Great Mall of the Great Plains will close later this year

Owners of The Great Disappointment Mall of the Great Plains, a moribund shopping center at the southern outskirts of Olathe, will finally pull the plug on the operation this year.

VanTrust, the asset manager of the Great Mall, told local media on Monday that it plans to shut down by the end of fall.

The news is hardly surprising. Olathe some years ago created a community improvement district that captured a portion of sales taxes, earmarked for some future developer to study other uses for the property.

That developer is likely VanTrust, the well-heeled real-estate firm that bought the mall just after Olathe created the CID.

Tim Danneberg, a spokesman for Olathe, tells The Pitch that between $800,000 and $900,000 is sitting in that CID escrow account.

“We’ve proactively been anticipating this,” Danneberg says.

That’s true. Olathe leaders once tried to pitch the site as a location for the Major League Soccer franchise known at the time as the Kansas City Wizards. Later on, the city tried to convince Ikea to replace the mall. 

The Great Mall’s demise has been apparent for years, maybe even the entirety of its existence.

The only thing the mall seemed to sell in abundance was a feeling of desperation.

Opened amid so much hype and boosterism in 1997, the Great Mall won’t even make it two decades. Olathe officials thought that the mall at 151st Street and Interstate 35 would be so popular that buses full of tourists would come from far-flung places to make a day of the Great Mall’s splendor.

But the mall’s performance always disappointed. Its location was always too far to the south to capture much business from the rest of the Kansas City metro area. And the selection of stores, many of which turned over in short order, were never enough of a draw to bring people from more than a few miles away.

Its erstwhile owners never seemed to do much to keep the mall up to date. Its interior decor for many years was a ghastly jungle theme that looked like a collage of ’90s-era clip art. The dimly lit hallways, largely absent of shoppers, added to the depressing vibe of empty storefronts. Portions of the parking lot were car axle-busters. The streets and interchange around the mall are a confusing mess.

Even Olathe’s residents didn’t embrace its retail sarcophagus. Residents in 2006 successfully lobbied the Olathe City Council to restrict the display of adult items after Great Mall shoppers were shocked to see its Spencer’s location selling dildos where the children could see them.

VanTrust doesn’t know yet exactly what it will do with the mall. But it’s clear that the existing structure has to go.

Another thing is clear: Soon, Olathe residents will have to find another place to renew their driver’s licenses and buy their incense.