Home of Carolina Circle Mall

What I'm going to attempt to do here is create a thoroughly detailed timeline about Carolina Circle Mall and related items.

This is a work in progress and will probably take quite some time to complete.

Unfortunately, there is much date missing for events between circa 1980 to 1985. Feel free to correct me or request some information to add here.

Let's start at the very beginning.

The United States's oldest indoor mall "The Arcade" opens.

Joe Koury starts talking about building a shopping center in southwest Greensboro. This is the earliest known reference to Four Seasons Town Centre to date.

Alpert Investment Corporation of Atlanta, Georgia proposes building a new mall "Carolina Circle Mall" in northeast Greensboro off of US-29.

This same year, Koury breaks ground on Four Seasons Mall.

Alpert buys Doctor Edgar Sikes's cattle farm.

April: Alpert breaks ground on Carolina Circle Mall. If memory serves me correctly, a few references I've found at the library state that the mall at this time was known as "Carolina Circle Shopping Center". I could be wrong.

February: Four Seasons Mall opens off of High Point Road. The mall at the time featured two-stories and 95 stores.

February 5: Carolina Circle Mall's first store, Belk, opens.

Sometime between February and August, the mall's Montgomery Ward opens.

June: The mall's Ice Chalet opens.

July 30: Carolina Circle sponsors a gala ball at the Carolina Theater downtown.

August 4: Carolina Circle Mall's Grand Opening. Twenty-two stores open this day including Ivey's first Greensboro department store. In accordance with the mall's Alice in Wonderland advertising campaign, UNCG drama students in Alice in Wonderland costumes entertained the mall's customers. The mall's manager Ray Brantley states that the ad campaign, ice ink, and other special features will appeal to children much like Ronald McDonald and McDonald's playgrounds help sell hamburgers. Mall visitors also notice a pungent aroma filling the mall and sorrounding area coming from a nearby sewage treatment plant. Equipment is later added to the plant to help reduce the smell.

November: Piccadilly Cafeteria and the Circle Six Theatres open.

Sometime after the mall opens, a new K-Mart opens down the road from the mall.

April 14-April 16: The mall holds an Antiques & Collectibles show.

December 4: At 10:30 AM on a Sunday, three deer broke into the mall. Let me explain and it will all make sense. The deer were startled by some cleaning equipment churning through the mall's parking lot. Frightened, they busted through some plate-glass windows at the mall's main entrance. They fell from the second floor onto the ice rink. Sadly, one doe broke its neck and died. The surviving two were captured and released. Deer were pretty common around the mall at this time in history due to the mall still being on the outskirts of the city.

April: John Powers, a retired professional wrestler, opens the Hawaiian Surf Waterslide Park beside the mall. The bobsled-like slides featured at the park average 450 feet long by up to 70 feet high.

August 12: The mall celebrates its second anniversary. Clayton Moore, who played the Lone Ranger in the 1950s TV series, signs autographs for children.

By the end of the '70s, Hardee's restaurant opens across from the Ice Chalet. Also, a steakhouse and the "Current Event Disco" open near Montgomery Ward.

April: The mall holds a Crafts Show.

A new Toys 'R' Us across from the mall opens.

An advertisement, assumed to be used on the radio, is recorded. The slogan is "It All Comes Together at Carolina Circle Mall". You can listen to this jingle by heading over to the Vintage Ad Showcase.

August: An Australian firm buys Carolina Circle through its U.S. subsidiary, Sunshine Properties Inc. of Dallas. The new owner promises to renovate the mall to keep up with Four Seasons. At the time, Carolina Circle's vacancy rate is 10 percent, compared to 1 percent at Four Seasons.

March 21: The mall holds a kite flying contest.

April 9: Four Seasons Mall completes a major renovation which includes a new third-story. Four Seasons repertoire is raised to 200 stores.

April 9: Carolina Circle Mall debuts its new logo, consisting of a pink and green crescent and circle inside a larger circle. This logo has been deemed, unofficially, as the Circle Crescent.

June: Carolina Circle's new owners hire Strouse Greenberg, a Philadelphia-based property-management firm, to oversee renovations and help manage the mall. The firm also says it will study the mall's tenant mix, and develop a marketing plan.

October: The mall begins its major renovation project, which lasts for about a year.

October: Annual Trick-or-Treating Party.

November 21: As part of a promotional event, kids are asked to wake the mall's Santa Claus up to kickoff the 1987 Christmas Season.

March 24-27: Spring Value Weekend at the mall.

June 3: The mall holds a Health Fair.

August 19-21: Weekend of Magic at the mall. Throughout the weekend, magician Larry Taylor performs various shows at the mall.

July 14-17: Super Summer Sidewalk Sale at the mall.

October 31: Annual Trick-or-Treating Party.

November 19: A $6 million renovation project is completed and Strouse Greenberg unveils the new Carolina Circle Mall (my favorite version). Changes Include:

• Giant pink-and-blue butterflies and banners begin to hang from the ceiling. The brown terrazzo floor was ripped up to make room for a light gray tile floor. Interior support columns have been covered with mirrors and ringed with neon. Brown handrails have given way to chrome, and walkways cross splashing water fountains.
• The mall is five times brighter than it used to be, compared to previously just having 60 lighting fixtures.
• Lighting in the parking lots has been upped by 30 percent for safety reasons. Exterior entrances have been spiced up with prism towers and the mall’s Circle Crescent emblem.
• Concourses have been straightened. Before, store fronts jutted out in a jagged pattern, blocking customers’ views of some stores and making a crooked path from one end of the mall to the other. Store fronts have been cut back, allowing a wider, straighter path from one end of the mall to the other. More stores are using glass fronts to display more items and, therefore boost the chances that they’ll sell more.
• Before the renovation, there was a pair of escalators at one end of the mall. Post-renovation finds the up escalator at one end of the mall and the down escalator at the other end.
• In the place of the former Ice Chalet, a $250,000 Carousel was added, along with a new food court, simply known as either the "Food Court" or the "Carousel Court". This has been forever known as a very controversial move.

November 26: The Carousel opens.

Dillard's Department Stores buys out Ivey's Department Stores.

July 13-16: Sidewalk Sale.

October 26-29: The mall holds an Arts & Crafts show.

November 27: Billy Coore, fan of Carolina Circle Mall and webmaster of Carolina Circle City and Home of Carolina Circle Mall, is born.

A new marketing campaign is launched which includes a new slogan "Come and Shop Around the Circle... Carolina Circle Mall!"

Montgomery Ward completes a renovation which includes the removal of the orange tiling on the store's exterior. The store's garden center is also removed.

January 15: Robbers shoot and wound a 54-year-old man while he walks out of the mall's Montgomery Ward store with his two daughters. The incident fuels a perception that the mall is dangerous.

January 17-20: The mall holds a Sidewalk Sale.

March 30: Carolina Circle Mall and 99.5 FM WMAG hold a Celebrity Shopping Games.

April 13: The mall holds an "Annie Look-Alike Contest".

June 8-15: The mall holds an "In The Green Sweepstakes".

September 20-22: The mall holds a "Down Home Country Festival".

October 22-October 28: Dinosaur exhibit held outside of the Carousel.

October 31: Annual Trick-or-Treating Party.

January 16-19: Circle Sale Days Sale.

March 14: PTA Health Fair.

May 8 & 9: The mall holds an Everything on Sale sale.

August 14 & 15: The mall holds a Back to School sale.

September 11: Greensboro police open a satellite station at the mall. The city pays $1 a year for the space. City leaders say they hope the station will make shoppers feel more secure. Four Seasons Mall officials also talk with police about getting a station, but nothing ever comes of it.

October 16 & 17: The mall holds a two day long Sixteenth Anniversary.

October 31: Annual Trick-or-Treating Party.

November 20-21: Ho-Ho-Holiday Sale

May 1-May 9: Guilford County Schools and Carolina Circle Mall display exhibits throughout the mall to "put a spotlight on the plight of the homeless in Guilford County".

Probably July 1-July 3: The mall holds a "No Sidewalk Sale".

August 13-29: "Let Freedom Ring Photo Exhibit" is held at the mall's CPI Photo Finish store.

September 30: George D. Zamias Developer, a family-owned company from Johnstown, Pa., buys the mall for $16 million in cash and agrees to take over the $21.17 million mortgage.

November 26 (Black Friday): The mall's Santa Claus arrives at the mall via a parachute.

January 8-January 10: The mall holds a Winter Clearance Sale.

February 5-February 6: Geoff Bodine's Show Car is displayed at mall.

February 12-February 13: USA Olympic Bobsled is displayed at mall.

February: Belk sells their first floor to the United States Postal Service.

March 4-5: The mall holds a "Fun Flicks" program, allowing customers to star in their own short movies, such as an MTV style music video.

March 19: The mall holds a Spring Fashion Show.

April 2: The mall holds a contest for people to win tickets to the Sesame Street show at the Greensboro Coliseum.

April 9: The mall holds a motorcycle show.

April 16 & 17: The mall holds the first (and probably only) annual American Putting Classic at Bryan Park.

May: Belk's first floor becomes a Post Office. Belk's second floor remains open and is downgraded to a clearance center.

July 4: The mall holds a fireworks show.

July 27: Kid's Corner: 101 Dalmatians movie is shown and a "Don't Talk to Strangers" coloring book is given away to children.

August 17: Kid's Corner: Power Rangers movie is shown and kids learned about 911.

September: Midland Crafter's Guild Show.

November 11-November 13: The mall holds a sports-card show.

December 19: A man disguised as Santa Claus (not the official mall Santa Claus), visits the mall that evening and gives various people a $20 bill.

December: The mall's Santa Claus gives me a book called The Night Before Christmas. The back of the book includes the mall's address and emblem.

Around this time, Mr. Wok Chinese Restaurant opens at the mall's food court.

March 24-March 26: The mall holds a sports-card show.

May 12-May 14: The mall holds an antique car show.

June 20: Kid's Corner: The Lion King movie is shown and "A Safe Summer" coloring book is given away to children.

July 22: "Toys For Big Boys" show.

October 26-29: The mall holds a Fall Fling Arts & Crafts Show.

October 31: Annual Trick-or-Treating Party.

November 4: The Goldwing Road Riders 1995 Bike Show & Community Health Fair.

Please note that 1995 is considered the mall's climax. Anytime after 1995 is considered the "wanning years".

May 3-May 5: The mall holds an antique car show.

June 10-16: The mall holds a Space Station exhibit.

July 31: Piccadilly Cafeteria goes out of business.

October 31: The Circle Six Theatres goes out of business.

Other stores that closed this year include Camelot Music, Waldenbooks, and Radio Shack.

February: Belk goes out of business. It's the mall's first anchor to close.

June 13: Monk's Cheesesteaks and Cheeseburgers goes out of business.

October 31: Annual Trick-or-Treating Party.

November 28: Santa Claus arrives at the mall in a horse & carriage.

Dillard's goes out of business.

Zamias offers the mall for sale.

After quite a lot of debate, Guilford County commissioners vote against purchasing the mall for county offices.

On the other side of town, Four Seasons Mall completes its second major renovation which includes a waterfall ampitheater.

In the early part of the year, a retired physician Don Linder to buy and convert Carolina Circle into a retail and recreation center.

Also this year, Montgomery Ward announces it will be closing nationwide.

Sometime in the middle of the year, mall officials decide to permanently seel off the mall corridor leaving Montgomery Ward as the only part of the mall open.

Around January, Montgomery Ward goes out of business. Due to this, this also marks the official permanent closure of Carolina Circle Mall.

The Pyramids Village plan begins to unfold this year. Parts of the mall's parking lot are removed and replaced with soccer fields and tennis courts.

Also this year, a flea market called "Carolina Flea Market" opens up inside the mall's former Belk.

May: The K-Mart down the road from the mall goes out of business.

August: The Toys 'R' Us across from the mall goes out of business.

Around this time is when the main entrance arches that had been up since the 1988 renovation are removed.

The Pyramids Village sports complex plan fell through this year.

Around October, plans are announced to eventually demolish the mall and replace it with a new Wal-Mart. A few kids and I at Pendle Hill Christian School were some of the first to know about this actually.

May: Don Linder asks the city for $300,000 in incentives. He later withdrew the request after losing public support.

June 28: The register of deeds recorded the sale of Linder's land to Wal-Mart for $3.3 million.

June 30: Carolina Circle Mall's demolition begins. The first part of the mall to be leveled is Dillard's.

September 30: The mall's demolition is completed. Coincidentally, Belk is the final part of the mall to be demolished (it was also the first store to open at the mall back in 1976).

Later in 2005, the Wal-Mart begins construction.

August 16: Almost nearly 30 years after Carolina Circle Mall opened, the Wal-Mart at The Shoppes at Pyramids Village opens. Festivities happen all day long including a high school band and a visit from "Twinkie the Kid".

Around November of 2006, more strip shops begin construction next to the Wal-Mart.

February: Lowe's Home Improvement announces it will build a new store at the former K-Mart down the road from Carolina Circle/Pyramids Village. The K-Mart is soon demolished.

March: Lowe's Home Improvement begins construction.

April 16: The International House of Pancakes opens across from Carolina Circle/Pyramids Village.

August 31: Lowe's Home Improvement opens.