South Gilmore Road and Kolb Drive
Forest Park and Fairfield, Ohio
This exhibit will be a homage to one of America's most notorious failed malls; Greater Cincinnati's FOREST FAIR. The complex was built on a 116-acre plot, located 14.3 miles north of Cincinnati's Fountain Square. The site straddled the counties of Hamilton and Butler. Two-thirds of the mall was in the Hamilton County city of Forest Park, with the remainder being in the Butler County city of Fairfield.
When initially conceived, the shopping center was going to be a mini-mall, anchored by a Cincinnati-based bigg's hypermarket. It would be nearly identical to BIGGS PLACE, which had opened -in neighboring Clermont County- in October 1984.
Plans for a Forest Park-Fairfield BIGGS PLACE mall were announced in early 1985. The project was initially being developed by Houston's Amega Construction, Incorporated. They were joined by Atlanta-based Hooker Developments, a subsidiary of Australia's LJ Hooker Corporation.
Hooker Developments was soon guiding the project. At the helm was Romanian emigre' George Herscu, executive chairman of LJ Hooker. He re-envisaged the modest BIGGS PLACE as a 200-plus-store mega mall. It would feature retailers such as Marshalls, T.J. Maxx, a Cincinnati-based bigg's hypermarket and Cleveland-based Higbee's.
Leasing arrangements with Marshalls, Maxx and Higbee's didn't pan out. Herscu decided that tony specialty retailers -such as New York City's B. Altman & Company and Bonwit Teller and Houston's Sakowitz- could anchor his mall. These stores balked at opening stores in Herscu's project. He proceeded to either buy them out, or establish controlling interest.
Bonwit Teller was acquired in May 1987, B. Altman & Company in October. An 80-percent share in Sakowitz was also secured at that time. A 65-percent share of Birmingham, Alabama-based Parisian was acquired in April 1988.
The Hooker Corporation was a real estate development entity. The firm was now entering the realm of department store management, in which it had little expertise. No marketing studies were conducted for the placement of the mall, or its upscale selection of retailers. It -and they- were simply built.
By mid-1987, construction was underway. A first phase grand opening was held on July 11, 1988. In its original state, FOREST FAIR MALL encompassed 1 level and was anchored by a (245,000 square foot) bigg's hypermarket. There were twenty inline stores. These included Everything's $1, Heroes Sports Shoes, Afterthoughts, Munchies Snack Bar, Better Home Products and Petland.
Phase Two of FOREST FAIR encompassed 2 levels and was officially dedicated on March 1, 1989. Starting off the grand grand opening was a Black Tie VIP Gala, attended by 2,000 revelers. The 5-day celebration included appearances by Marie Osmond, Johnny Bench, Tim Weisberg and country-rock band Exile. Music was also provided by big bands, marching bands and a jazz ensemble.
Anchoring the new section were a 2-level (199,000 square foot) "B. Altman's", 2-level (84,000 square foot) Bonwit Teller and 2-level (144,700 square foot) Parisian. A 2-level (40,000 square foot) Sakowitz Destinations opened its doors on March 31, 1989. The final operational anchor, a 2-level (150,000 square foot), Dayton-based Elder-Beerman, was dedicated on April 13th of the same year.
Thirty-seven stores and services debuted as part of the 1989 grand opening. These included Little Professor Books, Pappagallo Modern Classic Shoes, Bankhardt's Luggage & Gifts and the Koala Klubhouse babysitting center. Sports USA and CompUSA soon joined the store directory. The Super Saver Cinemas 8 showed first features on June 30, 1989. At this time, FOREST FAIR MALL housed 115 store spaces.
The mall featured two culinary complexes; Picnic Patio and Food Festival. Vendors included Le Peep, Gold Star Chili, Wallaby Bob's Brew Pub, Skolnik's Bagel Bakery & Deli and Blue Chip Cookies. Adjacent to the food courts and cinema was Time Out On The Court, an indoor amusement park complete with a thirty-horse carousel, ferris wheel, eighteen-hole mini golf course, virtual reality simulator, laserx tag, bumper cars, basketball hoops, pitching and batting cages, kiddie rides, a video arcade and party room.
Although successful at first, FOREST FAIR MALL soon hit hard times. The reasons for this were many, with the most obvious being that the multi-faceted shopping complex, with all of its high-end department stores, was located in a very middle class section of Greater Cincinnati. Moreover, names such as B. Altman's, Sakowitz, Bonwit Teller or Parisian were unknown to the local populace.
Contributing to the rapid rise and fall of FOREST FAIR MALL was the fact that the complex was too close to retail rivals such as TRI-COUNTY MALL (1960) {2.8 miles southeast, in Springdale} or NORTHGATE MALL (1972) {5.6 miles southwest, in Hamilton County}.
KENWOOD PLAZA, a circa-1956 strip center {10 miles southeast, in Hamilton County}, emerged from a 100 million dollar renovation in 1988, becoming KENWOOD TOWNE CENTRE in the process. It was soon established as Greater Cincinnati's preeminent shopping venue, much to the detriment of the new FOREST FAIR.
The LJ Hooker Corporation was financially strained due to the mall's 250 million dollar construction cost, which came in 50 million dollars over budget. There was also debt incurred as a result of the purchase of two department store chains, as well as controlling interest in two more. Hooker soon found itself 1.7 billion dollars in the red.
FOREST FAIR MALL was put up for sale in June 1989. George Herscu resigned from his executive chairman position in July. The LJ Hooker Corporation filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy in September 1989. The holdings of the company were acquired by another Australian concern in January 1990. By March 1990, the completed mall's first anniversary, nearly 220,000 square feet were vacant.
Going out of business sales for Bonwit Teller, B. Altman's and Sakowitz commenced on August 19, 1990. Bonwit Teller went dark in October 1990, followed by B. Altman's and Sakowitz, who closed their stores in November. Parisian had unhooked from Hooker in August 1989 and eventually recovered from its brush with disaster. Elder-Beerman and bigg's also survived.
Operation of the mall was assumed by the Forest Fair Mall Limited Partnership, a joint venture of seven lenders, in January 1991. They embarked on a revitalization of the struggling retail hub. It would be remarketed as a value-oriented complex. A team of retail professionals was assembled, who drew up a "Malls At Forest Fair" plan. Under this directive, the shopping hub would be divided into four Districts; i.e., Lifestyle, Fashion, Entertainment (a.k.a. Festival At Forest Fair) and Value. 8 million dollars were invested in various renovations, with new stores recruited to fill empty space.
The vacant Bonwit Teller was repurposed as America Live!, a four-tenant nightclub and restaurant complex. The facility held its grand opening on August 29, 1993, with Burbank's Real Bar-B-Q, America's Original Sports Bar, Ltl. Ditty's Players theatre-in-the-round and Gator's beach bar opening their doors. A country & western dance bar, The Cheyenne Cattle Company, was set up in adjacent store space. It opened in March 1995.
By mid-1995, the owners of America Live! were in arrears for unpaid rent. Mall management closed down the facility in June 1995, with Cheyenne Cattle Company remaining in operation. America Live! was renamed Bourbon Street. Its first operational tenant, O'Malley's Sports Pub & Grill (formerly America's Original Sports Bar) opened in October 1995.
Meanwhile, a (116,300 square foot) section of the vacant B. Altman's was refashioned into a Wisconsin-based Kohl's. This store welcomed first shoppers in September 1994. With the mall sufficiently turned around, it was decided to put it on the open market. Enter North Miami Beach-based Gator Investments, who bought the property in April 1996. Gator continued to renovate and repopulate the shopping center, eventually investing 58 million dollars in its ongoing renewal.
Parisian pulled the proverbial plug on their FOREST FAIR store in July 1998. The vacant space re-opened, as a Springfield, Missouri-based Bass Pro Shops Outdoor World, on November 2, 2000. Bourbon Street was shuttered in 1999. New Jersey-based Burlington Coat Factory assumed its space and opened on October 27, 2000. The remainder of the B. Altman's building was reconfigured as Metropolis, a three-venue nightclub, which debuted on November 30, 2000.
The first physical expansion of FOREST FAIR MALL consisted of an 8,600 square foot enlargement of space on the Lower Level of the B. Altman's-Kohl's Wing. This addition was built as part of a new Media Play store, which was dedicated on November 17, 2000. A second expansion added 7,400 square feet to the Lower Level of the Parisian-Bass Pro Shops Wing. This area became part of a new Saks Off Fifth Outlet, which was dedicated on March 15, 2001.
By this time, Time Out On The Court had been shuttered. It was replaced by a smaller attraction, known as the WonderPark Family Fun Center. This facility, installed in the B. Altman's-Kohl's wing, consisted of various kiddie rides and a snack bar. It opened in August 2001.
The Food Festival, adjacent to Time Out On The Court, was renovated, with a new culinary complex -known as Picnic On The River- dedicated in August 2001. Vendors included Gold Star Chili, Oyishi Japan and Brain Freeze Treats & Grill.
The northern section of the Time Out area was reconfigured as two tenant spaces. The Lower Level became a Steve & Barry's University Sportswear, which was the chain's first Buckeye State store. It opened on November 23, 2001. The Upper Level would house the National Amusements Showcase Cinemas Forest Fair. This 10-screen movie house showed first features on December 21, 2001.
The Phase One mall renovation was now virtually complete. Gator Forest Partners sold the property to the Arlington, Virginia-based Mills Corporation in September 2002. The final expansion of the complex consisted of a 16,600 square foot addition to the Upper Level of the Parisian-Bass Pro Shops Wing. This area opened, as a Babies "R" Us, in the spring of 2003.
Soon after, Mills decided to temporarily close the 1.5 million square foot mall. Its major stores remained in operation. Mills embarked on a 70 million dollar renovation, which involved redecorating the interior, laying hardwood floors and installing a mall-wide, state-of-the-art video system. As the remodeling got underway, Elder-Beerman decided that their FOREST FAIR location did not fit in with long term plans. The store was shuttered on April 30, 2003.
The sprawling retail complex was divided into three Neighborhoods, i.e., Neighborhood A (Amusement), Neighborhood B (Fashion) and Neighborhood C (Country Road). The Festival At Forest Fair section was renamed Town Square. Mills rededicated the shopping center on August 19, 2004. A new name was bestowed; CINCINNATI MILLS.
Along with the new moniker came a new anchor; Latonia, Kentucky-based Johnny's Toys. This store occupied 75,000 square feet, or the Upper Level of the vacant Elder-Beerman. Johnny's Toys was short-lived. It was shuttered in early 2006 and followed by a relocated Steve & Barry's, which took in both levels of the old Elder-Beerman.
Inline stores opened along with -or soon after- the change to CINCINNATI MILLS included Guess? Factory Outlet, Wilson's Leather Outlet, Spiegel: The Ultimate Outlet, The Suit Factory, Margarita's Authentic Mexican Restaurant & Cantina and the Danbarry Dollar Saver Cinemas (in the Super Saver Cinemas 8 spot).
The mall changed hands again, on April 3, 2007. The Indianapolis-based Simon Property Group and San Francisco-based Farallon Capital Management, Limited Liability Company formed a joint venture to acquire the holdings of the Mills Corporation.
Mills' mall renovation had not been entirely successful. By January 2008, there were sixty-six operational stores out of nearly 200 spaces. The writing was on the wall. The Simon-Farallon joint venture sought to unload the albatross they had inherited. In December 2008, it was sold to North Star Realty, an operative of Raleigh, North Carolina-based Whichard Realty.
With the transaction went the mall's moniker, as the Mills name was not part of the sale. On March 4, 2009, all references to "Mills" were removed from graphics, signage and promotions. A third name for the complex was announced...CINCINNATI MALL.
The super-sized center, which had been in various stages of ascendance and decline for over 20 years, limped on. Tenants such as Media Play, Saks Off Fifth, Berean Book Store, Guitar Center and Urban Behavior, came and went. Perhaps the largest nail in the mall's proverbial coffin was driven by bigg's. The last remaining charter tenant, bigg's was shuttered in June 2008. Soon after, the entire bigg's wing was closed off. The remainder of the mall was occupied by just forty stores and services.
World Properties Incorporated, of Floral Park, New York, acquired the virtually vacant facility in March 2010. In January 2011, they announced a 10 million dollar renovation which was to add a sports complex, complete with an ice rink and volleyball courts.
In addition, the mall, now promoted as a "multi-purpose driven facility," was to undergo another remarketing, with business, medical, educational and traditional retail tenants being courted. As a facet of this change in direction, the name of the complex was officially changed to FOREST FAIR VILLAGE in March 2012.
Unfortunately, Burlington Coat Factory and the Danbarry Dollar Saver Cinemas pulled up stakes in 2013 and 2014, respectively. The prospective mall revitalization was soon abandoned. In 2017, the Newmark Grubb Knight Frank brokerage firm placed the virtually vacant mall on the open market.
There were four operational tenants in September 2017; Bass Pro Shops, Kohl's, Arcade Legacy and Adventurous Bouncy Houses. Arcade Legacy closed for good in September 2022. All shopping concourses were shuttered on December 2, 2022. Bass Pro Shops went dark on January 14, 2024, leaving only Kohl's in business.
Local officials want the blighted mall to be demolished, so an industrial park and grocery-anchored strip center can be developed. The Butler County Land Reutilization Corporation approved a demolition plan in February 2022. However, progress has been delayed by concerns over Butler County funding being used to raze Hamilton County structures. Whatever the case, said funding must be used by 2025, or it can be reclaimed by the State of Ohio.
Sources:
The Cincinnati Enquirer
The Dayton Daily News
Cincinnati Magazine
The Syndney Morning Herald (Sydney, Australia)
LJ Hooker Developments' "Forest Fair Mall" video-1989
http://www.cincinnatimills.com (website on Internet Archive Wayback Machine)
http://cinbizjournals.com / Cincinnati Business Journals
Hamilton County, Ohio property tax assessor website
Butler County, Ohio property tax assessor website
http://www.abandonedonline.net
http://www.cincinnati-mall.com (website on Internet Archive Wayback Machine)
http://www.movie-theatre.org / Mike Rivest
http://www.davemenninger.com
https://www.forestfairvillage.com
https://www.wcpo.com
"Forest Fair Village Offering Memorandum" / Newmark Grubb Knight Frank
https://alchetron.com / "Forest Fair Village" article
"Forest Fair Village" article on Wikipedia
