"Century III Mall is an ailing, enclosed shopping mall located in the southern Pittsburgh suburb of West Mifflin, Pennsylvania. It is the fourth largest shopping mall in the Greater Pittsburgh area. Opened in 1979, and remodeled in 1997, the three-level mall contains 1,290,000 square feet (120,000 m2) of retail space and approximately 25 stores.
In its prime, Century III Mall once boasted over 200 stores, services and eateries, which at the time was the largest enclosed shopping center in the Pittsburgh area by store count. Presently, the mall's occupancy rate is 10%. The mall's fortunes began to reverse by 1999; competition in the form of the Waterfront shopping center opened in nearby Homestead, which has expanded over the years. South Hills Village, located about five miles to the west in Bethel Park, also underwent a major renovation, incorporating a large food court among its amenities. Other factors, such as the worsening economy following the September 11, 2001 attacks and retailer bankruptcies as a result, also led to increasing vacancies. In 1999, the mall lost its first anchor tenant when Federated Department Stores closed the Lazarus store due to under-performing sales.
As early as 2003, Century III Mall was about 20% vacant, and as of 2006, it was 30% vacant. Today, the mall is roughly 90% vacant with approximately half of the remaining tenants being composed of independent merchants. Specialty stores such as AEO, Aeropostale, PacSun, Charlotte Russe, Gloria Jeans, Gymboree, The Children's Place, Gap, Regis, Radio Shack, Payless Shoe Source, Journeys Kids, Vitamin World, KB Toys, Dollar Tree, Express, Steve and Barry's, New York and Company, Ritz Camera, have closed or moved to nearby centers. The once-sprawling food court, previously home to over 20 eateries, is now abandoned after the last remaining restaurant, Italian Village Pizza, closed on July 1, 2017. Ruby Tuesday, a longtime dining establishment, also closed down in December 2008. In 2010, La Hacienda opened in the former Ruby Tuesday space, but it would also close and was eventually replaced with Old Mexico Restaurant in 2015. Old Mexico is expected to close by late summer 2017, leaving the mall with just one food tenant, Auntie Anne's. Most of the parking deck, including parking beneath the structure, is permanently barricaded and blocked off to the general public.
On May 13, 2013, Century III Mall was purchased by Las Vegas-based Moonbeam Capital Investments LLC, a real estate investment trust which operates other shopping centers across the United States. Moonbeam's redevelopment plans for the mall would've included a partial demolition of the complex and turning the enclosed mall portion inside out, although nothing has ever materialized. As of mid-summer 2017, only 25 stores, two restaurants and one kiosk remains, including anchors J.C. Penney and Dick's Sporting Goods." - thanks, wikipedia
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