Ross Park Mall Celebrates 25th Anniversary, Credits Specialty Stores For Success

Ross Park Mall, a linchpin of the McKnight Road retail corridor and Ross Township's largest taxpayer, will celebrate its 25th anniversary Monday.

The 1.2-million square-foot complex opened August 15, 1986, with 72 occupants that included National Record Mart and Frederick’s of Hollywood. Today it houses 160 shops and businesses, most of which are part of national chains. While American Eagle, Foot Locker and 20 other original tenants still operate in the mall, in recent years it has attracted higher-end retail such as Crate & Barrel, L.L. Bean, Burberry, Tiffany's and Louis Vuitton.

The strategy has helped it weather recent tough economic times, said mall manager Lisa Earl.

“We’re still the backyard mall where people come for a birthday gift or a pair of jeans, but because we have signature shops that you can’t find anywhere else, we’re a destination for consumers from beyond the immediate area,” Earl said.

The arrival of Nordstrom in 2008 marked a turning point in the mall’s transition, she said.

As leases expired, the mall began to attract other upscale retailers, Earl said.

“They’re the reason we’ve remained successful. They’ve protected us from the economy factor and enabled us to buck negative trends.”

Ross Park’s strategy for growth is pivotal to the township's vitality because the mall and its occupants generate a major share of taxes for Ross Township and the North Hills School District, said David Hall, director of finance and operations for the district.

Mall owner Simon Property Group of Indianapolis pays real estate taxes while mall tenants pay mercantile or business taxes. The township and the school district share equally in those revenues, which go to their general funds.

“They’re our largest taxpayer, if you combine all the pieces,” said Hall, who manages a $67 million annual budget, one of the largest among Allegheny County school districts.

The mall's anniversary comes at a time when community leaders are looking to revitalize Ross business development, particularly in the McKnight Road district, which is likely to be an area of focus for a subcommittee that elected officials in Ross Township, West View Borough and the North Hills School District are forming. The subcommittee is part of a joint effort among the agencies to find creative ways to improve the quality of life in Ross and West View without raising taxes.

Vacancies in the southern McKnight Road corridor created when McCracken Ford and Sam’s Club pulled up stakes need to be addressed, Hall said.

“Sam’s Club was a high-volume retailer that paid a bigger mercantile tax than any store at the mall. The mercantile tax isn’t a big part of our revenues, but you can watch it go up and down — it follows the retail economy pretty closely — and that hasn’t bounced back entirely.”

Ross resident Steve Korbel, a municipal solicitor seeking to be part of the new committee, said he'd like to see the township build on the mall's success to attract new development, which the township is losing to northern communities such as McCandless, Pine and Cranberry.

"The transformation of the mall is great," Korbel said. “It can provide leverage in getting complementary businesses to relocate around (it)," he said.

Ross Township Commissioners are expected to help celebrate the mall's milestone Monday in a public ceremony at 1 p.m. in the food court. The mall will feature refreshments and a trivia contest.