Homart Development Company, a Chicago-based subsidiary of Sears, was one of the largest builders of shopping centers and malls in the United States from 1959 to 1995.
Company history As retail development in the United States shifted away from downtowns with the growth of suburbia after World War II, some major department stores such as Sears moved into the business of developing malls in which to place new anchor tenant locations.White, John R. & Gray, Kevin D. Shopping Centers and Other Retail Properties: Investment, Development, Financing, and Management p.61-62 (1996) () Homart Development Company was founded in 1959 for the purpose of building regional shopping malls for Sears.Suchman, Diane R. Managing a Development Company (Urban Land Institute 1987)("Homart was established in 1959 for the purpose of developing regional shopping malls.") The "Homart" brand name had been used by Sears for many years before the development company was founded. (1945 Sears advertisement includes "Homart" products)
Seminary South Shopping Center in Fort Worth was their first project.("Seminary South was the first shopping center developed by Homart Development")
By 1971, Homart was operating nine regional shopping locations, and had numerous others in development. It became the nation's second largest mall developer, and by 1992 it was reported that Homart had developed 80 malls with over of retail space. By 1994, it was also operating 36 of those developed malls.
In November 1994, Sears announced that it planned to sell off Homart as part of a restructuring.("Sears also said today that it would sell its Homart Development Company, a real estate development firm. ") General Growth Properties completed an acquisition of Homart in late 1995 in a transaction valued at $1.85 billion, then one of the biggest real estate deals in history.("General Growth made a number of high-profile acquisitions of shopping malls in every part of the country. Some of General Growth's biggest included: the $1.85 billion acquisition of Homart Development Co. from Sears Roebuck in 1995, said to be one of the largest real estate transactions in history at the time") Homart also owned a number of office buildings which were also sold in 1995.
Management Sears executive Emory Williams was the first president of Homart. Warren G. Skoning was appointed president in 1967, and elected as chairman in 1974. Also serving as vice-president of real estate development for Sears, Skoning was involved in the development of the Sears Tower.Pridmore, Jay. Sears Tower: A Building Book from the Chicago Architecture Foundation p.17 (Pomegranate 2002)()("Mr. Skoning was co-chairman of the building committee for Sears Tower and had much of the responsibility for the construction of the mammoth skyscraper...") W.E. Lewis was named president in 1974 when Skoning became chair.
Edwin Homer, former president of Chrysler Realty, joined as president in 1980, later became chair and CEO, and served until his retirement in 1984.Kowinski, William Severini. The Malling of America (2000 ed.) ()(Kowinski incorrectly identifies Homer as "Ernest," but notes his appearance at an ICSC conference in the early 1980s: "There was affable Ernest Homer, head of Homart, the developing arm of Sears — the largest retailer and biggest advertiser in the country — who handed out a business card that was also bigger than anyone else's.") Homer diversified Homart's portfolio by developing office properties and community centers, in addition to malls, and also sold some of Homart's malls to generate additional profit for Sears.
In 1985, Michael J. Gregoire was named president and COO, and he also became chairman in 1987.
Notable projects Notable shopping centers developed by Homart include:
Mall name Town State Notes Year opened Seminary South Shopping Center Fort Worth Texas An open-air mall which opened in March 1962. It was sold by Homart in 1985. It was renovated and enclosed, and reopened as the Fort Worth Town Center in 1987, and then as "La Gran Plaza de Fort Worth" in 2004. 1962 Hancock Shopping Center Austin Texas 1964 Coronado Center Albuquerque New Mexico 1965 Colonie Center Albany New York First enclosed shopping mall in New York State's Capital Region. 1966 Inland Center San Bernardino (Inland Empire area) California 1966 Midland Mall Warwick Rhode Island Renamed the Rhode Island Mall in March 1985. Closed in 2011. 1967 Nanuet Mall Nanuet (Greater New York City) New York First enclosed mall in Rockland County. Closed in 2012 for redevelopment. 1969 Woodfield Mall Schaumburg (Chicago metropolitan area) Illinois Joint venture with A. Alfred Taubman, was world's largest enclosed mall at time of opening.("Woodfield Mall, the world's largest shopping center, opened last week in Schaumburg, 25 miles northwest of Chicago") 1971Eastridge MallSan JoseCaliforniaJoint venture with A. Alfred Taubman1971 Town East Mall Mesquite (Greater Dallas Area) Texas 1971 Los Cerritos Center Cerritos (Greater Los Angeles Area) California Joint venture with The Hahn Company 1971 Castleton Square Indianapolis Indiana Joint venture with Edward J. DeBartolo 1972 Parkway Plaza El Cajon (San Diego Metropolitan Area) California Joint venture with The Hahn Company 1972 Valley View Center Dallas Texas 1973 (closed 2022) Metrocenter Phoenix Arizona Joint venture with Westcor 1973 (Closed 2020) Altamonte Mall Altamonte Springs Florida Jointly developed with Edward J. DeBartolo Corporation ("In Central Florida, Homart developed Altamonte Mall and is building the West Oaks Mall") 1974 Maplewood Mall Maplewood (Minneapolis–Saint Paul area) Minnesota 1974 Independence Center Independence (Kansas City area) Missouri 1974 Westminster Mall Westminster (Orange County) California 1974 Northbrook Court Northbrook (Chicago metropolitan area) Illinois 1976 Orland Square Mall Orland Park (Chicago metropolitan area) Illinois 1976 Eden Prairie Center Eden Prairie (Minneapolis–Saint Paul area) Minnesota 1976("Eden Prairie Center opened in 1976 and was substantially remodeled in 1989.") Florence Mall Florence (Cincinnati metropolitan area) Kentucky 1976 Woodland Hills Mall Tulsa Oklahoma Joint venture with Dayton-Hudson Corporation. Expansion completed by Homart in 1982 1976Fairlane Town CenterDearbornMichiganJoint venture with A. Alfred Taubman and Ford Motor Land Development1976 Lakeside Mall Sterling Heights Michigan Joint venture with A. Alfred Taubman and Dayton-Hudson Corporation 1976 Burnsville Center Burnsville (Minneapolis–Saint Paul area) Minnesota 1977("Homart has developed Burnsville Center, the Eden Prairie Mall and the Maplewood Mall, as well as power centers throughout the nation") Brea Mall Brea (Orange County) California 1977 Louis Joliet Mall Joliet Illinois Renamed in mid 2000s as Westfield Louis Joliet 1977 Twelve Oaks Mall Novi Michigan Joint venture with A. Alfred Taubman and Dayton-Hudson Corporation 1977 Broward Mall Plantation (Miami Metropolitan Area) Florida 1978 Baybrook Mall Friendswood (Greater Houston) Texas 1978 Metrocenter Jackson Mississippi Joint venture with Jim Wilson & Associates 1978 Acadiana Mall Lafayette Louisiana Joint venture with Robert B. Aikens & Associates 1979 Fiesta Mall Mesa (Phoenix metropolitan area) Arizona Opened on October 3, 1979. 1979 (closed 2018) Spring Hill Mall West Dundee (Chicago metropolitan area) Illinois 1980 (closed 2024) Town Center Mall Boca Raton (Miami Metropolitan Area) Florida Also known as Town Center at Boca Raton 1980 Bannister Mall Kansas City Missouri Joint venture with Copaken White & Blitt. 1980 (closed 2007) Eastgate Mall Cincinnati Ohio Joint venture with Jacobs Visconsi & Jacobs, J.C.P. Realty, and Cincinnati Partners. 1980 NewPark Mall Newark California Joint venture with Macy's. 1980 Willowbrook Mall Houston Texas 1981 Greenbrier Mall Chesapeake Virginia 1981 Westgate Mall Amarillo Texas 1982 Chapel Hills Mall Colorado Springs Colorado Joint venture with General Growth Properties 1982 Dover Mall Dover Delaware 1982 Deerbrook Mall Humble (Greater Houston) Texas 1984 North Shore Square Slidell Louisiana 1985 Tysons Galleria Tysons Corner (Washington Metropolitan Area) Virginia Joint venture with Lerner Enterprises 1988 Lakeland Square Mall Lakeland Florida Joint venture with Edward J. DeBartolo Corporation("Homart teamed up with DeBartolo again for Lakeland Square Mall, which opened in 1988.") 1988 The Parks at Arlington Arlington (Greater Dallas area) Texas 1988 Rolling Oaks Mall San Antonio Texas Joint venture with Simon Property Group ^ https://www.expressnews.com/business/article/Rolling-Oaks-Mall-acquired-NY-company-17427745.php 1988 Vista Ridge Mall Lewisville (Greater Dallas area) Texas Joint venture with Herring Marathon Group and JCP Realty^ Jump up to: a b "Vista Ridge Mall celebrates grand opening in Lewisville". Dallas Morning News. 1989-10-05. "Vista Ridge Mall, a joint venture by Homart Development Co., Herring Marathon Group Inc. and JCP Realty Inc., celebrated its grand opening Wednesday in Lewisville. Located on Stemmons freeway, Vista Ridge was completed under a two-phase development with national and local stores, restaurants, a 12-cinema complex and upon completion, six major department stores. The shopping center is currently anchored by Sears Roebuck and Co. and Dillards Department Stores." 1989 Arden Fair Mall Sacramento California Rebuilding of Arden Fair Mall 1989 The Shoppes at Buckland Hills Manchester (Greater Hartford area) Connecticut Opened in March 1990 as "The Pavilions at Buckland Hills". 1990 Steeplegate Mall Concord New Hampshire Opened August 1, 1990 1990 Bay City Mall Bay City Michigan Joint venture with Robert B. Aitkens 1991 Pembroke Lakes Mall Pembroke Pines (Miami metropolitan area) Florida 1992 Moreno Valley Mall Moreno Valley California Built on the former Riverside International Raceway site that hosted auto racing from 1957 to 1989. 1992 North Point Mall Alpharetta (Atlanta metropolitan area) Georgia 1993 Natick Collection Natick (Greater Boston) Massachusetts The original mall built in 1966 was purchased by Homart in 1992, subsequently demolished and rebuilt in 1994. 1994 The Woodlands Mall The Woodlands (Greater Houston) Texas Joint venture with The Woodlands Corporation 1994("This year alone, Homart will open the 1 million-square-foot Woodlands Mall in Woodland, Texas...")Kutchin, Joseph W. How Mitchell Energy & Development Corp. Got Its Start and How It Grew: An Oral History and Narrative Overview (2001) p.542-47 ()
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