of floors2
Websiteshopdullestowncenter.com

Dulles Town Center is a two-level enclosed shopping mall in Sterling in Loudoun County, Virginia. It is located five miles (8.0 km) north of Washington Dulles International Airport. It is part of the Dulles Town Center census-designated place for population statistical purposes.

It encompasses 1,400,000 square feet (130,000 m2) of gross leasable area and is the sole enclosed shopping center in Loudoun County. The mall serves a wide geographic area, drawing customers from Loudoun, Fairfax, Clarke, and Frederick counties in Virginia, as well as Jefferson County, West Virginia.

History

In December 1987, Loudoun County officials approved the jurisdiction's first regional shopping mall, to be developed in a joint venture between Lerner Enterprises and Cigna. The mall was originally planned to be named the "Windmill Regional Shopping Center" but took its present name a year later.[1]

Construction did not commence until years later, due to the nationwide recession. It was eventually scheduled to begin construction in spring 1994, with a planned opening date of 1996,[2] but this timeline never came to fruition.

Construction did ultimately begin in 1996, with a target completion date of spring 1998.

Delays further pushed the opening back to November 1998, with its first two anchor stores (Hecht's and Lord & Taylor) opening November 18, 1998. JCPenney and Sears opened in late Spring 1999, with the official grand-opening commencing August 12, 1999.

Another wing was added in 2002, anchored by Nordstrom as well as a two-level access corridor of various stores.

Around the same an Edwards Cinema was proposed for the adjoining area. An LA Fitness and a relocated Dick's Sporting Goods later filled this space.

An office building was attached to the Sears wing during this period, but was later razed for a Regal Cinemas Multiplex.

In 2006, all Hecht's stores were renamed Macy's, after their buyout of May Department Stores.

The dawn of the early 2020s saw several storied traditional department store retailers update their brick-and-mortar formats after being encroached upon to a degree by several digital retailers.

On June 30, 2017, Nordstrom announced the closure of their anchor store.[3]

In August 2020, it was announced that all Lord & Taylor stores nationwide would close, as a direct result of the COVID-19 pandemic.[4]

On February 2, 2021, it was announced that Sears would close its anchor store.[5][6]

In November 2020, Centennial, the mall development firm, announced it was planning an expansion with new retail space, a hotel, apartments, a high-end grocery retailer, as well as the introduction of green space.[7]

In November 2022, Centennial announced nine new tenants, three of which were temporary holiday pop-up retailers.[8]

In December 2023, Srinivas Chavali, The CEO of Virginia Property Investments, purchased the Mall at $46 million.[9]

Anchors

Current

Former

Dining

The mall features a large food court in the center court upper level featuring numerous fast food restaurants. The backside of the mall property also has several pad sites featuring many National chain restaurants. The front center entrance to the mall features a Cheesecake Factory.

References

  1. ^ Cornelius, Foote (5 December 1987). "Loudoun County Approves its First Regional Mall". The Washington Post.
  2. ^ Peter, Pae (10 March 1994). "Work Set to Start On Loudoun Mall". The Washington Post. pp. VA3.
  3. ^ "Nordstrom closing at Dulles Town Center - Washington Business Journal".
  4. ^ "Lord & Taylor closing at Dulles Town Center shopping mall". Sep 25, 2019. Retrieved Dec 31, 2020.
  5. ^ "Dulles Town Center Sears store announces closure | News | loudountimes.com".
  6. ^ "Kmart, Sears stores closing list 2021: These locations are liquidating". USA Today.
  7. ^ "Huge change could be coming to the Dulles Town Center - The Burn". November 11, 2020.
  8. ^ "Dulles Town Center adds eight tenants for the holidays". Chain Store Age.
  9. ^ Nick Trombola (2023-12-20). "Largest Mall in Virginia's Loudoun County Sells for $46M". Commercial Observer. Retrieved 2023-12-21.