Window on the West
by Mary Rupert
Demolition is going on at the Indian Springs mall in Kansas City, Kan., which brings back a flood of memories for me, and probably for most people here.
According to the UG, the $1.25 million demolition project began this month on the shopping center, which is being torn down to make way for development of the property. The demolition is expected to take about seven months, according to UG information.
Mixed use retail is being considered for the property, although there not been a definitive announcement yet on what exactly will be there, and whether it will be retail. Lane4 Property Group is handling the project. This demolition follows a $1.3 million environmental abatement project, according to UG information.
When it opened in 1971, Indian Springs Shopping Center at 47th and State was the first mall in this area and attracted many visitors from the region. It was at the intersection of I-635 and I-70, two highways easily accessible to the visitors from other parts of the metro area. It had about 700,000 square feet on two levels, about 4,000 parking spaces, and lots of fountains in the mall. I was in high school when the mall opened.
In those early years, I spent many hours browsing book titles and buying a paperback once in a while at the Walden bookstore at Indian Springs.
I dropped by the music store at the mall a few times and tried out a keyboard a couple of times. I looked at music books and records.
I stopped by to enjoy an Orange Julius occasionally, and a Smaks hamburger once in a while. I ate at Italian Delight a few times. I didn’t go much to the cafeteria at the mall, however.
After I started to work, I bought some career clothes at the various department stores there, especially Penney’s and Montgomery Ward. Mom used to call me a “clothes horse” in that era when I was a young single adult with a career.
I reviewed movies for the Wyandotte West newspaper at Indian Springs theaters, until the newspaper decided they didn’t want me to do any more reviews.
I occasionally took pictures for the Wyandotte West at Indian Springs, but I remember the mall had some strange rules, such as you couldn’t let the store sign appear in the photograph.
I picked out my engagement and wedding ring with my fiancé at one of the Indian Springs jewelry shops. I didn’t shop very much at Macy’s, or later Dillard’s, but I registered my china at Macy’s at Indian Springs.
Later, I wheeled strollers around Indian Springs, taking the kids along. The kids visited Santa Claus at the mall. At one time there was an interactive Christmas tree there.
I went along when one of the kids’ youth groups sang Christmas carols at Indian Springs. They were standing on a riser in the center of the mall’s upper level.
The kids enjoyed visiting Kay-Bee Toys and picking out some gifts. I was hurriedly searching for the year’s hottest toys, sometimes finding them and sometimes not.
Mom was one of the Indian Springs mall walkers, getting exercise by walking through the shopping center.
When the kids were in grade school, I wouldn’t let them go to the Fun Factory, which featured arcade games.
Some people became afraid of going to Indian Springs after some violent incidents there.
But that’s only one of the reasons I didn’t go there as much in the late 1980s and 1990s. The main reason was that our personal income did not stretch as far when we had kids as it did when we were single, and another reason was there wasn’t as much leisure time as before.
I remember one day in 1999 when we were receiving calls on the news desk at the Kansan that there was an earthquake at the nearby Indian Springs medical and dental building. That is where I went to the dentist, at the time. There was some speculation at the time that there was an old mine, or possibly some old springs, underneath the area that might have contributed to it.
The last big anchor, Montgomery Ward, left in 2001. As the shopping center went into a decline and the major stores left, new tenants moved in, including many government offices, as well as some mom-and-pop businesses, and several Hispanic businesses. The Children’s Museum was located there. School district offices were there, as well as neighborhood resources. At one time there was a telemarketing operation, and a postal processing center.
The last business leaving was Italian Delight, which moved to 82nd and State in 2010.
Efforts to revitalize the mall earlier hit a snag in 2009 when a developer who was to work on the project died, and also because of an economic downturn.
When the Indian Springs mall died, it was like the entire center part of Kansas City, Kan., died, too.
I went to Indian Springs a few times to take photos for the Wyandotte Daily at the back-to-school fair, where school supplies were distributed. Huge crowds lined up at the events.
In 2013, I went to Indian Springs to take photos for the Wyandotte Daily when a new building for the transit center, police station and aging offices was dedicated.
I returned to Indian Springs to take photos when the Royals won the World Series in 2015 and people lined the parking lot in November to board buses for a huge rally at Union Station.
I know that indoor malls are a thing of the past, and are out of fashion, but on a winter day, especially like one this week, you can really miss them. Once you’re inside a mall, you can visit many stores without going back outside in the cold.
For an earlier story on Indian Springs redevelopment, see https://wyandotteonline.com/expectations-are-high-for-indian-springs-redevelopment/.
To reach Mary Rupert, editor, email [email protected].