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 The entrance to Mall of America in 2018 | |
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| Location | Bloomington, Minnesota |
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| Coordinates | 44°51′15″N93°14′32″W / 44.85417°N 93.24222°W /44.85417; -93.24222 |
| Address | 2131 Lindau Lane |
| Opening date | August 11, 1992; 33 years ago (1992-08-11) |
| Management | Melvin Simon & Associates Triple Five Group |
| Owner | Triple Five Group |
| Architect | HGA,KKE Architects, Inc., Jerde Partnership[1] |
| Stores and services | 520 |
| Anchor tenants | 6 (5 open, 1 vacant) |
| Floor area | 5,600,000 sq ft (520,000 m2) |
| Floors | 4 on East and South Wings 3 on North and West Wings |
| Parking | 12,300 spaces (Two 7-story ramps and two overflow surface lots) |
| Public transit |  Blue Line Red Line D Line |
| Website | mallofamerica |
Mall of America (MoA) is a largeshopping mall located inBloomington, Minnesota. Located within theMinneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area, the mall lies southeast of the junction ofInterstate 494 andMinnesota State Highway 77, north of theMinnesota River, and across the Interstate from theMinneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport. It opened in 1992, and is thelargest mall in the United States, the largest in theWestern Hemisphere, and thetwelfth largest shopping mall in the world.[2]
The mall is managed by theTriple Five Group (which in turn is owned by theGhermezian family, along with theWest Edmonton Mall and theAmerican Dream). Approximately 32 million people visit the mall annually, 80% of whom are fromMinnesota,Wisconsin,Iowa,Nebraska,the Dakotas,Illinois andOhio.[3][4]
The mall's concept was designed by theTriple Five Group in conjunction with global design firm DLR Group, owned by theGhermezian brothers, who also own the second-largest shopping mall in North America, theWest Edmonton Mall.[5][6] The Mall of America is located on the site of the formerMetropolitan Stadium,[7] where theMinnesota Vikings andMinnesota Twins played[8] until theHubert H. Humphrey Metrodome opened in 1982.[9] A plaque in the mall's amusement park commemorates the former location of home plate[10] and one seat from Met Stadium was placed in Mall of America at the exact location it occupied in the stadium, commemorating a 520-foot (160 m) home run hit byhall-of-famerHarmon Killebrew on June 3, 1967.[11]
In 1986, the Bloomington Port Authority signed an agreement with the Ghermezian organization.[12] Groundbreaking for the mall took place on June 14, 1989.[13] Organizations involved includeMelvin Simon and Associates,[14]Teachers Insurance and Annuity,[15] and the office of architectJon Jerde.[16]
Mall of America opened its doors to the public on August 11, 1992.[17] Its anchors wereNordstrom,Macy's,Bloomingdale's andSears.[18] Even before opening, the mall had earned several nicknames, including "The Megamall", "Sprawl of America", "Hugedale" in reference to the four major "dale" shopping malls within the Twin Cities:Rosedale,Southdale,Ridgedale and the now-defunctBrookdale.[citation needed]
Mall of America became the largest shopping mall in total area and largest in total store vendors in the United States when it opened. The Mall of America's 42 million annual visitors equal roughly eight times the population of the state of Minnesota. As of 2015[update], the mall employed over 11,000 workers year-round and 13,000 during peak seasons.[19]
In early 2020, Mall of America closed for a period of twelve weeks in response to theCOVID-19 pandemic, closing on March 17,[20] and reopening on June 10 with only 150 tenants open for business.[21] The mall was originally scheduled to reopen on June 1, butcivil unrest in the Twin Cities around this time caused the mall to postpone the reopening.[22][23]
In 2003, after a protracted six-year legal battle betweenSimon Property Group, the managing general partner of the property, and the Ghermezian brothers/Triple Five Group, over majority ownership of the site, a federal appeals court ruled in favor of the Ghermezians, effectively transferring control and planning authority of the mall back to the creator of the concept.[24] The dispute stemmed from a 1999 purchase of Teacher's Insurance's 27.5% equity stake by Simon Properties, giving them majority ownership. The Ghermezians claimed they were never told of the deal and sued Simon, citing fiduciary responsibility.[15] On November 3, 2006, the Ghermezians gained full control of Mall of America by spending US$1 billion.[25]
On May 18, 2008, the Mall of America received a tax break for a proposed $2 billion expansion. The bill gave the city of Bloomington the ability to increase taxes on sales, lodging, food, and beverages to finance a parking ramp at the mall.[26] On March 24, 2012, the Triple Five Group, partnered with architectural firmDLR Group, announced the start of a $200 million expansion that would build into the north parking lot of the mall.[27] The plans called for an additional hotel and an additional 200,000 square feet (19,000 m2) of retail space.[28] The project broke ground in the fall of 2013 and began opening in stages in the summer of 2015.[29][30] In March 2014, ground was broken on the mall's north side for the $104 million, 14-storyJW Marriott hotel, owned and financed by the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community.[31] In 2018, it was announced that MOA had proposed to build an indoor water park, with a cost between $150 and $200 million for the project.[27][32] In March 2022, the plan was approved by the Bloomington City Council.[33]
The Mall of America has a gross area of 5,600,000 sq ft (520,000 m2) or 129 acres (52 ha),[19] and 2,869,000 sq ft (266,500 m2) of retail space.[34][35] The mall is nearlysymmetric, with a roughly rectangularfloor plan. More than 500 stores are arranged along three levels of pedestrian walkways on the sides of the rectangle, with a 4th level on the south and east sides. Four anchordepartment stores are located at the corners. The mall is organized into four different zones. Each of those zones had its own decorative style until a series of renovations from 2010 to 2015 led to a unified and more luxurious style, as well as to coincide with the mall's first major expansion.[36] The mall's food court is on the 3rd floor.[37]
Despite Minnesota's cold winters, only the mall's entrances and some below ground areas are heated. Heat is allowed in throughskylights above the central amusement park area. The majority of the heat is produced by lighting fixtures, other electric devices and people in the mall.[38] Even during the winter,air conditioning systems may still be in use during peak hours to ensure a comfortable shopping environment.[39] Although the common areas are unheated, the individual stores do have heating systems.[40]
Two nearly identical seven-storyparking ramps on the east and west sides of the mall provide 12,287 parking spaces. Overflow parking north of the building provides an additional 1,200–1,500 spaces and 1,407 spaces are provided byIKEA, which opened in July 2004.[citation needed]
The Theatres at Mall of America opened three days after the grand opening of the mall. Initially, the cinema was run byGeneral Cinema, but it was bought out then rebranded byAMC Theatres,[41] and eventually operated by mall management. The cinema occupied the south side of the fourth floor through December 2016, when it closed permanently. It was replaced byCinemex subsidiary CMX Cinemas in late 2017.[42] Due to CMX Cinema's bankruptcy proceedings, CMX Mall of America closed down and replaced withB&B Theatres in 2021.[43]
On January 3, 2012, Macy's Inc. announced it would close its Bloomingdale's location at the Mall of America after nearly two decades.[44] On December 28, 2018, it was announced thatSears (which had been at the Mall of America since its opening in 1992) would be closing as part of a plan to close 80 stores nationwide.[45]
Currently, the mall featuresMacy's,Nordstrom,L.L. Bean, andCrayola Experience as its anchors, along with the vacant anchor space formerly occupied by Sears.[citation needed] There are also many junior anchors, likeToys "R" Us,[46]H&M,Barnes & Noble,Nordstorm Rack, andDSW. Former junior anchors includeBest Buy,Marshalls,Forever 21, andAmerican Girl, with the latter being replaced with a 24,000-square-footM&M's retail store, which opened in late 2020.[47] There are also two hotels on the mall's property:JW Marriott Minneapolis Mall of America andRadisson Blu Hotel.[citation needed]
Nickelodeon Universe, formerlyCamp Snoopy, is an indoortheme park in the center of the mall. The park featuresroller coasters, among numerous other rides and attractions, including many not related to Nickelodeon, and is the largest indoor theme park in the United States. Unlike many indoor amusement parks, Nickelodeon Universe has a great deal of natural foliage in and about the park, and its floor has a wide variance in height – the highest ground level in the park is 15 feet (4.6 m) above the lowest. The rides include the roller coastersSpongeBob SquarePants Rock Bottom Plunge,Fairly Odd Coaster, Back at the Barnyard Hayride andAvatar Airbender, and a thrill ride calledBrainSurge. It also has a miniature golfing section called Moose Mountain. This miniature golf course features eighteen holes and a relatively fastastroturf surface.[48]
At theSea Life Minnesota Aquarium, guests travel through a 300-foot-long (91 m) curved tunnel through 14 feet (4.3 m) of water to view over 4,500 sea creatures including sharks, turtles, stingrays and many more.[49] Sea Life Minnesota Aquarium offers special events such as sleepovers, scuba diving, snorkeling and birthday parties.[50]
In the lower level of the eastern parking ramp is theMall of America station, the busiesttransit hub in Minnesota with services to and from many destinations in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area. The Transit Station contains two stops on theMetro Network: the southernterminus of theMETRO Blue Line (light rail) toDowntown Minneapolis via MSP Airport andHiawatha Avenue (operated byMetro Transit), and the northern terminus of theMETRO Red Line (bus rapid transit) toApple Valley. The indoor waiting area at Mall of America Transit Station is open daily from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.Metro Transit and theMVTA also operate many localbus services to the Transit Station and many area hotels along with theMystic Lake Casino Hotel offerfree shuttles to their establishments.
The mall is not apark and ride facility, and overnight parking is banned to prevent passengers taking the train to the airport. Commuters are required to use the nearby30th Avenue station's parking ramp. The station underwent a $25 million upgrade which was completed in October 2019.[53][54]
Behavior Detection Officers (BDOs) are trained in Israel, each one going through at least 240 hours of training.[55] As Doug Reynolds, the former Security Director at the mall noted in a congressional testimony in 2008, BDOs are taught to "look for intent, rather than means. The objective is to focus on suspicious indicators in three categories: People, vehicles, and unattended items like backpacks, shopping bags, and suitcases."[56] This methodology has prepared the mall for a variety of threats, both from terrorists and everyday criminals.
In 2010, theMinnesota Star Tribune reported that mall security officials were instructed to question or detain individuals exhibiting what they deemed "suspicious behavior". Signs of suspicious behavior included photographing air-conditioning ducts, or signs that a shopper was hiding something.[57] At the time, some officials within the Bloomington Police Department worried that the mall's security methods may infringe peoples' rights.[58]
In 2011,NPR'sAll Things Considered andMorning Edition andPBS'sNewsHour both aired programs documenting security abuses by the mall's security personnel.[59] On December 31, 2013, members from theFirst Nations protest movementIdle No More attempted to repeat a successful Native-American round dance held at the mall in 2012,[60] but failed after being stopped by mall security. Organizers of the dance, Patricia Shepard and Reyna Crow fromDuluth were arrested on site for trespassing.[61]
In January 2023, a TikTok was posted of a man wearing a T-shirt emblazoned with the sloganJesus saves and theCoexist (image) logo crossed out being asked to either take it off or leave the mall, the member of security in the video saying "Jesus is associated with religion and it is offending people. People have been offended." In the video he stated that in another instance he was preaching in the mall and the mall has a policy against religious solicitation.[62][63]
In February 2015, theal-Shabaab militant group also released a propaganda video calling for attacks on the Mall of America and other Western shopping centers.[64] Although the group had never launched attacks in North America,[65] security at the mall was tightened in response and theDepartment of Homeland Security issued a one-day alert to shoppers to remain vigilant.[64]
On December 21, 2014, thousands of protesters attended an unauthorized demonstration organized byBlack Lives Matter in the mall's rotunda. The demonstration was in response to theshooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri and the then recent jury decision not to prosecute the white officer in that case, as well as thedeath of Eric Garner of New York. In response to the demonstration, the Mall of America closed the areas of the mall around the rotunda.[66] Police arrested 25 demonstrators.[67] The Bloomington City Attorney, Sandra Johnson, pursued charges against the organizers,[68] and the city is sought compensatory damages from some of the organizers for out-of-pocket costs the city incurred while paying overtime for additional security. In response to these charges, demonstrators have called for a boycott of the mall.[69]
Plans for another Black Lives Matter demonstration at the Mall of America on December 23, 2015, prompted mall officials to file arestraining order against the movement's activists.[70] Eight individual activists were sued in Hennepin County District Court.[71] The mall's lawsuit would prohibit the defendants from demonstrating and require them to delete all of their posts to social media pertaining to the demonstration. The lawsuit additionally asked that the court jail Black Lives Matter activists unless they publicly announce that the demonstration is cancelled on their social media accounts. TheAmerican Civil Liberties Union of Minnesota called the mall's lawsuit an "improper prior restraint on speech" and an unconstitutional overreach.[72][73]
On April 12, 2019, a five-year-old boy was thrown from the third-story balcony by 24-year-old Emmanuel Deshawn Aranda of Minneapolis, outside theRainforest Cafe, and landed near theMichael Kors store. The boy was in the hospital for over five months, but eventually recovered. Aranda was sentenced to 19 years in prison in June of that year with the possibility for parole after 12 years.[74][75][76]
On December 31, 2021, a single gunshot was fired on the north side of the third floor of the mall. A patrolling Bloomington Police Department officer who heard the shot immediately notified mall security, who activated the mall's lockdown alarm. Responding officers found a man who had been shot in the leg when they arrived at the scene and later another injured person was found who appeared to have been grazed by the bullet. The first victim was transported to the hospital while the second was treated on the scene by paramedics and released. According to a statement by Deputy Chief Kim Clausen, she recommended that there was an "altercation" between two men that resulted in one shooting the other. After a thorough search of the mall by police and security officers, the lockdown was lifted approximately 40 minutes after it started and the mall closed for the rest of the day shortly thereafter.[77]
On January 3, 2022, an 18-year-oldRoseville man was identified as they left the scene of the shooting with the shooter was arrested for aiding and abetting first-degree assault,[78] and on January 4, police arrested the suspect on assault charges and in a subsequent search of the house found a gun.[79] In March, 2022, the man, Kahlil Wiley, pleaded guilty to one count of second degree assault with a dangerous weapon and was sentenced to three years and nine months. The second assault charge against him was previously dismissed.[80]
On August 4, 2022, the mall was put under lockdown after two men fired gunshots during an altercation at theNike store, then fled.[81] Two-timeNASCAR Cup Series championKyle Busch was in the mall with his family at the time; they were unharmed.[82] The two alleged shooters were apprehended a week later in Chicago. They were detained shortly after stepping out of a barbershop. Three people were also arrested for allegedly aiding the shooters as they fled the scene and hid from authorities at a nearbyBest Western hotel. Two of the suspects originated from Minneapolis, while the other three originated fromBurnsville, all between the ages of 21 and 23.[83]
On December 23, 2022, the mall was placed under lockdown after a "long-standing feud" led to the fatal shooting of a 19-year old male inside theNordstrom department store.[84][85][86] A bullet grazed a bystander's clothing resulting in only minor injuries.[84] Two teenagers, 18-year-old TaeShawn Adams-Wright (born September 26, 2004) of Minneapolis and 17-year-old Lavon Longstreet (born March 3, 2005) ofGolden Valley, were later convicted of second degree-murder and second-degree assault for the shooting. Both men were sentenced in 2024 to 30 years and seven months in prison, and both were incarcerated atMCF Stillwater.[87]
The Mall of America was used as a filming location for various movies and television shows,[88] including:
The mall was referenced in the seriesHow I Met Your Mother during the episode "Slap Bet" as the reason why native MinnesotanMarshall Eriksen believed thatRobin Scherbatsky would have been married in a mall; this is a reference to the Chapel of Love in the mall, which closed in August 2022.[93][94] The mall was the location of the premiere ofDigimon: The Movie (2000) and the 30th anniversary screening ofThe Godfather (1972). The mall was also referenced in the seriesReginald the Vampire in the episode "Reginald Andres Beyond Thunderdome" by the character Ashley who was quoted as saying "I was born on the day they broke ground for the largest shopping mall in America."
In theLifter Puller song "Bloomington", singerCraig Finn (a Minnesota native) refers to the mall as a place where the narrator conducts some of their illicit business: "His idea of fun is Bloomington, he always takes his calls at the megamall".[95]
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