Malls · Illinois

Jefferson Square Mall

Imported, unreviewedRedevelopedDemolishedJoliet, IL

Opened 1975. Closed 2002. Redeveloped in 2008.

Status nowDemolishedextracted, unreviewed

documented

demolished

en.wikipedia.org

What it becameretailextracted, unreviewed reported

Retrofit year2008extracted, unreviewed reported

Walkability13.5 of 20 · 15-minute 4 of 6EPA, OpenStreetMap

Rail within 800 mNoOpenStreetMap, HUD

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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.

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Site profile8 elements · what this retrofit is built with · tap a chip for the evidence

Former anchors

Montgomery Ward

This site: Montgomery Ward wikipedia · all sites with this

Place

Bike network nearby

This site: 14 ways openstreetmap · all sites with this

County typical rent $2,000+

This site: $2,374/mo zillow · all sites with this

Grocery within 800 m

This site: 3 stores openstreetmap · all sites with this

High tornado risk

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

Walkable block group (EPA ≥ 12)

This site: …index 13.5 epa-walkability · all sites with this

Strategy

Redeveloped

This site: Walmart and Menards extraction · all sites with this

New use

Retail (continued)

This site: …new_use field extraction · all sites with this

All elements and lists · Trends

Now

Status	Demolishedextracted, unreviewed documented demolished en.wikipedia.org
Strategy	Redevelopedextracted, unreviewed documented redevelop en.wikipedia.org
New uses	retailextracted, unreviewed reported
What is there now	Walmart and Menardsextracted, unreviewed documented Walmart and Menards en.wikipedia.org
Retrofit year	2008extracted, unreviewed reported
Redeveloper	Menard Propertiesextracted, unreviewed reported

Planning

Zoning change	retailextracted, unreviewed documented planned to demolish the mall for a newer, larger Menards as well as a Walmart supercenter en.wikipedia.org

Deals and debt

Date	Event	Price	Parties	Source
2002	Sold	—	Menard Properties ← Simon Property Group	Wikipedia
1987	Sold	—	Menards ← Wieboldt's	Wikipedia

Site context

Transit within 800 m	no rail station; 10 bus stops within 400 mOpenStreetMap
Motorway junctions within 2 km	130AOpenStreetMap
FEMA flood zone	no NFHL polygon at point (unmapped or outside coverage)FEMA NFHL
EPA-regulated facilities within 500 m	16: AMOCO 15574; AUTO PARTS CENTER INC; AUTO RESOURCES DBA JD BYRIDER; CARCARE COLLISION; CARCARE COLLISION CENTERSEPA FRS
Census tract 17197883210	2,579 people, 1,309 per sq mi; median household income $72,740; median gross rent $954; 38% renters; 1.1% vacant units; 3.6% commute by transitACS 2023 5-year
Walkability (EPA, block group)	index 13.5 of 20; 52 intersections per sq mi; nearest transit stop 697 m; land-use mix 0.71; 105,772 jobs within 45 min by car, 66,338 by transit; 9% of households without a carEPA Smart Location
Within a 10–15 minute walk (800 m)	4 of 6 daily needs: 3 grocers, 2 schools, 10 parks or playgrounds, 0 health, 0 civic, 10 food and drink; 14 cycleway segments, 0 sidewalk-tagged segmentsOpenStreetMap
Opportunity Zone	noHUD
Housing permits, Will County (IL), 2024	530 units in 5+ unit buildings, 8 in 2–4, 1,464 single-family; 2023: 29 in 5+Census BPS
Social vulnerability (CDC SVI 2022, tract)	overall percentile 0.42; socioeconomic 0.33; housing and transport 0.48; 16% below 150% of poverty; 14% of households with no vehicleCDC/ATSDR
Other atlas sites nearby	1 within 10 km, 2 within 25 km: Hillcrest Shopping Center (4.0 km)computed
Overture Maps	no place match; building footprint 20,490 m², 7.943249225616455 mOverture (CDLA-Permissive 2.0)
Attention: Wikipedia page views	1,625 since 2015; 1,606 in the last 12 months (+13283% vs the prior 12); peak 2026-09 with 306Wikimedia
Tract change 2013–2023	population +6% (2,433 → 2,579); median income +37% ($53,073 → $72,740); renters 19% → 38%; median home value +41% ($210,100 → $296,500)Census ACS 5-year
Natural hazard risk (FEMA National Risk Index, tract)	relatively low overall (score 55.5); expected annual loss $1.3M; high: tornado, cold wave; community resilience very highFEMA NRI
Tax-credit housing within 1 km	1 LIHTC properties, 134 units: Inwood Towers (134 units)HUD LIHTC
Retail trade in the county, 2025 (BLS QCEW)	30,322 jobs in 1,481 establishments; average annual pay $37,623; employment location quotient 1.15; employment +0.8% on the yearBLS QCEW 2025, NAICS 44-45, private
Jobs located in the tract, 2022	3,261 jobs; 1,091 in retail trade, 197 in accommodation and food (workplace blocks summed to tract 17197883210)Census LEHD LODES8 WAC 2022
Upward mobility (Opportunity Atlas, 2010 tract)	children of low-income (25th percentile) families reached the 43th income percentile as adults; 1.9% incarcerated at the 2010 count (108 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; 18% of residents more than 1 mile from a supermarket; poverty rate 5.0%; median family income $115,917; 88 SNAP householdsUSDA ERS
Schools	Joliet Township High School District 204 (09-12); 4 public schools within 1 mile: Marycrest Early Childhood Center; Thomas Jefferson Elem School; Will Co Detention Center 6-8; Will Co Detention Center 9-12NCES EDGE
Elevation	630 ft above sea level at the site pointUSGS 3DEP
Storm events in the county, 2016-2025	449 county-logged events: 247 thunderstorm wind, 78 hail, 38 flood, 33 tornado; $2,588,500 property damage reported; 2 direct deaths; forecast-zone events (most flood, winter and heat) not countedNOAA Storm Events
Homes for sale in ZIP 60435, 2026-09	median list price $297,225 (-0.1% on the year); 70 active listings; median 31 days on market; 18% with a price cutRealtor.com Research
Retail trade in the county, 2012 to 2023	1,669 establishments (+4%); 31,419 jobs (+13%)Census CBP
Housing market in the county	typical home value $376,285 (+3% 1 yr, +29% 5 yr); typical rent $2,374/mo (+3% 1 yr), 2026-09Zillow Research
House price index, tract, 2023	253 (2000 = 100); +6.9% 1 yr, +37% 5 yr, +68% 10 yrFHFA
Traffic on the busiest road within 600 m (2024)	26,453 vehicles a day on Jefferson St (principal arterial, 4 lanes); 690 trucks; 15 counted segmentsFHWA HPMS

Summary, model-written

Opened in 1975 with Wieboldt's and Montgomery Ward anchors, Jefferson Square Mall was renamed Wilderness Mall in 1996. After tenant declines and the 1987 closure of Wieboldt's, the mall shut in 2002, was purchased by Menard Properties, demolished 2004‑06, and redeveloped with a Walmart and Menards retail center completed in 2008.

Why. The record shows anchor loss (Wieboldt's closed 1987) and a general tenant decline by 2000, which led to the mall's closure and subsequent demolition.

Where it stands. The site is now a retail development (Walmart and Menards) built by Menard Properties after the 2004‑06 demolition.

For a planner

Strategy listed as "redevelop" with a zoning change to retail.
Opportunity score is 0.0, citing retrofit already built and closed/demolished site.
Open questions include long‑term viability of the big‑box retail and any needed infrastructure updates.

For a developer

Site size: 553,295 sq ft (extracted).
Control: Menard Properties owned the parcel from 2002 and executed the 2008 retrofit.
Entitlement stage: retrofit already completed (year_retrofit 2008).
Market signal: median rent $1,413 noted in opp_reasons.

What we do not know yet

Verified status is "draft", indicating the record has not been fully reviewed.
Missing details on post‑2008 ownership and any lease terms for Walmart/Menards.
No information on flood zone, transit access, or environmental constraints.
Exact fate of Montgomery Ward anchor is not stated in the record.
Demolition timeline specifics beyond start/completion years are not detailed.

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

Lincoln Mall, Matteson, IL · Malls · opened 1973; same strategy: redevelop; also in IL
Bashford Manor Mall, Louisville, KY · Malls · opened 1973; closed 2003; same strategy: redevelop
Carolina Circle Mall, Greensboro, NC · Malls · opened 1976; closed 2002; same strategy: redevelop
Crystal Point Mall, Crystal Lake, IL · Malls · opened 1976; closed 1998; same strategy: redevelop

Elsewhere on the web

Retail history: Jefferson Square Mall on DeadMalls.com photos, field notes and visitor memories since 2000; matched by name and city; nothing copied here

Pages with photos

Jefferson Square Mall logo 1986 commons.wikimedia.org
The Old Jefferson Square Mall Forgotten In Joliet Illinois youtube.com
Malls of America - Vintage photos of lost Shopping Malls of the '5… mallsofamerica.blogspot.com
Jefferson Square Mall/Wilderness Mall; Joliet, Illinois - Labelscar ... labelscar.com

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

Multifamily screen

retrofit already built
closed or demolished site (sourced)
median rent $1,413

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	1975extracted, unreviewed
Closed	2002extracted, unreviewed documented closed in 2002 en.wikipedia.org
Stores at peak	60extracted, unreviewed reported
Original developer	Melvin Simon and Associatesextracted, unreviewed documented developed by Melvin Simon and Associates, now known as Simon Property Group en.wikipedia.org
Anchors	Montgomery Ward, Wieboldt's
County	Will 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

Jefferson Square Mall, also known as Wilderness Mall, was a 553,295 square feet (51,402.8 m2) shopping mall in Joliet, Illinois, United States. Opened in 1975, it originally featured Wieboldt's and Montgomery Ward. The mall closed in 2002, and was demolished in 2004 to build a Walmart and Menards.

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

Timeline

1974 Wieboldt's opened
1974 Montgomery Ward opened
1975 Mall opened
1987 Wieboldt's closed
1996 Renamed Wilderness Mall
2000 Tenants declined
2002 Purchased by Menard Properties
2004 Demolition started
2006 Demolition completed
2008 Walmart built

Sources

Wikipedia: Jefferson Square Mall · supports: after notes, original developer, status, strategy, year closed, year opened, zoning change
17 quoted sentences
opened on February 28, 1975
closed in 2002
developed by Melvin Simon and Associates, now known as Simon Property Group
Walmart and Menards

Cite

Retrofit Atlas (2026). "Jefferson Square Mall, Joliet, IL." Record m-c30606923a, imported, unreviewed. Built on the public Retrofitting Suburbia map (Dunham-Jones and Williamson) and the sources listed. https://retrofitatlas.org/malls/il/joliet-jefferson-square-mall/ (accessed 2026-10-20).

BibTeX

@misc{retrofitatlas_jolietjeffersonsquaremall,
  title = {Jefferson Square Mall, Joliet, IL},
  author = {{Retrofit Atlas}},
  howpublished = {\url{https://retrofitatlas.org/malls/il/joliet-jefferson-square-mall/}},
  year = {2026},
  note = {Record m-c30606923a, 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