Read time: 13 min.

Dead malls have become unlikely celebrities across Indiana and the Midwest. Departing national chains left behind huge concrete footprints that communities could never refill! Sadly, their empty storefronts are now photographed and debated almost as often as the courthouses and town squares that once anchored local life. In Marion, one mall sits in silence as it waits for a second act.

Marion’s Five Points Mall didn’t begin as an enclosed shopping center. Instead, it started as North Park Plaza, a straightforward strip mall that burst onto the scene on October 5, 1961 with real flair: a ten-day grand opening turned the site into a full-blown spectacle! Carnival and pony rides, a stagecoach, an antique automobile show, a ping-pong ball drop, and even fireworks all showed up¹. 

Developed by Cafaro and Associates of Youngstown, Ohio², the center packed a lot of retail punch for its size. Shoppers were drawn in by a 20,500-square-foot W.T. Grant³, a sprawling 15,000-square-foot Standard Supermarket with an eighty-four-foot meat case⁴, and a 10,000-square-foot Woolworth’s⁵. 

Rounding out North Park Plaza’s opening-day lineup were essentials and favorites: Acme Quality Paints, the Econ-O-Wash Launderette, Finance & Insurance, Inc., Hook’s Drug Store, Miller’s Discount Department Store, Nobil Shoes, Schiff’s Shoe Store, Toy Mat, and Western & Southern Life Insurance Company. Even more stores were on their way- Linda Lee, Stepps Beauty Salon, and 1 Hour Cleaners all debuted soon after the plaza opened⁶.

A year after North Park came online, the plaza became home to Montgomery Ward⁷. Fashion Barn moved in by 1964⁸. Village Furniture opened decade later⁹, but W.T. Grant closed in 1975 as part of the company’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy¹⁰. Fortunately, most of the plaza’s other twenty-two stores said its closure had little impact on their business¹¹. 

Regardless of the loss of Grant’s, Cafaro saw additional potential in North Park Plaza. “We feel there is a need for the shopping center and enclosed mall in Marion,” officials proclaimed in 1975, “and we think the center will be the dominant retail complex in the area when it is completed¹².” The first phase of the plaza’s expansion was to be an 80,000-square-foot¹³ Hills department store built to the south of the extant structure. A new discount department store was also planned for the property¹⁴. 

Unfortunately, converting North Park Plaza into the North Park Mall wasn’t easy. Zoning changes necessary for the property’s improvement repeatedly came before the Marion City Council only to stall, as the Marion Chronicle-Tribune put it, for no good reason¹⁵. Materials and supplies had been delivered to the site in April 1977, but governmental delays continued to plague the expansion¹⁶. 

“If this project isn’t approved,” Cafaro officials reiterated, “Marion will be left with a deteriorating North Park Plaza instead of a brand new covered mall¹⁷.” Thankfully, progress was finally made: the 80,000-square-foot Hills store opened on February 27, 1978¹⁸, and the mall’s other two anchors -a 66,000-square-foot J.C. Penney¹⁹ and a 50,000-square-foot Meis²⁰– came online several months later. 

North Park Mall threw open its doors on November 15, 1978. The impact was immediate across Marion and well beyond: shoppers were greeted by a staggering mix of stores and merchandise for a city of Marion’s size! The benefits reached further than the display windows, though: about eight hundred neighbors found new jobs at the growing retail hub²¹, and license plates from Wabash, Miami, and Huntington Counties dotted the parking lot²². North Park Mall was an instant regional destination!

Aside from Hills, J.C. Penney, and Meis, the new mall boasted a variety of other businesses when it opened: Air Step Footworks, Aladdin’s Castle, Athletic Attic, Baskin-Robbins, Carousel Snack Bar, Citizens National Bank, Coles, Foxmoor Casuals, Frontier Fruits & Nuts, Gallenkamp Shoes, General Nutrition Center, The Gap, Great Expectations Hair Salon, Hickory Farms, JoAnn Fabrics, Kay Jewelry, The Lerner Shop, and Lowery Piano and Organ.

Maurice’s, Montgomery Ward, Mothercare, Mr. Mark, Musicland, Nobil Shoes, North Park Mall Twin Cinema, Piercing Pagoda, Radio Shack, Revco Discount Drug Center, Scotto’s Pizza, Spencer Gifts, The Bottom Half, The Closet, Thom McAn Shoe Company, Times Square, Toy Mart, Webb’s Hallmark Shop, Western-Southern Life Insurance, World Bazaar, and York Steakhouse rounded out the center’s offerings²³.

In 1989, Meis’ owners sold the ten-store chain to Elder-Beerman²⁴. “Both Meis and Elder-Beerman are traditional department stores,” a store manager explained. “They are similar in many ways²⁵.” Elder-Beerman advertisements proclaimed that the company had “taken the best of Meis, merged it and updated it with the traditions of Elder-Beerman! Our goal is to offer you quality and fashion at a fair price. Now your favorite place to shop is Even Better²⁶!” 

The next major turning point in North Park Mall’s story arrived in 1989 with the construction of a 65,000-square-foot wing designed for a brand-new Sears. When its doors finally opened on Valentine’s Day in 1990, the celebration drew an unlikely mix: Sears executives, Marion Mayor Robert Mitchell, Police Chief Amos Randle, and Winnie the Pooh! Miss Indiana’s appearance, however, had to wait out a snowstorm that delayed her trip into town²⁷.

In 1998, North Park Mall marked its twentieth anniversary with promotions at most of the center’s inline tenants- among them, Claire’s, Fashion Bug, Kay Jewelers, GNC, One Hour Cleaners, Paul’s Tires, Piercing Pagoda, Pretzelmaker, Schubach’s, The Closet, UA Nails, Webb’s Hallmark, and several others²⁸. Changes continued in 1999 when Hills was rebranded as Ames, part of a conversion that included ten Indiana locations²⁹. The year closed out with another shake-up as a detached Kerasotes Showplace 12 theater replaced the long-running North Park Cinema³⁰.

By the early 2000s, North Park was struggling with rising vacancies and too many dark storefronts. Ames closed in 2001, and Steve & Barry’s took over the vacant space three years later³¹. Unfortunately, Steve & Barry’s presence was short-lived: once heralded as the fastest-growing specialty retailer in the United States, the company declared bankruptcy in 2008 and closed its Marion store³². 

Meanwhile, North Park’s new owners Cabot Investment Properties hoped to breathe new life into the center. Ownership courted fresh draws like Buffalo Wild Wings, mall-wide Wi-Fi, and upgraded seating³³. The mall itself became less like a relic and more like a community hall when management invested in a portable stage³⁴! It paved the way for expos, craft fairs, and weekend shows meant to boost foot traffic. In 2009 the center rebranded as Five Points Mall³⁵, a name change that signaled an optimistic reset.

Unfortunately, that optimistic comeback never fully materialized. In 2010, the Royal Bank of Canada took control of the property after foreclosure and became the mall’s reluctant new landlord³⁶. Change continued in 2011 when Elder-Beerman was rebranded as Carson’s following Bon-Ton’s purchase of the chain³⁷. A year later, Roses Department Store brought a flicker of activity when it moved into the former Steve & Barry’s space³⁸. Sadly, the momentum proved short-lived. Sears shut its doors in early 2013 after the company cited weak holiday sales³⁹.

The hits kept coming. J.C. Penney closed in 2014 along with thirty-two underperforming locations⁴⁰. Penney’s departure left Five Points with just two traditional anchors- Roses and Carson’s. Carson’s went dark in 2018, swept up in The Bon-Ton’s collapse that claimed additional Indiana stores in Indianapolis, Anderson, Columbus, and Elkhart⁴¹.

That was the scene my brother and I walked into when we stopped by in August 2018. Five Points Mall was still clinging to life with Roses, Applebee’s, Shoebilee, and a brand new Planet Fitness. A scrappy lineup of local establishments like Pay Le$$ Retail Outlet and P&C Sports & Novelties continued to hold court. Still, long stretches of the concourse sat dark and silent. The emptiness felt heavy. After a few minutes traipsing around the dim halls, my brother looked around and declared it the most depressing place he’d ever been! It was hard to argue otherwise. 

As it turned out, John and I caught Five Points at its eleventh hour: in early 2019, the owners carved out three parcels -Planet Fitness, Roses, and Applebee’s- to remake the frontage as a traditional retail strip while the vast interior was set aside for an ambitious idea: redevelopment as a college for veterans⁴². After Shoebilee departed later that year, the remaining independent tenants followed one by one. The concourse fell silent and was boarded up by the end of 2019⁴³. 

The veterans’ college never took shape. In fact, very little has since. These days, the old Five Points property survives only through Roses and Planet Fitness, since Applebee’s has finally relocated. The few busineses thar remain operate with exterior entrances that bypass the vacant interior altogether. The arrangement feels like an echo of 1961 in the days of North Park Plaza! It’d be a comforting piece of nostalgia if not for the hulking acreage of empty additions lingering behind the present strip of stores. It’s a reminder of how much of the “mall” is now just quiet, surplus architecture waiting for a second act.

Fortunately, that second act may be on the horizon. Last December, Marion Mayor Ronald Morrell, Jr. offered a glimpse of what could come next by sharing a floorplan that reimagines Five Points as a massive sports center. The proposal packs the old footprint with new anchor tenants and office space alongside pickleball and tennis courts, basketball courts, indoor soccer fields, and a wide range of additional community uses⁴⁴. It’s the most ambitious vision the property has seen in years!

For now, Five Points Mall remains in limbo. If what Mayor Morrell envisions actually happens, Five Points won’t be a monument to what failed- it will be proof that even the most tired commercial giants can be taught new tricks when a community finally decides what it wants from the ground beneath them.

Sources Cited
1 North Park Plaza Opening Starts Thursday (1961, October 4). The Marion Chronicle Tribune. p. 4. 
2 (See footnote 1).
3 Grant Store Ready To Open (1961, May 31). The Marion Leader-Tribune. p. 18. 
4 New Standard Store To Open Today (1961, June 28). The Marion Leader-Tribune. p. 18. 
5 Woolworth’s To Open Variety Store (1961, June 22). The Marion Leader-Tribune. p. 32. 
6 The Many Merchants of Marion’s Largest Shopping Center (1961, August 23). The Marion Chronicle-Tribune. p. 20. 
7 Repossessed Furniture (1962, February 28). The Marion Chronicle-Triubune. p. 24. 
8 Fashion Barn (1964, September 11). The Marion Leader-Tribune. p. 4. 
9 A shot in the arm (1975, November 9). The Marion Chronicle-Tribune. p. 2. 
10 No compassion (1975, November 6). The Marion Chronicle Tribune. p. 2. 
11 McManus, J. (1975, November 15). Grant’s gone…The Marion Chronicle-Tribune. p. 11. 
12 McManus, J. (1975, November 7). Hills to open in Marion. The Marion Chronicle-Tribune. p. 1. 
13 Hill’s store an old-timer at the mall (1978, November 15). The Marion Chronicle-Tribune. p. 62. 
14 McManus, J. (1975, November 7). Hills to open in Marion. The Marion Chronicle-Tribune. p. 1. 
15 People want and need North Park Plaza Mall (1977, May 3). The Marion Chronicle-Tribune. p. 6. 
16 Carlson, D. (1977, April 7). Zoning changes delay North Park mall work. The Marion Chronicle-Tribune. p. 3. 
17 Carlson, D. (1977, April 21). Council’s zoning delay may slow mall opening. The Marion Chronicle-Tribune. p. 1. 
18 Hill’s store and old-timer at the mall (1978, November 15). The Marion Chronicle-Tribune. p. 62. 
19 Miller, A. (1978, July 27). J.C. Penney confirms secret – store in mall. The Marion Chronicle-Tribune. p. 23. 
20 Adams, M. (1978, November 5). Meis. The Marion Chronicle-Tribune. p. 33. 
21 People should like what they see in the new mall (1978, November 15). The Marion Chronicle-Tribune. p. 10. 
22 People should like what they see in the new mall (1978, November 15). The Marion Chronicle-Tribune. p. 10. 
23 Here’s your guide to North Park Mall (1978, November 15). The Marion Chronicle-Tribune. p. 53. 
24 Brown Group Sells Department Stores (1989, April 29). The St. Louis Post-Dispatch. p. 13. 
25 Elder-Beerman completing changes at Meis (1989, August 12). The Marion Chronicle-Tribune. p. 8. 
26 Now we’re ready! (1989, August 13). The Marion Chronicle-Tribune. p. 5. 
27 Borowski, G. (1990, February 15). Old store, new digs. The Marion Chronicle-Tribune. p. 1
28 North Park Mall (1998, October 4). The Marion Chronicle-Tribune. p. 18. 
29 Hills preparing for change to Ames (1999, May 20). The Marion Chronicle-Tribune. p. 8. 
30 Discount Movies 4 (n.d.). CinemaTreasures. Web. Retrieved December 29, 2025. 
31 Kipp, R. (2004, October 5). New anchor store commits to mall. The Marion Chronicle-Tribune. p. 1.
32 The Scoop (2008, September 3). The Marion Chronicle-Tribune. p. 1. 
33 Wallace, B. (2008, April 24). North Park Mall to add Wi-Fi. The Marion Chronicle-Tribune. p. 3. 
34 Local mall is ready to host expos (2008, January 15). The Marion Chronicle-Tribune. p. 3. 
35 Experience (2009, June 9). The Marion Chronicle-Tribune. p. 14.
36 Troutman, M. (2012, October 19). Marion Sears closing. The Marion Chronicle-Tribune. p. 1. 
37 Troutman, M. (2011, July 28). Elder-Beerman becoming Carson’s. The Marion Chronicle-Tribune. p. 1.
38 Wright, M. (2012, March 24). Coming up Roses for shoppers. The Marion Chronicle-Tribune. p. 1. 
39 (See footnote 36). 
40 J.C. Penney to close store (2014, January 16). The Marion Chronicle-Tribune. p. 1. 
41 Gebby, K. (2018, February 1). Carson’s to close at Five Points. The Marion Chronicle-Tribune. p. 1. 
42 WInowiecki, C. (2019, February 27). Timeline for vets college still unclear. The Marion Chronicle-Tribune. p. 1. 
43 Cox, H. (2019, January 9). Shoebilee leaves Five Points Mall. The Marion Chronicle-Tribune. p. 1. 
44 Morrell, Jr., R. Ronald Morrell Jr. (2025, December 15). IGenerational [Status]. Facebook.