Oakbrook Center is a shopping center established in 1962 and located near Interstate 88 and Route 83 in Oak Brook, Illinois. It is the second largest shopping center in the Chicago metropolitan area by gross leasable area, only surpassed by Woodfield Mall in Schaumburg, Illinois.[3][4] The mall has retail anchor tenants including Macy's, Nordstrom, and Neiman Marcus, and specialty retailers such as Apple, Tesla, Microsoft, Altar'd State, Oak+Fort, Tory Burch, Allbirds, Arc'teryx, Golden Goose, Fabletics, Rhone, and Warby Parker.[5][6]
 View of the grassy mall center | |
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| Location | Oak Brook, Illinois, United States |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 41°51′2″N 87°57′11″W / 41.85056°N 87.95306°W |
| Address | 100 Oakbrook Center |
| Opening date | 1962 |
| Developer | Philip M. Klutznick |
| Management | Brookfield Properties |
| Owner | Brookfield Properties & CalPERS |
| Architect | Richard Marsh Bennett of Loebl, Schlossman and Bennett[1] |
| No. of stores and services | 175[2] |
| No. of anchor tenants | 3 |
| Total retail floor area | 2,018,000 sq ft (187,500 m2)[2] |
| No. of floors | 3 (4 in Macy’s)[2] |
| Public transit access |  Pace |
| Website | oakbrookcenter |
History
editOakbrook Center, which was originally to be named Oakbrook Terrace (but the name was changed when a town near the mall took that name), opened in 1962 with Sears and Marshall Field's, as well as a Jewel Food Store. Bonwit Teller was later added, as was Lord & Taylor in 1973. I. Magnin, Saks Fifth Avenue, and Neiman Marcus joined the center in a 1981-1982 expansion that doubled the physical size of the center with a new southeast court.
On Christmas Day 1964, a single-screen movie theater operated by Balaban & Katz Corporation was opened at the Oakbrook Center near Saks Fifth Avenue. On its twenty-third year of operation in 1987, the single screen theater was split into four screens when Cineplex Odeon Corporation took it over. Cineplex Odeon also added another four screens, topped by additional retail (including a bookstore), near the Saks Fifth Avenue anchor; these screens closed in 2001 and then reopened in 2018. Bonwit Teller closed their location in 1990, while I. Magnin was shuttered in January 1991, with its former site subdivided in 1994 for specialty stores, including Eddie Bauer and Tiffany & Company. In 1991, a new two-story, open-air addition opened northeast of Sears. Built on top of a parking garage, it added 210,000 sq ft (20,000 m2) of mall retail and a 220,000 sq ft (20,000 m2) Nordstrom.[7] Maggiano's Little Italy opened that same year. Corner Bakery Cafe opened to customers on December 3, 1992. In 1998, Wildfire Restaurant opened.[8][6]
Saks Fifth Avenue closed its store in 2002 and sold the location to Federated Department Stores, which used the site to open a 90,000-square-foot, three-story Bloomingdale's Home store on September 12, 2003. Cheesecake Factory opened in August 2004. Marshall Field's adopted the Macy's name on September 8, 2006, with Macy's buying the parent company. On November 12, 2008, Barnes & Noble opened.[9] A year later, in 2009, American Apparel (which closed in 2017) opened. In 2010, Gibson's Bar and Steakhouse opened across the street from the mall.[10] Pandora opened its doors in 2011.
Pinstripes opened as a stand-alone location in the mall parking lot in 2012.[11] In November 2013, Perry's Steakhouse opened in the former basement level of Neiman Marcus.[12]
On January 4, 2012, Bloomingdale's announced that it would shutter its Oakbrook Home store by March of the year.[13] Two years later in 2014, that structure was reconstructed to feature six inline tenants: The Container Store on the first level; Lululemon Athletica, Tommy Bahama, Hugo Boss, and Aritzia on the second level.
In August 2014, Le Méridien opened a 172 guest-room hotel in a former Renaissance Hotel, which was originally a Stouffer Hotel. This is their first in the state of Illinois.[14]
On October 13, 2016, AMC Theatres opened a new 12-screen cinema in a remodeled section of the Nordstrom wing; this remodeling also included a new food hall named "The District."[15]
On June 20, 2017, Sears announced that its Oakbrook Center outpost would be reconstructed to feature additional stores. It shuttered in September 2017 and reopened on October 5, 2018, in a smaller new store format on the first level of the mall. Ballard Designs and L.L. Bean, opened in the center in Fall 2018.[16][17]
In February 2018, Lord & Taylor announced that they would close their store in this location.[18]
On April 22, 2019, it was announced Sears would also shutter its location here, as part of an ongoing plan to eliminate its brick-and-mortar format.[19][20]
Puttshack opened a location on November 3, 2021.[21]
In September 2021, a three-story Restoration Hardware store opened, featuring a restaurant and winery on its top floor.[22]
By 2023, after the government lockdown, Oakbrook Center had announced several new additions, among them Joss & Main.[6]
Shooting
editOn December 23, 2021, a shooting was reported at the mall at 5:44pm CST. The incident was apparently a shootout between two individuals. One of the shooters was struck four times, and was treated and taken into custody; the other shooter escaped capture. Three bystanders were struck in the incident. All persons involved had non-life-threatening injuries. The mall re-opened the following day.[23]
Anchors
editCurrent
edit- Neiman Marcus — Opened in 1982
- Nordstrom — Opened in 1991
- Macy's — Opened in 2006
Former
edit- Marshall Fields — Opened in 1962, converted to Macy's in 2006
- Sears — Opened in 1962, closed in 2019
- Bonwit Teller — Opened in 1962, Closed in 1990
- Lord & Taylor — Opened in 1973, closed in 2019
- Saks Fifth Avenue — Opened in 1982, closed in 2002, replaced by Bloomingdale's Home Store
- I. Magnin — Opened in 1982, closed in 1991
- Bloomingdale's Home Store — Opened in 2003, closed in 2012
Transportation
editMost mall visitors arrive via personal vehicles and park on-site.
Three Pace bus routes offer public transportation to the mall:
References
edit- ^ "Richard Marsh Bennett (1907-1996)".
- ^ a b c "Oakbrook Center". Brookfield Properties.
- ^ "Largest Shopping Malls in the United States (2006)". American Studies at Eastern Connecticut State University. Archived from the original on July 16, 2006.
- ^ Thomas, Lauren (29 January 2018). "America's 10 most valuable malls are bringing in billions in sales. Here's where they are". CNBC. Retrieved 2022-12-07.
- ^ "Oakbrook Center Stores, Directory & Map | Oakbrook Center". www.oakbrookcenter.com. Retrieved 2022-12-07.
- ^ a b c Fieldman, Chuck (2023-05-16). "Wayfair's Joss & Main opening on Thursday in Oakbrook Center". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2024-03-14.
- ^ Ziemba, Stanley (18 April 1990). "NORDSTROM TO OPEN STORE IN OAK BROOK". chicagotribune.com.
- ^ "Oakbrook Center Wildfire restaurant laying off 35 employees". Chicago Tribune. 15 October 2020.
- ^ Service, Staff reports GateHouse News. "Barnes & Noble to open in Oakbrook Center". www.mysuburbanlife.com.
- ^ "Opening Soon: Gibsons Bar & Steakhouse Oakbrook Location". 26 May 2010.
- ^ "Pinstripes Celebrates Grand Opening in Oak Brook". 4 October 2012.
- ^ "Now Open: Perry's Steakhouse & Grille's First Chicago-Area Location". 11 November 2013.
- ^ "Oak Brook Bloomingdale's Set To Close - NBC Chicago". 5 January 2012.
- ^ "Le Meridien Debuts in Chicago with Opening of Le Meridien Chicago – Oakbrook Center" (Press release). Business Wire. August 4, 2014.
- ^ "Oakbrook Center joins luxury movie theaters market". Chicago Tribune. 14 October 2016.
- ^ Zumbach, Lauren (20 June 2017). "Sears temporarily closing Oakbrook Center store". Chicago Tribune.
- ^ Fieldman, Chuck (5 October 2018). "Jaclyn Smith, 300 shoppers come out for Sears reopening at Oakbrook Center". chicagotribune.com.
- ^ Zumbach, Lauren (February 26, 2018). "Lord & Taylor closing at Oakbrook Center". Chicago Tribune.
- ^ Fieldman, Chuck (22 April 2019). "Sears closing Oakbrook Center store Sunday; liquidation under way". chicagotribune.com.
- ^ "Champs Sports opens first Community Store in Oakbrook Center". Chicago Tribune. 8 February 2021.
- ^ "Puttshack Announces November Opening Date for Its Second U.S. Venue at Oakbrook Center" (Press release).
- ^ "Upscale home furnishings store RH opens in Oak Brook".
- ^ "Oak Brook mall shooting: Police searching for suspected shooter after 4 shot inside Oakbrook Center". MSN.
- ^ "301 - Roosevelt Road | Pace Suburban Bus".
- ^ "Pace Bus - Route 322".
- ^ "332 - River Road – York Road | Pace Suburban Bus".