Unicity Mall
Unicity Mall was a shopping mall in Winnipeg, Manitoba. It was named for the 1972 unicity restructuring of city management. Originally known as Unicity Fashion Square when it opened in September 1975, the mall was anchored by a Woolco and The Bay, and was one of only three malls in the city, along with Polo Park and Grant Park Shopping Centre. Managed by Trizec Corporation, the mall initially prospered despite one wing being almost completely empty. The food court's McDonald's was the first placed inside a mall in western Canada.
In the mid 1980s, the local economy was slowing down and the mall began losing tenants. By the 1990s it was mostly empty and the vacated spaces were used for temporary flea markets. During that time Woolco became Walmart, and extensive pressure was placed on the mall Ownership for expansion of the Unicity Walmart location. In April 1995, mall owner Bramalea Limited became bankrupt after all its board of directors resigned. At that time, the mall had 86 stores and an area of 485,000 square feet. Bramalea had a 67-percent stake in the mall. Markborough Properties of Toronto, which had owned a smaller portion of the mall, immediately took over management and leasing.
Despite various legal battles between store owners, local residents, and the new ownership, the mall was demolished to make way for a larger Walmart. Ownership was transferred to First Pro and the mall was subsequently demolished in 2000 and replaced with a Smart!Centres big box complex. The Unicity Smart Complex is now home to Walmart, Canadian Tire, Sobey's, Staples, Winners, Sport Chek, Tim Hortons, KFC, Burger King, Shoppers Drug Mart, Value Village, Mark's, Quiznos, Bulk Barn and Dollar Tree among others.
