Spotsylvania Towne Center: A Thriving Indoor and Outdoor Shopping Destination

The Spotsylvania Towne Center in Fredericksburg, Virginia, originally opened as the Spotsylvania Mall in 1980, anchored by Sears, Leggett, JCPenney, F. W. Woolworth Company, and Montgomery Ward. It was built by Cafaro Company, a real estate developer based in Niles, Ohio, founded by brothers William Cafaro and John Cafaro, who started building Kroger grocery stores in 1942. It is still owned by the Cafaro Company today. Currently, it encompasses 1,325,000 square feet of retail space on one floor, which includes 150 stores and restaurants. Its anchors include Guitar Center, Costco, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Belk (located in the former Leggett space), JCPenney, and Macy’s. Woolworth closed in 1993, JCPenney moved in, and Montgomery Ward was demolished for Costco in 2001. The original Sears closed in 2020 and was demolished the same year.

In 2009, renovations of the mall’s interior and exterior were completed, and the mall was renamed the Spotsylvania Town Center. This same year, an outdoor extension called The Village was built next to the interior section of the mall. While I’m not as partial to recently renovated indoor malls, I’m unable to find many photos of what it looked like in its earlier days, and the current design is both spacious and unique. The central concourse, in particular, offers a wild design on the ceiling reminiscent of a spaceship, and though there are certainly a few vacant storefronts, most retailers appear to be thriving. Shops include the usual proliferation of nail and hair salons, jewelry stores, clothing stores such as Hot Topic and Journey, and eateries like Chick-fil-A and Firebirds. Though some stores were closed relatively early for a Monday evening, plenty of shoppers were milling about. I also noted a branch of the local library in the mall, which struck me as a very inspired inclusion that hopefully benefits both the library and the mall.

Unlike some other struggling malls I’ve photographed, the Spotsylvania Town Center is thriving as a clean, modern retail and entertainment complex. Amidst all the doom and gloom about the retail apocalypse, it’s a bit jarring (in a good way) to see an indoor mall humming along as though nothing has changed. With its blend of national chains and local businesses, indoor and outdoor space, and an adjoining bowling alley and movie theater, the Spotsylvania Towne Center is in as good a position as any to ride out the storm. A new adjacent luxury apartment complex built on the former Sears lot, Attain at Towne Center, will likely solidify a customer base that enjoys the ease of walking next door for food and entertainment options. With some luck, Spotsylvania Towne Center could be one of the malls that survives the current waves of closures and flourishes in years to come.