An aerial view on Wednesday, Aug. 10, 2016, of the demolition of the former Oak Ridge Mall starting at the former Sears store at bottom center and extending into the interior enclosed spaces at the mall. Belk is to the left of this picture, and JCPenney and the former Goody’s store are at upper right. (Photo courtesy Brad Jones/BBB-TV, Channel 12)
Here is an aerial video from Wednesday of the demolition work at the former Oak Ridge Mall. The video was produced by Brad Jones of BBB-TV, Channel 12, and it is used here with his permission.
The three-minute video starts at the area of the former Sears store, which is now demolished and is pictured above at bottom center. Dick’s Sporting Goods and T.J. Maxx will be built in that area, possibly starting in October.
The parking lot at the top of the photo above is the parking lot between JCPenney, at top right, and the Cinemark Tinseltown theater, which is to the left of this picture. The road curving across the top right of the picture is Rutgers Avenue, and the road angling across the top left is Wilson Street. Walmart is off to the bottom right.
The mall is being redeveloped as Main Street Oak Ridge, a 58-acre mixed-use project that could cost about $75 million total and include retailers, restaurants, residential units, and a hotel.
Besides Dick’s Sporting Goods and T.J. Maxx, there will be six other new stores: Electronic Express, Maurice’s, PetSmart, Rack Room, Rue 21, and Ulta. Belk and JCPenney, the two remaining anchors at the mall, will stay. The enclosed space between those two stores is being demolished. Demolition work started at the former Sears store in July.
New stores are expected to open in the spring of 2017.
Main Street Oak Ridge is being developed by RealtyLink, a company based in Greenville, South Carolina. You can see a color site plan here, and a short write-up from the last Oak Ridge Municipal Planning Commission meeting on the project here.
Note: If you have any trouble playing this video if it plays at 480p, go to Settings at the bottom right of the video (there is a symbol that looks like a gear), and switch to 360p or less.
See more aerial photos of the mall demolition here.
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