Pheasant Lane Mall

Pheasant Lane Mall is a regional shopping center in south Nashua, New Hampshire, near the Massachusetts border and the F.E. Everett Turnpike. Although parts of its parking and storm-water infrastructure extend into Tyngsborough, Massachusetts, the mall buildings and retail premises are located in New Hampshire. This border position is central to the mall's commercial identity: New Hampshire has no general sales tax on ordinary retail purchases, helping the property attract shoppers from southern New Hampshire, northern Massachusetts, and the wider Greater Boston area. The mall opened on July 23, 1986, after more than two years of construction. The development replaced a drive-in movie theater and became a major catalyst for the growth of south Nashua. Before the mall was built, the southeastern part of the city was comparatively sparsely developed. The project helped stimulate additional retail, financial, residential, and transportation development around the southern Nashua corridor and strengthened the area's integration with the Boston metropolitan economy. Pheasant Lane Mall has approximately 979,427 square feet of floor area, making it the second-largest shopping mall in New Hampshire by size, after The Mall at Rockingham Park in Salem. Its tenant mix has changed over time in response to retail-sector consolidation, department-store closures, and the growth of food, entertainment, and service uses. The original anchor lineup included JCPenney, Jordan Marsh, Lechmere, and Sears. Filene's was added in 1993; later corporate acquisitions and store closures altered the department-store composition. The current anchor configuration includes Dick's Sporting Goods, JCPenney, Macy's, and Target, while the former Sears space has been redeveloped for The Nash casino, which opened in March 2025. The center also includes restaurants, smaller specialty retailers, kiosks, and other consumer services. The property was owned and managed by Simon Property Group from 2012. Simon's role places the mall within one of the largest shopping-center portfolios in the United States and provides professional leasing, property management, and tenant-development capabilities. As with many enclosed malls, Pheasant Lane's business model combines anchor tenants that generate destination traffic with in-line stores, restaurants, and entertainment offerings that encourage longer visits. The mall's physical design reflects the unusual legal and tax circumstances of its site. Early plans contemplated placing retail stores in New Hampshire and restaurants in Massachusetts, based on differences in sales-tax treatment. After Massachusetts authorities indicated that purchases in the mall could be subject to Massachusetts sales tax despite the proposed layout, the development was redesigned so that all stores and restaurants would stand on the New Hampshire side. A surveying or site-line error nevertheless left a corner of the planned JCPenney building crossing the state boundary. That corner was removed and rebuilt with a distinctive pentagonal shape, keeping the structure entirely within New Hampshire. Visitors can still cross the state line on a sidewalk between the parking area and the mall entrance. Pheasant Lane Mall remains an important retail and gathering destination for Nashua and surrounding communities. Its history illustrates how interstate borders, tax policy, highway access, department-store evolution, and redevelopment have shaped suburban shopping centers in the northeastern United States.

The site of Pheasant Lane Mall was formerly a drive-in movie theater in the southern part of Nashua, close to the Massachusetts border. In December 1978, the Nashua Board of Aldermen rezoned the property to enable development of a major regional shopping center. Yankee Greyhound Inc. was identified as an early primary owner associated with the proposal. By early 1984, State Properties of New England controlled the property, construction groundwork had begun, and steel had been ordered. After more than two years of construction, Pheasant Lane Mall opened on July 23, 1986. Its original anchor stores were JCPenney, Jordan Marsh, Lechmere, and Sears. Filene's joined the center in 1993. For several years after opening, the former drive-in movie screen remained on the property and displayed the mall's double-pheasant logo, preserving a visible reminder of the site's prior use. The development had a substantial effect on south Nashua. It transformed an area that had been relatively isolated and lightly developed into a major retail and commercial corridor. Subsequent growth included additional shopping, financial services, housing, and other high-density development extending toward the Massachusetts border and the southern exits of the Everett Turnpike. The mall also helped reinforce Nashua's role within the Greater Boston economic area rather than functioning only as a gateway community to the rest of New Hampshire. The state-line location created an unusual planning and architectural challenge. Early concepts proposed putting retail stores in New Hampshire, where ordinary purchases generally avoid a broad sales tax, while locating restaurants in Massachusetts because the prevailing tax treatment of prepared food was expected to be more favorable there. Massachusetts authorities indicated that shoppers could still owe Massachusetts sales tax for purchases made in the proposed development. The plan was therefore revised so that all stores and restaurants would be located on the New Hampshire side of the boundary. A further surveying problem placed one corner of the planned JCPenney building slightly across the state line. Rather than leave the structure subject to the Massachusetts tax implications associated with the site, the corner was cut away and rebuilt into a pentagonal form. The unusual shape kept the building within New Hampshire by a very small margin. The property still physically interacts with both states: approximately one-third of the parking lot and a water-runoff area lies in Tyngsborough, Massachusetts, and pedestrians can cross the border on the sidewalk near the former Sears entrance. The anchor lineup changed as the American department-store sector consolidated and individual chains closed or restructured. The mall's later tenant base included JCPenney, Macy's, Target, and Dick's Sporting Goods. Sears eventually left the property, and its former space was converted for The Nash casino, which opened in March 2025. The redevelopment broadened the center's role from a conventional enclosed mall toward a mixed retail, dining, and entertainment destination. Simon Property Group has owned and managed Pheasant Lane Mall since 2012. The center has approximately 979,427 square feet of floor area and ranks as the second-largest mall in New Hampshire by size. Its continuing appeal is based on a combination of regional scale, highway access, established anchor tenants, restaurants and services, and its location immediately across the state line from Massachusetts shoppers seeking New Hampshire's retail tax environment.

• 2025

  The Nash opens

  [1]Pheasant Lane Mallen.wikipedia.org

  A casino called The Nash opened in March in the former Sears location.

• 2012

  Simon Property Group becomes owner and manager

  [1]Pheasant Lane Mallen.wikipedia.org

  Simon Property Group assumed ownership and management of the mall.

• 1993

  Filene's joins the anchor lineup

  [1]Pheasant Lane Mallen.wikipedia.org

  Filene's was added as an additional department-store anchor.

• 1986

  Mall opens

  [1]Pheasant Lane Mallen.wikipedia.org

  Pheasant Lane Mall opened on July 23 with four original anchors: JCPenney, Jordan Marsh, Lechmere, and Sears.

• 1984

  Construction preparation advances

  [1]Pheasant Lane Mallen.wikipedia.org

  State Properties of New England controlled the property, site work had begun, and structural steel had been ordered.

• 1978

  Site rezoned for regional mall development

  [1]Pheasant Lane Mallen.wikipedia.org

  The Nashua Board of Aldermen rezoned the site in December, clearing a regulatory path for a proposed major shopping center.

A large, highway-accessible regional shopping center serving southern New Hampshire and northern Massachusetts, with a competitive advantage derived from its New Hampshire location and proximity to the state border.

• Shopping mall · 1986

  Enclosed regional shopping center

  Pheasant Lane Mall provides approximately 979,427 square feet of enclosed retail and commercial space. Its tenant mix combines department stores, big-box retailers, specialty shops, restaurants, kiosks, and entertainment uses. The mall serves as a regional destination for Nashua and neighboring communities in New Hampshire and northern Massachusetts.

• Department stores and big-box retail · 1986

  Anchor retail stores

  The mall's anchor format has historically included JCPenney, Jordan Marsh, Lechmere, Sears, Filene's, Macy's, Target, and Dick's Sporting Goods. The specific lineup has evolved as retailers merged, closed stores, or changed their operating strategies. The current listed anchors include Dick's Sporting Goods, JCPenney, Macy's, and Target.

• Casino and entertainment · 2025

  The Nash

  The Nash is a casino and entertainment use occupying the former Sears space. It opened in March 2025 and represents a redevelopment of a former traditional department-store anchor into a non-retail attraction intended to add activity and diversify the mall's offer.

• 2025

  Conversion of former Sears space into The NashProduct launch

  Background

  The departure of Sears created a large vacant anchor space at the mall.

  Action taken

  The former Sears location was redeveloped for The Nash casino, which opened in March 2025.

  Aftermath

  The redevelopment added gaming and entertainment to the mall's retail, dining, and service mix.

  Source

• 2012

  Simon Property Group takes ownership and managementM&A

  Background

  The mall entered a new ownership and operating arrangement after more than two decades of operation.

  Action taken

  Simon Property Group became the property's owner and manager.

  Aftermath

  Pheasant Lane Mall became part of Simon's national portfolio of shopping centers.

  Source

• 1980

  Redesign to keep the development in New HampshireStrategy

  Background

  The proposed mall site crossed the New Hampshire–Massachusetts boundary, creating different tax and jurisdictional consequences for retail and restaurant uses.

  Action taken

  The development was redesigned so that all stores and restaurants would be located on the New Hampshire side. A corner of the JCPenney building that had crossed the boundary was removed and rebuilt in a pentagonal shape.

  Aftermath

  The finished mall and its retail premises remained in New Hampshire, while portions of the parking and drainage infrastructure continued to extend into Massachusetts.

  Source

1. 1Pheasant Lane Mallen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Simon Property Group mall directorysimon.com