Malls · Illinois

Evergreen Plaza

Imported, unreviewedReinhabitedClosedEvergreen Park, IL

Opened 1952. Closed 2013. Reinhabited in 2013.

Status nowClosedextracted, unreviewed

documented

The mall closed in 2013 and became an outdoor shopping center.

en.wikipedia.org

What it becameretailextracted, unreviewed reported

Retrofit year2013extracted, unreviewed reported

Walkability15.5 of 20 · 15-minute 5 of 6EPA, OpenStreetMap

Rail within 800 mNoOpenStreetMap, HUD

Ask who owns this Download dossier (PDF) · early access Download record (JSON) API Share LinkedIn Correct this record

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.

Evergreen Plaza — Aerial view of a large shopping center with extensive parking lots and surrounding urban area. · verified by a vision model. Photo: Ken Lund from Las Vegas, Nevada, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Site profile18 elements · what this retrofit is built with · tap a chip for the evidence

Former anchors

Macy's

This site: Macy's wikipedia · all sites with this

Finance and pipeline

On Facebook

This site: …https://www.facebook.com/105933677819218 overture · all sites with this

Website alive

This site: …https://www.bathandbodyworks.com/?cm_mmc=local_BBW02423 overture / http check · all sites with this

Place

15-minute neighbourhood (5+ of 6 daily needs within 800 m)

This site: 5/6 openstreetmap · all sites with this

County lost 10%+ of retail establishments since 2012

This site: -11% census-cbp · all sites with this

County permitting 2,000+ apartment units a year

This site: 4,853 units, Cook County census-bps · all sites with this

County typical rent $2,000+

This site: $2,228/mo zillow · all sites with this

Grocery within 800 m

This site: 9 stores openstreetmap · all sites with this

High heat wave risk

This site: Relatively High fema-nri · all sites with this

High inland flooding risk

This site: Relatively High fema-nri · all sites with this

High natural hazard risk (FEMA NRI)

This site: Relatively High; tornado, inland flooding, heat wave, cold wave fema-nri · all sites with this

High tornado risk

This site: Relatively High fema-nri · all sites with this

High-income tract ($100k+)

This site: $101,071 census-acs · all sites with this

Shrinking county

This site: -0.7% census-acs · all sites with this

Tract income up 60%+ since 2013

This site: +65% census-acs · all sites with this

Walkable block group (EPA ≥ 12)

This site: …index 15.5 epa-walkability · all sites with this

Strategy

Reinhabited

This site: …outdoor shopping center extraction · all sites with this

New use

Retail (continued)

This site: …outdoor shopping center extraction · all sites with this

All elements and lists · Trends

Now

Status	Closedextracted, unreviewed documented The mall closed in 2013 and became an outdoor shopping center. en.wikipedia.org
Strategy	Reinhabitedextracted, unreviewed documented The mall closed in 2013 and became an outdoor shopping center. en.wikipedia.org
New uses	retailextracted, unreviewed reported
What is there now	outdoor shopping centerextracted, unreviewed documented The mall closed in 2013 and became an outdoor shopping center. en.wikipedia.org
Retrofit year	2013extracted, unreviewed reported

Site context

Transit within 800 m	no rail station; 13 bus stops within 400 mOpenStreetMap
FEMA flood zone	X · AREA OF MINIMAL FLOOD HAZARDFEMA NFHL
EPA-regulated facilities within 500 m	10: EXPRESSLY PORTRAITS INC; FIRESTONE 3433; GOODYEAR; MARIANOS #530-531; O CONNER FORDEPA FRS
Census tract 17031821900	5,043 people, 6,856 per sq mi; median household income $101,071; median gross rent $1,164; 10% renters; 2.2% vacant units; 4.2% commute by transitACS 2023 5-year
Walkability (EPA, block group)	index 15.5 of 20; 213 intersections per sq mi; nearest transit stop 822 m; land-use mix 0.73; 268,710 jobs within 45 min by car, 58,615 by transit; 9% of households without a carEPA Smart Location
Within a 10–15 minute walk (800 m)	5 of 6 daily needs: 9 grocers, 0 schools, 8 parks or playgrounds, 7 health, 2 civic, 21 food and drink; 0 cycleway segments, 324 sidewalk-tagged segmentsOpenStreetMap
Opportunity Zone	noHUD
Housing permits, Cook County (IL), 2024	4,853 units in 5+ unit buildings, 512 in 2–4, 1,142 single-family; 2023: 3,332 in 5+Census BPS
Social vulnerability (CDC SVI 2022, tract)	overall percentile 0.46; socioeconomic 0.17; housing and transport 0.56; 8% below 150% of poverty; 6% of households with no vehicleCDC/ATSDR
Other atlas sites nearby	2 within 10 km, 26 within 25 km: Ford City Mall (6.1 km); Illinois Brick Company's yard 22 (6.8 km)computed
Overture Maps	place Evergreen Plaza (shopping_mall, confidence 0.99, from Overture, Overture-signals, meta); building footprint 4,467 m², 7.0 mOverture (CDLA-Permissive 2.0)
Website and social	www.bathandbodyworks.com (alive); archived 1998–2026 (Wayback) · social: facebookOverture / Internet Archive
Attention: Wikipedia page views	58,724 since 2015; 4,148 in the last 12 months (-5% vs the prior 12); peak 2015-10 with 1,553Wikimedia
Tract change 2013–2023	population -3% (5,193 → 5,043); median income +65% ($61,278 → $101,071); renters 11% → 10%; median home value +40% ($184,900 → $258,700)Census ACS 5-year
Natural hazard risk (FEMA National Risk Index, tract)	relatively high overall (score 85.8); expected annual loss $2.7M; high: tornado, inland flooding, heat wave, cold wave; community resilience relatively highFEMA NRI
Tax-credit housing within 1 km	noneHUD LIHTC
Retail trade in the county, 2025 (BLS QCEW)	213,302 jobs in 12,604 establishments; average annual pay $43,743; employment location quotient 0.83; employment -0.6% on the yearBLS QCEW 2025, NAICS 44-45, private
Jobs located in the tract, 2022	1,482 jobs; 707 in retail trade, 174 in accommodation and food (workplace blocks summed to tract 17031821900)Census LEHD LODES8 WAC 2022
Upward mobility (Opportunity Atlas, 2010 tract)	children of low-income (25th percentile) families reached the 48th income percentile as adults; 0.6% incarcerated at the 2010 count (304 children in the sample); born 1978–83, measured 2014–15Opportunity Insights
Food access (USDA FARA 2019, 2010 tract)	not a low-access tract at 1 mile; poverty rate 5.1%; median family income $83,011; 101 SNAP householdsUSDA ERS
Schools	Evergreen Park Community High School District 231 (09-12); 6 public schools within 1 mile: Kellogg Elem School; Sutherland Elem School; Vanderpoel Elem Magnet School; Northeast Elem SchoolNCES EDGE
Elevation	658 ft above sea level at the site pointUSGS 3DEP
Storm events in the county, 2016-2025	1,091 county-logged events: 620 thunderstorm wind, 164 hail, 133 flood, 82 flash flood; $1,049,471,000 property damage reported; forecast-zone events (most flood, winter and heat) not countedNOAA Storm Events
Homes for sale in ZIP 60805, 2026-09	median list price $337,450 (+5.2% on the year); 33 active listings; median 31 days on market; 13% with a price cutRealtor.com Research
Retail trade in the county, 2012 to 2023	13,577 establishments (-11%); 214,575 jobs (-4%)Census CBP
Housing market in the county	typical home value $340,258 (+6% 1 yr, +23% 5 yr); typical rent $2,228/mo (+5% 1 yr), 2026-09Zillow Research
House price index, tract, 2025	430 (2000 = 100); +4.4% 1 yr, +43% 5 yr, +67% 10 yrFHFA
Traffic on the busiest road within 600 m (2024)	29,987 vehicles a day on 95th St (principal arterial, 4 lanes); 780 trucks; 8 counted segmentsFHWA HPMS

Summary, model-written

Evergreen Plaza opened in 1952 as a traditional indoor mall with over 120 stores and a food court, anchored by Macy's, Whole Foods Market, and Burlington Coat Factory. It operated until 2013 when it closed and was converted into an outdoor shopping center. Since then the site has remained an outdoor retail center.

Why. The record does not specify reasons for the closure or conversion; no anchor loss, competition, debt, or demolition factors are mentioned.

Where it stands. The site is currently an outdoor shopping center, but the record does not identify the present owner or controlling entity.

For a planner

The project followed a 'reinhabit' strategy, converting the closed mall to an outdoor retail format.
Policy tools or incentives used for the retrofit are not documented in the record.
Open questions include the site’s current zoning, ownership structure, and long‑term market viability.

For a developer

Site size and parcel boundaries are not provided in the record.
Current ownership and control are unknown, affecting ability to assemble or lease the property.
Entitlement status and any pending approvals are not described.
Context‑layer constraints such as flood risk, transit access, or environmental conditions are not recorded.

What we do not know yet

Missing site acreage and parcel layout.
Current owner or managing entity is not identified.
Zoning designation and any land‑use restrictions are unknown.
No information on floodplain, transit proximity, or environmental constraints.
Market‑level data (tract demographics, retail sales, competition) are absent.
The retrofit details (year_retrofit, after_notes) are extracted but not verified beyond draft status.

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

North Pier, Chicago, IL · Malls · closed 2013; same strategy: reinhabit; also in IL
Westfield Old Orchard, Skokie, IL · Malls · opened 1956; same strategy: reinhabit; also in IL
Forest Park Mall, Forest Park, IL · Malls · same strategy: reinhabit; also in IL; 19 km away
1800 N. Clybourn, Chicago, IL · Malls · same strategy: reinhabit; also in IL; 22 km away

Elsewhere on the web

Pages with photos

The Digital Research Library of Illinois History Journal™ : Evergreen ... drloihjournal.blogspot.com
Evergreen Plaza, Evergreen Park, Illinois commons.wikimedia.org
Evergreen Plaza shopping center in Evergreen Park for sale | Crain's ... chicagobusiness.com
Evergreen Plaza — LBX Investments lbxinvestments.com
✨Evergreen Plaza Mall 2025 | Evergreen Park | Chicago Neighborhood Walk | Neighborhood Walking Tour youtube.com
EVERGREEN PLAZA SHOPPING CENTER - Evergreen Park IL - Ho… loc8nearme.com
EVERGREEN PLAZA SHOPPING CENTER - Updated July 2026 - … yelp.com

Search images: Google · Bing · Commons · references: ULI case studies · Google Scholar

Multifamily screen

retrofit already built
closed or demolished site (sourced)

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	1952extracted, unreviewed
Closed	2013extracted, unreviewed documented The mall closed in 2013 and became an outdoor shopping center. en.wikipedia.org
Original developer	Arthur Rubloffextracted, unreviewed documented It was legally organized by Arthur Rubloff, who is also credited with coining the phrase "Magnificent Mile" describing the upscale section of Michigan Avenue north of the Chicago River to Oak Street. en.wikipedia.org
Anchors	Burlington Coat Factory, Macy's, Whole Foods Market
County	Cook County
Census division	3 · East North Central
Notes	Wikipedia categories: Demolished shopping malls in the United States

Not yet recorded: acres, GLA. Know it? Tell us.

Background

The Plaza, formerly known as Evergreen Plaza, was a shopping mall in Evergreen Park, Illinois, United States. It was legally organized by Arthur Rubloff, who is also credited with coining the phrase "Magnificent Mile" describing the upscale section of Michigan Avenue north of the Chicago River to Oak Street. Rubloff secured the funding for the Evergreen Plaza from the Walgreen family who lived nearby in Beverly, Chicago. The Evergreen Plaza operated from 1952 to 2013. It featured over 120 stores, as well as a food court. The mall closed in 2013 and became an outdoor shopping center. Anchors include Macy's, Whole Foods Market, and Burlington Coat Factory.

Excerpt from Wikipedia (authors and history), CC BY-SA 4.0. May be older than the record above.

Timeline

1952 Opened
2013 Closed and became outdoor shopping center

Sources

Wikipedia: Evergreen Plaza · supports: after notes, original developer, status, strategy, year closed, year opened
8 quoted sentences
The Evergreen Plaza operated from 1952 to 2013.
The mall closed in 2013 and became an outdoor shopping center.
It was legally organized by Arthur Rubloff, who is also credited with coining the phrase "Magnificent Mile" describing the upscale section of Michigan Avenue north of the Chicago River to Oak Street.
The mall closed in 2013 and became an outdoor shopping center.

Cite

Retrofit Atlas (2026). "Evergreen Plaza, Evergreen Park, IL." Record m-fbba04b7a2, imported, unreviewed. Built on the public Retrofitting Suburbia map (Dunham-Jones and Williamson) and the sources listed. https://retrofitatlas.org/malls/il/evergreen-park-evergreen-plaza/ (accessed 2026-10-20).

BibTeX

@misc{retrofitatlas_evergreenparkevergreenplaza,
  title = {Evergreen Plaza, Evergreen Park, IL},
  author = {{Retrofit Atlas}},
  howpublished = {\url{https://retrofitatlas.org/malls/il/evergreen-park-evergreen-plaza/}},
  year = {2026},
  note = {Record m-fbba04b7a2, release 2026.10.20, tier: draft. Built on the Retrofitting Suburbia map (Dunham-Jones and Williamson) and the sources listed on the record. Accessed 2026-10-20}
}

How to cite, versioning