Conestoga Mall (Grand Island, Nebraska)


Conestoga Mall is an enclosed shopping mall in Grand Island, Nebraska. It was opened in 1974 and is owned by Namdar Realty Group. The mall's anchor stores are AMC Theatres, Best Buy, Western World, Jo-Ann Fabrics, Dillard's, rue21, LensCrafters, JCPenney, Tri City Furniture, Hallmark, and HobbyTown USA. There are 2 vacant anchor stores that were once Sears and Younkers.

History

Ericson Development of Edina, Minnesota, built the mall in 1974. At the time, it included Miller & Paine and Brandeis as its anchors. Later expansions brought Sears and JCPenney as anchors, as well as regional department store chain J.M. McDonald.
Dillard's purchased Miller & Paine in 1988, and Younkers purchased Brandeis in 1987. Best Buy serves as a junior anchor, located in part of the former J.M. McDonald space.
In 2003, J. Herzog & Sons bought the mall from the Richard E. Jacobs group, which had put it up for sale in 1999. In 2017, New York-Based Namdar Realty Group purchased the mall.
The Younkers store closed in August 2018 with the liquidation of its owner, Bon-Ton Stores. The mall's Sears location closed in early 2019 as part of the retailer's plan to close 40 stores. On June 4, 2020, it was announced that JCPenney would be closing around October 2020 as part of a plan to close 154 stores nationwide. After JCPenney closes, Dillard's and Best Buy will be the only traditional anchor stores left.