Published October 2002

Mall unveils new look, begins interior remodel

Illustration courtesy of the Everett Mall Plans for Everett Mall’s remodeled main entrance include a giant stone fireplace, clock tower and timber-covered plaza. Work on the entrance is expected to begin in the spring, while work on the interior has already begun.

Kimberly Hilden
SCBJ Assistant Editor

By the time holiday shoppers head for the stores, Everett Mall’s teal paint, beige tiles and neon accents will be a thing of the past, replaced by wood tones and rock materials as the retail hub implements phase one of its remodel and expansion plans.

The interior remodel, which began in September under general contractor JM Stitt Construction Co. of Brea, Calif., is expected to be completed by Thanksgiving, said Kristi Keene, the mall’s marketing director.

“The remodel of the interior of the mall has been long coming. We’re proud to say our owners have stepped up for this,” Keene said.

When the project is finished, the mall’s public areas will be covered with flooring designed to look like flagstone, as well as carpeting in some of the seating areas. The food court will be reworked so that visitors can walk through the middle of the seating area to the shopping wings, and the center court will boast wood-wrapped pillars and a stage for community events.

Designed by Mulvanny G2 Architecture of Bellevue, the interior cosmetic upgrades will create a very inviting ambience, said Linda Johannes, the mall’s general manager.

“It embraces the heritage of Snohomish County, which is the lumber industry and our rock industry, so lots of wood, lots of rock — a very warm, friendly, inviting community atmosphere,” Johannes said, adding that the mall will remain open during the remodel.

In March, work will begin to extend that atmosphere to the mall’s exterior, with a new main entrance that will include a giant stone fireplace, clock tower and timber-covered plaza.

Johannes did not disclose the expected cost of the interior and front entrance remodel projects.

As for the mall’s expansion plans, officials in September offered few details on when and how the mall would grow in the coming years, saying that new development of Everett Mall Village, which was razed in August, and the addition of tenants were still in the planning stages.

Johannes did say the expansion would include the realignment of W. Mall Drive, new landscaping, new lighting and new parking areas.

She also said that there probably would be two more phases to implement the changes, and that the entire project, from interior remodel to final expansion, would take a period of two to three years.

The renovation is the first since 1988, when the mall expanded by 50,000 square feet, adding a food court at the main entrance and two wings off the food court as well as remodeling the rest of the mall.

In 1998, the mall’s owners created a master plan to expand and renovate the 673,000-square-foot center, but the owners defaulted on their mortgage before the plans came to fruition. The mall’s lender, Equitable Life Assurance Society of the United States, took over in June 2001.

Johannes said Equitable Life and the mall’s new management company, Madison Marquette Retail Services, both want to improve the mall.

“They have a level of commitment to the property that we’ve never had before,” she said.

And that level of commitment is paying off for the mall’s plans to add new tenants to improve the shopping center’s mix of stores.

“We’re talking to a huge roster of national tenants who have expressed for a long time a great interest in this property, but needed the ownership to step up to the plate,” Johannes said.

— Herald Business Writer Eric Fetters
contributed to this report.

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