Eastern Hills Mall

The Eastern Hills Mall was developed by the Edward J. DeBartolo Corporation. The mall was originally to be named "Buffalo Mall", but the name was changed to Eastern Hills Mall at the request of the town of Clarence. Construction bega in 1969. The mall was opened on November 8, 1971. The original anchors were AM&A's, JCPenney, Sears, Jenss, Woolworth and Hengerer's. Hengerer's became Sibley's in 1981. The mall underwent an extensive overhaul in 1987 that added a food court. The only other expansion the mall sought was a Lechmere store next to JCPenney, but never opened. Originally the largest mall in the Buffalo, NY area, the mall lost that title to the Walden Galleria in 1989. Sibley's became Kaufmann's in 1990. AM&A's became The Bon-Ton in 1994. In 1997, Jenss closed. In 1998, Burlington Coat Factory moved into the former Jenss location.[2] Another renovation to the small east-west center concourse and food court took place in 2005, largely cosmetic in nature. New floor tile was installed in both the center concourse and food court, and imitation fireplaces, small flat screen televisions, and new seating were installed. The longer north-south concourses remained untouched during this second renovation, causing a break in a pink zig-zag floor tile line pattern, which prior to the 2005 renovation existed through the entire mall from end-to-end. In late 2006, Federated Department Stores converted all local Kaufmann's stores to Macy's. By this time, the mall featured many younger national chains. Television station WBBZ-TV established its broadcast studios at the mall in 2012. The late 2010's saw multiple classic chain anchors retreat from brick and mortar after being disrupted by digital retailers in recent years. In April 2016, Macy's, which maintains additional outposts, announced they would shutter in an effort to maximize profit margins. It has become Niagara Emporium.[3] On August 29, 2018, regional division The Bon-Ton shuttered and became Raymour & Flanigan.[4] In December 2018, after 47 years of operation Sears shuttered and was announced to become BFLO, an upstart department store.[5] [6][7]

As of 2022, Eastern Hills Mall is currently at approximately 99% occupancy.

After the October Storm of 2006, which devastated much of the surrounding area, the parking lot of Eastern Hills served as a focal point for clean up and restoration of services. Many utility companies used the parking lot as a ramada for parking vehicles at night and a dispatch point by day. In addition, part of the lot was used for storing materials used to restore power to the area.

In March 2018, Uniland Development, a local commercial development company, agreed to purchase a stake in the mall's equity, sharing co-ownership with current owners Mountain Development Corporation. Uniland's future plans for the mall are to convert some of the property to residential apartments and create a mixed-use development that it dubbed a "lifestyle shopping center."[8][9] The Clarence Town Board approved plans for the mall in August 2018.[10]

Uniland and Mountain Development attained the services of Gensler in January 2019.[11] Similar projects they have worked include upscale shopping centers The Domain, Legacy West, and River Oaks Shopping Center. The first updates were unveiled in March 2020.[12] A proposal was filed with Clarence town officials in June 2021.[13]

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