I might've mentioned that I enjoy talking about trips to Baton Rouge when I was younger, whether through update blurbs (see February 28, 2021), photos I had on hand, or other off-hand mentions (see mention of HOMEFIELD).
But there's a common thread here, it was literally the journey, not the destination. While there will be more Louisiana-related content coming to this site in the future, Parkdale Mall is a Texas mall with that pedigree. I've never been inside Parkdale Mall, and the directory here is from the travel center near Orange.
Parkdale Mall was interesting in the fact that's one of the tenants was a local news station, so there was a small NBC logo located on the building, and prior to around 2006 where some tan stucco was added, Parkdale Mall still had its original concrete exterior, making it look important and imposing, contrasting well with the colorful facades. One of my fondest memories was getting stuck near the mall on a rainy day (blocking traffic) but the radio was on, there were no accidents, and everyone in the car had high spirits.
While it's true, I never have visited Parkdale Mall in person, as of 2004, it had common ownership with Post Oak Mall (CBL Properties) and almost the exact set of anchors. Sure, Post Oak Mall probably had a better merchandise mix (especially when it came to the food court) and Parkdale Mall had a few more junior anchors (Linens N Things, Old Navy) but both had the mix of two Dillard's stores, a Foley's, Sears, Bealls, and JCPenney. In a way this mall more interesting because it felt relatable to Post Oak Mall. That couldn't be said about The Galleria, which was magnitudes larger and featured upscale department stores. The only one there was Foley's to relate to, and even that was night and day different to the Foley's at Post Oak Mall.
Obviously, the anchor stores of Parkdale are quite different today. From the top, the Sears is gone (no surprise there, unfortunately), the "north" Dillard's re-consolidated and was torn down for a new Bealls store, which ultimately was rebranded as Stage before closing for a Gordmans (which was open for maybe a week or two before COVID-19, and reopened for an out-of-business sale), the old Bealls became Forever 21, the Foley's became Macy's, before being closed and torn down for new buildings (only Dick's Sporting Goods connects to the mall), and the old Linens N Things is now an Ashley HomeStore (or just "Ashley", as they seem to have recently adopted).
Additionally, Books-A-Million closed its store in March 2014 and reopened as 2nd and Charles, their used books brand and the first of its kind in Texas.
The mall history also has Joske's being the old "south" Dillard's and Montgomery Ward being the predecessor of Foley's.
CLICK HERE TO SEE THE 2004 MAP!
