OLD TIMER

Long-awaited renovation, expansion of oldest mall in Dallas begins
BY DEBRA HAZEL

The renovation and expansion of Dallas’ oldest enclosed mall is under way after seven years of planning. The $170 million project is a Texas-size undertaking that includes the addition of a 200,000-square-foot Nordstrom, a 15-screen AMC Theatre and two additional floors to the one-story center.

“I feel like part of my family is growing up,” said Nancy Nasher, a co-owner of NorthPark Management Co., which manages and co-owns the center. Her father, Raymond D. Nasher, opened NorthPark in August 1965, and she has grown up alongside the mall.

Located on Northwest Highway at North Central Expressway, NorthPark’s original anchors were Woolworth’s, Titche-Goettinger, Neiman Marcus and JCPenney. The center has been a Dallas icon since shortly after its opening.

Back then, the mall was surrounded by cornfields, but in the intervening years the city has steadily spread out and surrounded it. “When NorthPark opened, it was in the forefront of the outer boundaries of Dallas,” said David Haemisegger, president of NorthPark Management, and Nancy Nasher’s husband. “The whole Metroplex has undergone a tremendous expansion.”

As Dallas grew, so did the number of regional malls in the area. NorthPark was renovated over the years to keep up with the newer competition, and it became clear in the 1990s that it was time to do so again. The 1.3 million-square-foot center, now anchored by Neiman Marcus, Foley’s and Dillard’s, needed to expand.

Today, NorthPark’s core market encompasses 117,000 residents with an average household income of $124,468. “We needed to add a department store. Look at our demographics; they’ve gotten stronger,” Haemisegger said. “We wanted to reposition it so it became the quintessential retail destination.”

Nordstrom signed a letter of intent with NorthPark in 1996, but waited to open a store at the center for several years as it completed other store openings.

The Macerich Co. acquired a 50 percent interest in the mall in May 2004, though NorthPark remains family-operated. Macerich’s investment helped finance the expansion. And the lengthy planning period allowed NorthPark’s managers to reassess the offerings of the center and rearrange the leasing pattern to the best advantage. The mall will now cluster the tenants for greater shopper convenience, and also will boost the number of high-end retailers. These will include Cole Haan, Movado (its first unit in the Dallas-Fort Worth area) and Tod’s (its first location in Texas). Trendy apparel store, Custo Barcelona, will open in the fall.

“Our luxury tenants will be clustered in the area from Neiman down to Nordstrom,” Haemisegger said. “Between Foley’s and Dillard’s, you’ll find the more traditional classes, like the J. Crews.” A children’s cluster will boast Hanna Andersson and Babystyle stores. Each will be its chains’ only Texas store.

The center, now in the shape of a backward J, will become a quadrangle, with each side catering to a distinct group of customers. Two parking decks also are being built.

Omniplan Architects, which designed the original mall and previous upgrades, is also directing this latest expansion.

“We understand the legacy and the spirit of NorthPark,” said Mark Dilworth, a principal at Dallas-based Omniplan. “It’s been important to us and the owners that the expansion retain the timelessness and quiet spirit of the original.”

NorthPark’s design, Dilworth says, has always been understated to allow the retailers’ storefronts to stand out. As a result, the property “naturally updates itself as the storefronts turn. It’s the reason NorthPark hasn’t had to reface itself every five to 10 years.”

The “new” look will be an extension of NorthPark’s classic style, featuring white brick and stone, dark monolithic floors and more natural light. The style is simple and geometric, with consistent spaces, the architects say.

“It will be a serene, quiet place,” said Christine Szalay, director of marketing and tourism for the mall.

Shoppers are attached to the mall, so any changes have to be handled carefully, Dilworth says. “I’ve had customers ask me ‘You’re not going to ruin my NorthPark, are you?’”

The expansion also will give the center more room for the project’s signature artwork. Raymond Nasher is a leading collector of 20th century sculpture and modern art, and his mall became a museum as well as a center of commerce. Approximately 70 works, including pieces by Andy Warhol, Frank Stella and Roy Lichtenstein, are on display throughout the year.

Some of that art will be displayed in a 1.5-acre interior courtyard within the quadrangle, in a space that also will be used for community events.

“We are creating a beautiful park with trees, grass and beautiful landscaping,” Nasher said. “It’s a real people place, where people can come and go with their children.”

Ground was broken for the expansion in May 2004. Nordstrom and about 20 specialty stores will open this November, with the remainder of the specialty retailers and the cinema to open by April 2006. The average sales per square foot for 2004 was $615. When the center is completed, NorthPark’s managers expect to see annual sales exceed $1 billion.

“What this expansion will do to NorthPark is more than bring more stores,” Szalay said. “It will bring the right stores to something that is so cherished.”