In the old days, you probably shopped downtown at the five and dime stores. Later on, the shopping centers and malls opened up, providing shoppers with a new retail experience. Eventually open air and online shopping took over. The latter is more common now in this digital age.
For my family, they shopped in downtown McKeesport. The Eastland Shopping Center (later Eastland Mall) opened in the 1960s, thus killing downtown McKeesport. Eastland Mall was doing good and then came Century III in 1979, thus killing Eastland. Century III is doing well throughout the 1980s and 1990s, before an open air shopping mecca opens near Kennywood called the Waterfront. Eventually, online shopping becomes a thing and the Great Recession takes over, thus hurting Century III. That’s where we are today, as the mall gets ready to meet the wrecking ball.
As a child of the 80’s and 90’s, I was blessed to grow up with two great malls each within 15 minutes of where I live. Therefore, I don’t have too much to say about the good old days of Century III except for a few visits there in the late 1990’s. It’s sad reading up on how this iconic mall has deteriorated so much and has become an eyesore to anyone living in that area. However, I am grateful that Greengate Mall didn’t suffer the same fate, closing in the early 2000’s and getting razed soon after for the construction of a new shopping center with a Wal-Mart as well as other stores.
For a while, this mall held its own with other shopping destinations in the Pittsburgh area (Ross Park Mall and South Hills Village are good examples). Century III’s best days went up to the late ’90s. Even though I’m sure the Waterfront took some of their business, they were still viable through the 2000s. By the time the Great Recession hit and into the 2010’s was when Century III really went downhill. Therefore, you can’t blame the demise of this mall on the pandemic.
Dick’s Sporting Goods closed in March 2019, the Mexican restaurant moved down to Clairton Blvd. in June 2018, and JcPenney closed in October 2020. JcPenney was the last operating store in the mall and with that, Century III Mall was officially closed for good.
Here’s my six-pack of facts related to the iconic Century III Mall
- Century III Mall officially opened on October 24, 1979 with the first phase complete. This included JCPenney and Kaufmann’s as anchors. The second phase was complete on March 12, 1980. Anchors that opened in 1980 included Montgomery Ward, Gimbels, and Sears. Hornes took over Montgomery Wards in 1986. The Gimbels location was replaced multiple times in the 1990s and 2000s.
- The mall has been referenced many times by the popular YouTuber Pittsburgh Dad. A few of his videos have even been filmed at or around the iconic mall.
- Since becoming endangered and eventually closing in 2019, the mall has been featured in urban exploration videos on YouTube. There have been many acts of vandalism performed around the condemned property and reports of breaking and entering and arson. The mall has been featured on the news a lot since closing because of the sad state it’s in.
- While I don’t have many memories of Century III growing up, I was there several times a year as an employee of WIS International. Once a year, we would count the JCPenney in the late Spring or early Summer. Other stores in the mall that I’ve inventoried include American Eagle, Bath & Body Works, New York & Company, and Victoria’s Secret.
- One of my memorable experiences at Century III took place long after the mall became depressed. We were counting the JCPenney in May of 2018 and it took place overnight. The store had no air conditioning and took forever to get done. We had two girls start that night at the marathon event and despite the ordeal, stuck around at WIS and became two of my good friends there.
- The last one is not mall related, but that Century III Chevrolet commercial still lives rent free in my head. “Century III Chevrolet, Lebanon Church Road, Pittsburgh. Minutes from the mall.”
When the mall finally comes crashing down, I encourage you to remember:
1.) The good times you spent there as a teenager and seeing B-94 broadcast live from the mall in center court.
2.) All the fun back to school shopping and holiday shopping trips you made in August and in December. For the kids, going to see Santa at Christmastime.
3.) That amazing slice of pizza you had from Italian Village Pizza. The chain began at Century III in 1980.
Rest in Peace, Century III Mall, 1979-2024
Stylish 🍒 
Very interesting! Thank you. To your health, AnnaLisa
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