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Rolling Acres Mall

1975 establishments in Ohio2008 disestablishments in OhioBuildings and structures demolished in 2019Buildings and structures in Akron, OhioDefunct shopping malls in the United States
Demolished buildings and structures in OhioDemolished shopping malls in the United StatesShopping malls disestablished in 2008Shopping malls established in 1975Shopping malls in Ohio
Rolling Acres Mall entrance, March 29th, 2014
Rolling Acres Mall entrance, March 29th, 2014

Rolling Acres Mall was a shopping mall located in the Rolling Acres area of Akron, Ohio, United States. Built in 1975, it originally included approximately 21 stores, with Sears as the main anchor store. Later expansions added several more stores including anchor stores JCPenney, Montgomery Ward, and O'Neil's, along with a movie theater and food court. Montgomery Ward was converted to Higbee's in 1986, and then to Dillard's in 1992, while O'Neil's became May Company Ohio, Kaufmann's, and then finally Macy's. The fifth anchor store was Target, added in 1995. At its peak, the mall had over 150 stores. It underwent a sharp decline in tenancy throughout the 1990s and into the first decade of the 21st century, resulting in the relocation of Target and closure of Dillard's. Macy's and the mall itself both shuttered in 2008, although Sears remained operational until 2011, and JCPenney as an outlet store until 2013. Rolling Acres Mall was publicized after its closure as an example of a dead mall, and non-retail ventures operated out of the former locations of Target, Sears, and Dillard's. The mall was finally demolished in stages between 2017 and 2019, with Amazon building a distribution facility on the former site soon after.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Rolling Acres Mall (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Rolling Acres Mall
Romig Road, Akron

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Wikipedia: Rolling Acres MallContinue reading on Wikipedia

Geographical coordinates (GPS)

Latitude Longitude
N 41.0488 ° E -81.5839 °
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Romig Road
44320 Akron
Ohio, United States
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Rolling Acres Mall entrance, March 29th, 2014
Rolling Acres Mall entrance, March 29th, 2014
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Rolling Acres, Akron, Ohio
Rolling Acres, Akron, Ohio

Rolling Acres is a former shopping district in Akron, Ohio, surrounding the now-demolished Rolling Acres Mall. Planning for the area began in 1960s with Forest City Enterprises, a Cleveland real estate company and the powerful Buchholzer family, whose previous endeavors involved financing much of the Chapel Hill Mall area. Despite warnings by civic leaders and former Mayor Edward O. Erickson that the addition of a third mall in the Akron area would harm downtown department stores, the Rolling Acres area was born with Rolling Acres Mall serving as its anchor. Pulling from a diverse population of blue collar workers in Barberton, Ohio and Kenmore, and inner city neighborhoods such as West Akron and Lane-Wooster, the Rolling Acres shopping district blossomed. At its peak it was the most visited mall in Northeast Ohio. Today, Rolling Acres stands as a skeleton of what it once was, mirroring many other parts of the Midwest that have suffered from stagnant economic conditions, saturated markets, and unprofitable foot traffic. The shopping district is located in the City of Akron proper, and encompasses most of the area. It had a number of large big box retailers including: Handy Andy Home Improvement Center (formerly Forest City) – closed 1996 Ames (formerly Hills & Gold Circle) - closed 2002 Apples Grocery Store- Closed 2000 Pet Supplies Plus – closed 2002 Fretter – defunct 1996 Toys "R" Us – closed 2006 Kids "R" Us – site closed Officemax – closed 2003 Coconuts Music – site closed Marc's (former Children's Palace) – Closed 2004Several of the buildings have been condemned, while other are taking transient uses such as fronts for flea markets, and mattress liquidators. The Target closed in February 2006, with a new store being opened in the western suburb of Wadsworth, Ohio. Toys R’ Us closed as part of a larger consolidation plan by its new owners. The city of Akron no longer views the area as viable for retail. As Rolling Acres got smaller, the nearby Montrose area got larger, and now has many of its former anchors.