Northland Center City to Become a City within a City

​A September 2021 Fox 2 news article reported on the partial demolition of the Northland Center Mall, which closed its doors in 2015 after anchor stores left and customer traffic declined. In 2021, a property development firm purchased the property. Developers are currently transforming one of the nation's oldest shopping malls into the Northland City Center, a redevelopment plan that will transform the mall and create a city within a city.

Located in Detroit, the Northland Center Mall attracted visitors from all over the Detroit suburb of Southfield for nearly 60 years. The mall generated the most sales of any mall nationwide in its heyday. The mall's new construction marks a milestone because it will cater to regional residents. It also marks the end of an institution anchored by Hudson's, the big box department store that opened its doors at the latter end of the 19th century.

Hudson's Department Store, founded by Joseph Lowthian Hudson, drew shoppers from all over Michigan to downtown Detroit to make purchases. The 2.15 million-square-foot department store was a major attraction at the time, being the third-largest department store worldwide. It became so prominent in retail construction that European retailers traveled to see it. The center had 25 stores and four basement shopping areas.

With Hudson's success, the department store's owners wanted to expand. Some ideas included building another mall in a remote area and anchoring it with a strip mall, but that idea did not come to fruition. Famed architect Victor Gruen suggested building shopping centers instead, which created the Eastland, Southland, Northland, and Westland shopping centers.

Northland Center Mall began as an open-air shopping center, which developers converted into a mall in the 1970s. The transition from open-air shopping centers to malls came at a critical intersection in many cities' suburbanization after WWII. After many successful decades the mall declined due to crime and shoppers going elsewhere, and closed a decade ago.

The building and lots had remained vacant for six years when Contour Companies purchased it in 2021. Contour Companies architect Bruce Kopytek described the site as disrepair-vacant, bankrupt, vandalized, and derelict. The area had epitomized urban blight. Contour Companies’ plans for the former mall include investing $403 million in redeveloping the area and rebuilding the mall and residential living space.

When first built, Northland Mall developers tried to recreate the European town market where people could shop and gather. The present development model will adhere to this plan, but include living space to create a self-contained community. The Hudson store will be the centerpiece of the market, housing big box retailers and restaurants. Retail giant Costco is constructing a 160,000-square-foot building in one corner of the lot. Apartment buildings will surround the renovated Hudson building and outdoor mall, creating walkable space.

The residential space will include 14 five-story apartment buildings on land that the 7,500-car parking space once occupied. When completed, this area will comprise 1,500 apartments to accommodate 2,500 residents who will live close to shopping, dining, entertainment, parks, and walking trails.

While the Northland Center Mall spent its last few years as a dying retail outlet, developers have realized the importance of capturing elements of its former character. Developers will use the aesthetics of Hudson's marketplace concept while expanding upon Gruen's concept of making the space the center of social, cultural, and service activity. This time, the concept embeds the idea of community.

Presently, the Northland City Center project is still a work in progress, according to a September 2024 Detroit Free Press article. The project is a major undertaking, with it taking longer than many had initially hoped.

Paulin Modi Michigan

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