Post Oak Mall is a regional shopping mall in College Station, Texas owned by CBL & Associates Properties. Construction on the mall began in summer 1979 and it opened February 17, 1982. It initially housed 80 stores with four anchors. A second phase, planned before the mall even opened, was completed in 1985, adding more floor space and bringing the mall up to 125 stores and 6 anchor stores. As of 2015, it also houses a small food court and two restaurants. The anchor stores are 2 Dillard's stores, JCPenney, and Conn's. There are 2 vacant anchor stores that were once Gordmans and Macy's.
The first mall to be opened in College Station, Post Oak is the largest mall within the Brazos Valley area. At its opening, it became the city's largest employer, and nearly doubled its city sales tax revenues. Though the mall generated additional traffic and added to the demand on city services, it also generated $1 million in annual sales tax revenue, $120,000 in property taxes, and a half-million in taxes for the city school district. It is credited with creating the first major impetus for growing economic and commercial developments for College Station, which previously lacked a major retail community. The mall generates over 75 percent of the area's retail sales through its approximately eleven million annual visitors. It remains the city's largest taxpayer and its second largest employer. It is also the top employer of the students of nearby Texas A&M University.
History
Beginnings
In the early 1980s, the demand for shopping opportunities and other businesses was growing with the populations of the side-by-side cities of Bryan and College Station. The city and developer CBL & Associates Properties began making plans for the opening of a large regional mall in the area, with the first choice of location being in Bryan near the intersection of Earl Rudder Freeway (Texas State Highway 6) and Briarcrest Drive (FM 1179). However, the owner of the land refused to sell. With the city unable to procure the land, the mall project was shifted to College Station. Construction began on Post Oak Mall in the summer of 1979 at the intersection of Earl Rudder Freeway and Harvey Road. Developer CBL & Associates Properties hired Eugene "Buck" Schimpf to act as the project manager. More than 1,000 workers were employed to help construct the mall, with the project "monopolizing the local (construction) trade" at the time.
Post Oak Mall opened its doors on February 17, 1982. Spanning , the first phase of the mall contained approximately 80 stores, including four anchors: the area's first Foley's and Dillard's department stores; Sears, which relocated from its smaller Bryan location; and H. J. Wilson Co. In addition to the stores, the mall contained a three–screen Plitt-branded movie theater and a food court with fifteen small restaurants and a 300-person seating area. The mall walkways were decorated with a variety of small potted trees and plants in large atrium areas, with tiered glass ceilings above. A copper-piping fountain that emitted water in a "dandelion bubble" dominated one end of the building. Plans were already underway for a second phase of construction that would expand the mall to hold up to 130 stores and push it up to .
At the time of its opening, it was the largest mall complex developed by CBL. In the first year, it was projected that the mall would employee 2,500 employees—instantly making it the largest employer in the city; this was expected to expand to 3,500 with the completion of the second phase. It was hoped it would generate $80 million in sales. In addition to helping to retain local shoppers who might otherwise travel the 2½ hours southeast to Houston for mall shopping, CBL and city officials expected the mall would draw shoppers from around the Brazos Valley. Before its opening, the city did not have a highly developed retail community. With the planned additions, then College Station city manager North Bardell said it was expected to generate $1 million in annual sales tax revenue, nearly equal to what the city collected in the previous fiscal year from all other sales. It would bring in another $120,000 in property taxes, a half-million in taxes for College Station Independent School District, and $1 million in electric bills. The increase in jobs was seen as good for the community, and the city hoped it would attract new civic groups to the area. Taking a year longer than originally planned, the expansion was completed in 1985.