Western Hills Mall is a shopping mall located in Fairfield, Alabama, United States, a suburb of Birmingham.

Western Hills Mall
Western Hills Mall logo
Exterior view of Western Hills Mall, July 2012
Map
LocationFairfield, Alabama
Opening date1969
DeveloperAronov Realty
OwnerPeleg Group
No. of stores and services37
No. of anchor tenants0 (space for 2)
Total retail floor area547,926 square feet (50,904.0 m2)[1]
No. of floors1
Websiteshopmalls.com
Interior view of Western Hills Mall, July 2012

The mall opened in 1969 as the second in Birmingham,[2] under the development of Aronov Realty.[3] Loveman's of Alabama, which became Pizitz in 1980, was one of its original anchor stores.[4] Pizitz later became McRae's, then Parisian. JCPenney was the other major store, with Yeilding's and F.W. Woolworth Company as the other major tenants.[5] The Yeilding's space was later occupied by Goody's Family Clothing.

In 2006, Western Hills Mall underwent a major transformation. The JCPenney location was demolished, with the mall building being truncated at the former Penney entrance. A new Walmart Supercenter was built on the site of the former JCPenney.[6] Parisian also closed in the late 2000s and a Burlington Coat Factory took its place.[7]

In January 2016, Walmart Supercenter closed its doors.[8] In February 2017, Burlington Coat Factory also went out of business from the mall, which left the mall with no anchors.[9]

On February 16, 2018, a shootout occurred at the mall. Anthony Alberigi, the manager of the mall, was killed in the gunfire.[10]

In January 2022, the Peleg Group of Miami, Florida, bought the mall from Aronov Realty for $2.94 million.[11] Once taking ownership, they went forward with a $4 million renovation project that included new AC, new paint, a new parking lot and fixing various roof issues.[12]

References

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  1. ^ Unknown[permanent dead link]
  2. ^ Hollis, Tim (January 1, 2008). Vintage Birmingham Signs. Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 9780738553764.
  3. ^ Chain Store Age, Executives Edition Combined with Shopping Center Age. Lebhar-Friedman. July 1, 1967.
  4. ^ Hollis, Tim (January 1, 2008). Vintage Birmingham Signs. Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 9780738553764.
  5. ^ Directory of major malls. MJJTM Publications Corp. 1990. p. 9.
  6. ^ "Western Hills getting Wal-Mart Supercenter - Birmingham Business Journal". Birmingham Business Journal. Retrieved April 9, 2016.
  7. ^ "Burlington Coat Factory set to open in Western Hills Mall - Birmingham Business Journal". Birmingham Business Journal. Retrieved April 9, 2016.
  8. ^ "Walmart closing could be devastating for Fairfield". January 26, 2016.
  9. ^ "Western Hills Mall loses anchor store". February 24, 2017.
  10. ^ Staff, CBS 42 (February 16, 2018). "Mall manager killed after "reckless" shootout at Western Hills Mall; 1 suspect still at large". WIAT. Retrieved February 17, 2018.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  11. ^ Parker, Illyshia (May 5, 2022). "Developer of Fairfield mall sells property to Florida investment firm". Birmingham Business Journal.
  12. ^ Robinson, Aajene (November 17, 2022). "Renovations almost complete at Western Hills Mall". WBRC Fox 6.
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33°27′59″N 86°54′46″W / 33.4663°N 86.9129°W / 33.4663; -86.9129