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<\/a>\nMall Fortunate to Quickly Have New Anchor Tenant<\/p>\n
Building the planned 120,000-square-foot House of Sports without demolishing the former Forever 21 space would be \u201cvery difficult,\u201d said Andy Greenwood, VP of development for Macerich, the mall\u2019s owner.<\/p>\n
He said the mall and Dick\u2019s have been working since summer 2025 on the project and could have construction completed by the end of 2027.<\/p>\n
Adapting the building would take a lot of work that would likely turn the retailer off from the investment, Greenwood said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey would likely not take the time to do that. They would explore other opportunities,\u201d Greenwood said.<\/p>\n
Like for most malls, keeping anchor space occupied is a challenge, he said. Macerich has courted bowling alleys, theaters, and other businesses so that demolition wouldn\u2019t be necessary.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe believe Fresno is quite fortunate to have a committed occupant within one year of Forever 21\u2019s closure,\u201d Greenwood said.<\/p>\n
Dick\u2019s does not currently list any House of Sports locations in California.<\/p>\n
Fashion Fair\u2019s Role in Fresno\u2019s Urban Sprawl<\/p>\n
The mall\u2019s role in the community\u2019s history became part of the commission\u2019s discussion about the former Forever 21 building.<\/p>\n
While likely not directly designed by Luckman, commissioner Paul Halajian \u2014 himself an architect \u2014 said even having his name associated with the building brings acclaim.<\/p>\n
The building was built \u201csemi-independently\u201d of the mall, developed by Carter Broadway Hale about the same time Fashion Fair was built. The building originally housed Weinstock\u2019s and then Gottschalks before becoming Forever 21 in 2011.<\/p>\n
Commissioners Halajian and Sarah Johnston said the mall should be considered as a whole for its cultural contributions.<\/p>\n
Halajian said it was Fresno\u2019s first regional mall.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt changed retailing, it changed socialization, it changed everything. I think it changed the perception of Fresno,\u201d Halajian said.<\/p>\n
Commission chair James Sponsler said the mall served as a reminder of Fresno\u2019s urban sprawl. In the 1960s, ahead of Fashion Fair\u2019s construction, Manchester Mall and Fig Garden Shopping Center had begun the northward spread away from downtown.<\/p>\n
Fresno elected leaders were already thinking about urban decay when they approved the construction of the downtown pedestrian Fulton Mall, which opened in 1964. That downtown focus quickly changed when the city council gave the OK for Fashion Fair to build amid one of the biggest political controversies in\u00a0 city history.<\/p>\n
The debate pitted neighbor against neighbor, rumors of bribes surfaced, and there was talk that if Fashion Fair received the thumbs-up, a Macy\u2019s would be built downtown. The crucial council hearing was carried live on two radio stations.<\/p>\n
That downtown Macy\u2019s was never built, and Fashion Fair opened in 1970 \u2014 long before more northern growth led to the development of the Herndon Avenue corridor and points farther north.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot anything against Fashion Fair, but in the history and development of Fresno, that kind of created this kind of death knell for anything we were trying to do with downtown,\u201d said Sponsler.<\/p>\n
Commission Vice Chair Jason Hatwig countered, saying malls evolve with time.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt doesn\u2019t look the same as it does when I was in college,\u201d Hatwig said.<\/p>\n
Others said having such a large vacancy could threaten the mall.<\/p>\n