Stratford Square Mall- ( Bloomingdale, IL)

Stratford Square is a shopping mall located 40 minutes from downtown Chicago in the Northwest suburb of Bloomingdale, IL. The malls Current anchors are:

Former Montgomery Ward Department Store

Former Mainstreet Department Store

Former Marshall Field's Department Store

Former Wieboldt's/JCPenney, building is now vacant

Stratford Square Mall opened in 1981 as a 1.3 million square foot shopping center with Carson Pirie Scott, Marshall Field's as original anchor stores, later adding Wieboldt's and Montgomery Wards and Mainstreet.

In 1987, when Weiboldt's went into bankruptcy, JCPenney quickly took over the location.

As more of the original anchor stores began to leave, Mainstreet Department Store was sold and converted to kohl's in 1989 as the other locations were as well.

Sears opened as the sixth anchor in 1990.

Montgomery Ward, one of the original anchor stores, closed in 2001, as a result from filing bankruptcy, and closed, but the same year, a Burlington Coat Factory opened in the anchor space.

As the mall turned 20, stores began to closes and the mall seemed to be loosing interest in people.

In 2006, a new theater began construction where to old 4-screened one stood and a Steve & Barry's Clothing Store also opened.

In September 2006, Macy's converted the Marshall Field's store after purchasing Federated and May Co. department store companies.

In July 2007, the megaplex-style 16-screen Century theater opened.

Over the years, the mall has been plagued,as many malls, with struggling chains and vacating stores as they try to adapt to the changes in the economy and how people are changing the ways to shop and buy with the use of online options, instead of supporting tradition brick and mortar storefronts.

After only three years, with all other locations closing, Steve & Barry's exits the mall.

As a trip to the mall  in August 2012 brought such a surprise on how the amount of vacant storefronts dramatically changed since last visiting a few years back:

In early 2012, the second floor hallway entrance of the Burlington Coat Factory was blocked and only some baby strollers and clearance sit up there.

In January 2014, JCPenney announced they will close 33 stores, and the Bloomingdale location was one of them.

Here the JCPenney during liquidation and how it looked:

Now, here is what the JCPenney looked like after May 5th, after the store closed:

Other than the inside of the mall, here are pictures of the outside from spring 2013 & 2014:

Has Since closed

Some work on the old Montgomery War/Burlington Coat Factory seems to be starting.