Vernon Hills Village, formerly the Vernon Hills Shopping Center is a 380,000 sq ft (35,303 m2) shopping center in Eastchester, New York near Scarsdale and about 5 mi (8 km) from downtown White Plains, in Westchester County.
Officially not part of the shopping center but immediately adjacent a former branch of Lord & Taylor which preceded the shopping center, opening in 1947, and operating for 73 years through 2020.[1] Since 2022 a Saks Off Fifth store is located there.[2]
History edit
Lord & Taylor freestanding store edit
On February 25, 1948, the Lord & Taylor-Westchester store opened with floodlights, models, and 70 mannikins, to large crowds, with 18,000 visitors in total that day, and the worst traffic jams that that community.[3] The store on a 14-acre site, provided parking for 1040 cars, and the store employed around 300 people.[4]
Shopping center addition edit
In 1955, Mount Vernon, New York-based developer Salvatore Pepe released plans to build shopping center on the 9-acre (3.6 ha) parcel next to Lord & Taylor, promoting it as the future "Fifth Avenue of Westchester" and already envisioning luxury department store Bonwit Teller as the anchor, more than a decade before Bonwit's would actually move from White Plains to Vernon Hills in 1967.[5]
Bonwit Teller edit
In 1964 Bonwit Teller had branch store in a two-and‐a‐half‐story building in downtown White Plains, where it had operated since April 1941, on the current site of the Westchester One tower. Bonwit had a 20‐year lease ending in 1976, but Pepe went to the landlord Archie Davidow and bought it, including the remainder of the lease, thus permitting Bonwits to move; it ceased operations at White Plains at the close of business on April 13, 1967.[6]
Five days later, on April 18, 1967, the new 43,000 sq ft (3,995 m2), Bonwit Teller Scarsdale store opened. Guests included actress Arlene Francis (member of the company's Board of Directors), Princess Marcella Borghese and Mildred Custin, president of Bonwit Teller.[7] Designed by architectural firm Copeland, Novak & Israel, it consisted of 36 fashion departments, and featured a 7,900 sq ft (734 m2) center court of Italian marble, with a crystal chandelier hanging above. Two additional chandeliers had once hung in the Ambassador Hotel in New York. 1,700 ft (518 m) of murals by Richard Neas decorated the walls of the court, and additional Neas murals adorned the shoe salon. 85 employees from the White Plains store were transferred to Vernon Hills, and 40 additional employees were hired specifically for the new branch.[8]
Sale to Ashkenazy edit
In 2019 owner and developer Bianco & Pepe Inc. sold the center to Ashkenazy Acquisition.[9][10]
Current tenants edit
As of 2023, tenants include Saks Off Fifth (38,000 sq ft (3,530 m2)),[11] New York Sports Club, Starbucks, Barnes & Noble (opened in 2016),[12] West Elm, Gap, Banana Republic and Athleta.
External links edit
References edit
- ^ Clark, Heather; Croke, Karen (28 August 2020). "Shoppers lament closing of Lord & Taylor; 'it was the last civilized place on earth'". The Journal News / Lohud. Retrieved 7 November 2023.
- ^ Clark, Heather (26 January 2022). "Saks OFF 5th sets opening date for Eastchester location in former home of Lord & Taylor". The Journal News. Retrieved 7 November 2023.
- ^ Goetz, Theodore (26 February 1948). "18,000 Flock to Lord & Taylor for Eastchester Store Opening". Mount Vernon Argus. p. 1. Retrieved 7 November 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Plan Unit Backs Lord, Taylor Case". The Standard-Star. Eastchester, New York. 14 March 1946. p. 8. Retrieved 7 November 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Construction Faces Banner '56, Says Pepe". Mount Vernon Argus. 17 January 1956. p. 42. Retrieved 7 November 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Oser, Alan F. (4 July 1975). "About Real Estate". The New York Times. Retrieved 7 November 2023.
- ^ "Bonwit Teller Opens Store in Eastchester". The Reporter Dispatch. 18 April 1967. p. 6. Retrieved 7 November 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Move from White Plains: Bonwit Teller OPens Store in Eastchester". The Daily Item. 18 April 1967. p. 25. Retrieved 7 November 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Marroquin, Mario (6 November 2019). "Westchester affluence, density keys to sale of Vernon Hills Shopping Center". The Journal News / Lohud. Retrieved 7 November 2023.
- ^ Katz, Peter (5 November 2019). "Vernon Hills Shopping Center sold for over $125 million". Westfair Business Journal.
- ^ "750 White Plains Road". LoopNet. Retrieved 7 November 2023.
- ^ "Barnes & Nobles opens new store with restaurant in Eastchester". The Journal News. 21 November 2016. Retrieved 7 November 2023.