Lakewood Towne Center

Lakewood Towne Center is an open-air shopping and mixed-use destination in Lakewood, Washington, a suburban city near Tacoma. The center was created through the redevelopment of Lakewood Mall, an enclosed shopping mall that had replaced the earlier Villa Plaza Shopping Center. Rather than preserving the enclosed mall format, developer MBK Northwest acquired the property in 2001, demolished most of the failing mall structure, retained major anchor buildings where practical, and reorganized the site into a more diversified retail environment. The redeveloped property opened as Lakewood Towne Center in 2002. The project was conceived as a collection of distinct components rather than a single enclosed mall. Its principal elements included a civic center organized around Lakewood City Hall, a power center focused on large-format retailers, an entertainment center, and a neighborhood center serving routine local shopping needs. This format reflected a broader shift in American retail development during the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries, when many enclosed malls faced declining traffic, vacant stores, weak tenant mixes, and the loss of traditional department-store anchors. The site has a retail history dating to Villa Plaza Shopping Center, which opened in 1957 on land formerly occupied by Visitation Villa, a Roman Catholic girls’ school that operated from 1923 to 1954. Villa Plaza later became the basis for Lakewood Mall. In 1985, developer Basil Vyzis acquired Villa Plaza and developed the enclosed Lakewood Mall, which opened in 1989. The mall struggled during its relatively short existence with an unfavorable reputation, unoccupied retail space, and the closure of major anchor tenants. Following Vyzis’s death in 1996, the property ultimately changed hands again. MBK Northwest, a subsidiary of Mitsui, purchased the property in 2001 from ATC Realty Sixteen Inc., described in the source material as a Wells Fargo subsidiary, for $28 million. MBK had prior experience redeveloping large retail properties, including Jantzen Beach SuperCenter in Portland, Oregon, and Parkway SuperCenter in Tukwila, Washington. Its Lakewood project applied a power-center and open-air redevelopment model to a troubled enclosed mall site. In 2004, MBK sold a two-thirds interest in the property to Inland Western for $81.1 million. The center was reported to have more than 80 tenants. Lakewood Towne Center functions primarily as a regional and community-serving retail destination rather than as a conventional branded retailer. Its tenant mix has included large-format stores, restaurants, services, entertainment uses, and neighborhood-oriented businesses. The center’s civic component also distinguishes it from a purely commercial shopping complex. Its history illustrates the conversion of an underperforming enclosed mall into a more flexible open-air retail and public-use environment. In 2022, Bed Bath & Beyond announced that its Lakewood Towne Center location would close as part of the chain’s nationwide plan to shut 150 stores, demonstrating the continuing effects of retailer restructuring on the center’s tenant base.

The land associated with Lakewood Towne Center has passed through several phases of institutional, neighborhood-shopping, enclosed-mall, and open-air retail development. Before becoming a commercial site, it was occupied by Visitation Villa, a Roman Catholic girls’ school that operated from 1923 until 1954. Villa Plaza Shopping Center opened on the site in 1957, establishing the property as a local retail destination. The center also attracted occasional promotional events. On May 3, 1958, former heavyweight boxing champions Joe Louis and Max Baer appeared at Villa Plaza to sign autographs before traveling by helicopter to the B & I Circus Store in Tacoma. In 1985, developer Basil Vyzis acquired Villa Plaza and pursued a larger enclosed-mall concept. Lakewood Mall opened in 1989 on the former shopping-center site. Its commercial performance was weak during its short operating life. The mall developed a poor reputation, portions of the property remained unoccupied, and several major anchor tenants closed. These problems reflected broader pressures affecting many enclosed malls, including changing consumer preferences, competition from newer power centers, and the difficulty of maintaining a strong tenant mix after anchor departures. Vyzis died in 1996, and the property later came under the ownership of ATC Realty Sixteen Inc., identified in the available material as a Wells Fargo subsidiary. MBK Northwest acquired the property from ATC Realty Sixteen in 2001 for $28 million. MBK was a Mitsui subsidiary with experience in retail-property redevelopment, including work at Jantzen Beach SuperCenter in Portland and Parkway SuperCenter in Tukwila. Instead of attempting to restore Lakewood Mall as a traditional enclosed mall, MBK demolished the enclosed portion in 2001 while leaving major anchor structures largely intact. The redevelopment divided the site into four principal components: a civic center centered on Lakewood City Hall, a power center for large-format retail, an entertainment center, and a neighborhood center for local shopping and services. Lakewood Towne Center opened in 2002. Its open-air configuration gave tenants more direct exterior access and allowed the property to combine large stores, restaurants, entertainment, services, and civic functions in a single development. The approach was consistent with the period’s growing use of power-center and mixed-use redevelopment strategies for underperforming enclosed malls. The center was reported to contain more than 80 tenants, making it a substantial retail destination for Lakewood and the surrounding Tacoma-area market. In 2004, MBK sold a two-thirds interest in the property to Inland Western for $81.1 million. The available reference material does not establish the complete subsequent ownership history or identify a current owner. The center continued operating as an open-air commercial and civic complex. Its tenant base remained subject to wider retail-sector changes, including chain retrenchment and store closures. In September 2022, Bed Bath & Beyond announced that its Lakewood Towne Center location would close under a nationwide plan to shut 150 stores. The announcement was part of the retailer’s broader restructuring rather than a reported scandal involving Lakewood Towne Center itself.

• 2022

  Bed Bath & Beyond announces store closure

  [1]Lakewood Towne Centeren.wikipedia.org

  Bed Bath & Beyond announced that its location at the center would close as part of a nationwide plan to close 150 stores.

• 2004

  Inland Western acquires a two-thirds interest

  [1]Lakewood Towne Centeren.wikipedia.org

  MBK sold two-thirds of its interest in the center to Inland Western for $81.1 million.

• 2002

  Lakewood Towne Center opens

  [1]Lakewood Towne Centeren.wikipedia.org

  The redeveloped open-air retail and civic complex opened under the Lakewood Towne Center name.

• 2001

  MBK Northwest acquires and redevelops the property

  [1]Lakewood Towne Centeren.wikipedia.org

  MBK Northwest purchased the property for $28 million and demolished the enclosed portion of Lakewood Mall to create an open-air development.

• 1989

  Lakewood Mall opens

  [1]Lakewood Towne Centeren.wikipedia.org

  The enclosed Lakewood Mall opened on the site of Villa Plaza.

• 1985

  Villa Plaza is acquired for enclosed-mall redevelopment

  [1]Lakewood Towne Centeren.wikipedia.org

  Developer Basil Vyzis acquired Villa Plaza and began developing the enclosed Lakewood Mall.

• 1958

  Joe Louis and Max Baer appear at Villa Plaza

  [1]Lakewood Towne Centeren.wikipedia.org

  Former heavyweight champions Joe Louis and Max Baer visited Villa Plaza for an autograph appearance before traveling to a Tacoma retail venue.

• 1957

  Villa Plaza Shopping Center opens

  [1]Lakewood Towne Centeren.wikipedia.org

  Villa Plaza Shopping Center opened on the former site of Visitation Villa, establishing the property as a local retail destination.

A large open-air retail and civic destination serving Lakewood and the wider Tacoma-area suburbs, positioned as a diversified alternative to the former enclosed Lakewood Mall.

• Large-format retail · 2002

  Power-center retail

  The power-center component accommodates large-format and destination retailers that typically require substantial floor area, convenient vehicle access, and prominent exterior visibility. It forms one of the principal structural elements of the post-2001 redevelopment.

• Community retail · 2002

  Neighborhood center

  The neighborhood-center component is oriented toward recurring local needs, including everyday shopping, services, and convenience-oriented visits. It complements the larger-format stores and helps the property serve nearby residents as well as regional shoppers.

• Entertainment and leisure · 2002

  Entertainment center

  The entertainment-center component adds leisure and dining functions to the retail environment. Its inclusion was intended to broaden the reasons for visiting the property beyond conventional enclosed-mall shopping.

• Civic and mixed-use development · 2002

  Civic center

  The civic-center component is organized around Lakewood City Hall and gives the development a public-use dimension uncommon in a purely commercial shopping center. It connects municipal activity with the surrounding retail and service uses.

• 1958Joe Louis and Max Baer autograph appearance

  Lakewood, Washington

  Villa Plaza hosted a promotional appearance by former heavyweight champions Joe Louis and Max Baer, who signed autographs before traveling to another Tacoma-area retail attraction.

  Outcome. The appearance is recorded as a notable early promotional event in the site’s retail history.

  Source

• 2022

  Bed Bath & Beyond store closureOther

  Background

  Bed Bath & Beyond announced a nationwide plan to close 150 stores amid the retailer’s restructuring.

  Action taken

  The company announced the closure of its Lakewood Towne Center location.

  Aftermath

  The closure affected the center’s tenant mix; no further property-level consequence is established in the available source material.

  Source

• 2004

  Sale of a two-thirds property interest to Inland WesternM&A

  Background

  Following the redevelopment and opening of Lakewood Towne Center, MBK Northwest changed its ownership position in the property.

  Action taken

  MBK sold two-thirds of its interest in the center to Inland Western.

  Aftermath

  The transaction established Inland Western as a major ownership participant; the available material does not specify the full later ownership structure.

  Transaction value. $81.1 million (2004 sale)

  Source

• 2001

  Replace the enclosed mall with an open-air centerStrategy

  Background

  Lakewood Mall had experienced vacancies, a poor reputation, and the loss of major anchor tenants. MBK Northwest acquired the property and chose redevelopment rather than attempting to preserve the failing enclosed-mall format.

  Action taken

  MBK demolished the enclosed portion, retained major anchor structures where possible, and planned a four-part development comprising civic, power-center, entertainment, and neighborhood components.

  Aftermath

  The resulting Lakewood Towne Center opened in 2002 as an open-air retail and civic destination with more than 80 reported tenants.

  Acquisition price. $28 million (2001 acquisition)

  Source

• 2022

  Bed Bath & Beyond to close its Lakewood Towne Center location[1]Lakewood Towne Centeren.wikipedia.org

  Bankruptcy · Other

  On September 15, 2022, Bed Bath & Beyond announced that its Lakewood Towne Center store would close as part of a nationwide plan to close 150 locations.

1. 1Lakewood Towne Centeren.wikipedia.org