Malls · Iowa
Westdale Town Center
Westdale Mall opened 1979, declined by 2013, leased to Frew Development, redeveloped as open‑air, ground lease transferred 2020; status unknown. · summary, model-written
Solid = from the authors' map · outlined = public source · dashed = model-written, not yet reviewed by a person. Tap any value's source label to see where it came from. documented = a quoted excerpt (click to read it) · reported = a source named, no excerpt yet · no source.
Site profile5 elements · what this retrofit is built with · tap a chip for the evidence
JCPenney
This site: JCPenney wikipedia · all sites with thisYounkers
This site: Younkers wikipedia · all sites with this15-minute neighbourhood (5+ of 6 daily needs within 800 m)
This site: 6/6 openstreetmap · all sites with thisGrocery within 800 m
This site: 4 stores openstreetmap · all sites with thisHigh tornado risk
This site: Very High fema-nri · all sites with thisNow
| Status | Status not verifiedWikidata reported |
|---|
Site context
| Transit within 800 m | no rail stationOpenStreetMap |
|---|---|
| Motorway junctions within 2 km | 248, 250OpenStreetMap |
| FEMA flood zone | no NFHL polygon at point (unmapped or outside coverage)FEMA NFHL |
| EPA-regulated facilities within 500 m | 6: EXPRESSLY PORTRAITS; KWIK TRIP #165; MONTGOMERY WARD 1400 AUTO EXP - FORMER SITE OF; PAYLESS CASHWAYS; TIRES PLUS CEDAR RAPIDS SWEPA FRS |
| Census tract 19113003005 | 6,461 people, 1,634 per sq mi; median household income $80,917; median gross rent $994; 10% renters; 1.2% vacant units; 0.1% commute by transitACS 2023 5-year |
| Within a 10–15 minute walk (800 m) | 6 of 6 daily needs: 4 grocers, 1 schools, 3 parks or playgrounds, 3 health, 4 civic, 34 food and drink; 1 cycleway segments, 28 sidewalk-tagged segmentsOpenStreetMap |
| Opportunity Zone | noHUD |
| Housing permits, Linn County (IA), 2024 | 456 units in 5+ unit buildings, 125 in 2–4, 443 single-family; 2023: 189 in 5+Census BPS |
| Social vulnerability (CDC SVI 2022, tract) | overall percentile 0.30; socioeconomic 0.09; housing and transport 0.50; 13% below 150% of poverty; 6% of households with no vehicleCDC/ATSDR |
| Overture Maps | no place match; building footprint 6,237 m²Overture (CDLA-Permissive 2.0) |
| Attention: Wikipedia page views | 4,528 since 2015; 3,235 in the last 12 months; peak 2025-12 with 662Wikimedia |
| Tract change 2013–2023 | tract boundary changed between the 2010 and 2020 census; no 2013 comparisonCensus ACS |
| Natural hazard risk (FEMA National Risk Index, tract) | relatively moderate overall (score 69.9); expected annual loss $1.9M; high: tornado, hail, strong wind, winter weather, cold wave, lightning; community resilience very highFEMA NRI |
| Tax-credit housing within 1 km | 2 LIHTC properties, 120 units: Edgewood Apts (96 units); Home To Stay (24 units)HUD LIHTC |
| Retail trade in the county, 2025 (BLS QCEW) | 12,597 jobs in 694 establishments; average annual pay $38,673; employment location quotient 1.02; employment +0.7% on the yearBLS QCEW 2025, NAICS 44-45, private |
| Jobs located in the tract, 2022 | 5,178 jobs; 1,567 in retail trade, 939 in accommodation and food (workplace blocks summed to tract 19113003005)Census LEHD LODES8 WAC 2022 |
| Upward mobility (Opportunity Atlas, 2010 tract) | children of low-income (25th percentile) families reached the 47th income percentile as adults; 1.2% incarcerated at the 2010 count (374 children in the sample); born 1978–83, measured 2014–15Opportunity Insights |
| Food access (USDA FARA 2019, 2010 tract) | low-access at 1 mile, not low-income; 46% of residents more than 1 mile from a supermarket; poverty rate 7.1%; median family income $88,828; 291 SNAP householdsUSDA ERS |
| Schools | Cedar Rapids Community School District (PK-12); 1 public school within 1 mile: Van Buren Elementary SchoolNCES EDGE |
| Elevation | 798 ft above sea level at the site pointUSGS 3DEP |
| Storm events in the county, 2016-2025 | 329 county-logged events: 170 thunderstorm wind, 107 hail, 19 flash flood, 19 tornado; $2,508,000 property damage reported; 1 direct deaths; forecast-zone events (most flood, winter and heat) not countedNOAA Storm Events |
| Homes for sale in ZIP 52404, 2026-09 | median list price $272,370 (+9.4% on the year); 81 active listings; median 39 days on market; 12% with a price cutRealtor.com Research |
| Retail trade in the county, 2012 to 2023 | 677 establishments (-5%); 15,462 jobs (+8%)Census CBP |
| Housing market in the county | typical home value $242,923 (+3% 1 yr, +23% 5 yr); typical rent $1,262/mo (+14% 1 yr), 2026-09Zillow Research |
| House price index, tract, 2025 | 277 (2000 = 100); -2.1% 1 yr, +33% 5 yr, +50% 10 yrFHFA |
| Traffic on the busiest road within 600 m (2024) | 20,362 vehicles a day on EDGEWOOD ROAD SOUTHWEST, S (principal arterial, 3 lanes); 39 counted segmentsFHWA HPMS |
Summary, model-written
Westdale Town Center opened as Westdale Mall in 1979. By 2012 it showed dead‑mall traits, with two of four anchor stores and about 70% of inline spaces vacant. In early 2013 A. Shapiro LLC bought the property, leased it to Frew Development Group, which launched a $90 million conversion to an open‑air destination and rebranded it Westdale Town Center; Frew acquired the ground lease in 2020.
Why. The decline is evident from the loss of anchor tenants and high inline vacancy noted in the record. No explicit causes such as debt or competition are stated.
Where it stands. As of 2020, Frew Development Group, LLC holds the ground lease (acquired from A. Shapiro LLC), while the site’s overall status is listed as unknown.
For a planner
- The mall is being redeveloped as an open‑air destination, illustrating a precedent for adaptive reuse of enclosed malls.
- No specific policy tools, incentives, or public‑finance mechanisms are documented in the record.
- Open questions include the current operational status after the ground‑lease transfer and long‑term market viability.
- Compatibility with Cedar Rapids’ comprehensive plan or zoning is not described in the record.
For a developer
- Site size: 854,000 sq ft GLA provides a large development footprint.
- Control: Frew Development Group, LLC holds the ground lease (acquired 2020) from A. Shapiro LLC.
- Entitlement stage: $90 million investment underway to convert the property to an open‑air center.
- No explicit flood, transit, or environmental constraints are mentioned in the record.
- Market signal: Linn County grew 3.3% 2018‑23, suggesting regional demand for large‑scale retail/mixed‑use.
What we do not know yet
- Current status is listed as unknown; actual occupancy and operational condition after redevelopment are not provided.
- Ownership beyond the 2020 ground lease (e.g., fee simple holder) is not disclosed.
- No information on zoning approvals, permits, or entitlements for the open‑air conversion is included.
- The record lacks data on flood risk, transit proximity, or environmental constraints.
- GLA and store‑peak figures originate from a 2014 closed‑malls dataset and may be outdated or unreviewed.
Generated by nvidia/nemotron-3-super-120b-a12b on NVIDIA API via Hermes CT from the fields, parcels, deals and context layers on this page, with no outside knowledge. It is regenerated when the record changes and has not been checked by a person. How it is made.
Similar sites
- Eastland Mall, Charlotte, NC · Malls · similar GLA (1,061,439 sq ft); opened 1975
- Regency Mall, Augusta, GA · Malls · similar GLA (953,524 sq ft); opened 1978
- Windsor Park Mall, Windcrest, TX · Malls · similar GLA (1,079,250 sq ft); opened 1978
- Bannister Mall, Kansas City, MO · Malls · similar GLA (1,014,390 sq ft); opened 1980
Elsewhere on the web
Retail history: Westdale Mall on DeadMalls.com photos, field notes and visitor memories since 2000; matched by name and city; nothing copied here
Pages with photos
- Westdale Town Center Asset Shopping Center Cedar Rapids Iowa sandsig.com
- Westdale Town Center to see improvements after refinancing agreem… cbs2iowa.com
- Westdale Town Center westdalecr.com
Search images: Google · Bing · Commons · references: ULI case studies · Google Scholar
Multifamily screen
- 854,000 sq ft GLA (large site)
- county grew 3.3% 2018–23
Inputs: record fields (size, status) and county Census ACS 2018–2023 figures (growth, rent). How the points work. Not a recommendation.
History and original facts
| Opened | 1979Wikidata |
|---|---|
| Gross leasable area | 854,000 sq ftEsri 2014 layer reported |
| Stores at peak | 120Esri 2014 layer reported |
| Anchors | JCPenney, Von Maur, Younkers |
| Address | Williams Blvd. SW & Edgewood Rd. SW |
| County | Linn |
| Census division | 4 · West North Central |
| Notes | Wikipedia categories: Demolished shopping malls in the United States |
Not yet recorded: acres, original developer, what is there now, retrofit year. Know it? Tell us.
Background
Westdale Town Center, formerly Westdale Mall is a formerly enclosed super-regional shopping mall in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, United States. The two-level mall on the southwest side of Cedar Rapids is one of the city's two enclosed malls, along with Lindale Mall on the city's northeast side. By 2012, Westdale displayed some characteristics of a dead mall as two of its four anchor stores and an estimated 70 percent of inline stores have been vacated as of January 2013. At the beginning of 2013, local investor group A. Shapiro LLC purchased Westdale Mall. In January 2013, Frew Development Group, LLC leased the mall and its property from A. Shapiro, LLC. Frew Development is investing $90 million into the redevelopment of the mall, converting it to an open air destination and re-branding it as Westdale Town Center. In 2020, Frew Development Group, LLC acquired the ground lease from A. Shapiro, LLC and today is the sole owner of Westdale Town Center. The mall's anchor stores are JCPenney, Ross Dress for Less, U-Haul, Burlington, and PetSmart. Since 2018, Frew has developed a Tru by Hilton hotel, a Home2 by Hilton, a Boulder Tap House restaurant, and a US Veteran's Medical Clinic.
Excerpt from Wikipedia (authors and history), CC BY-SA 4.0. May be older than the record above.
Timeline
- 1979 Opened (Wikidata)
Sources
- Esri StoryMaps: Closed_US_Malls feature layer (2014) · 2014-10-02
- Wikipedia: Westdale Town Center · 2026-09-01 · CC BY-SA 4.0