Landmark Center

When Landmark Center opened in fall 1965, it not only had three anchor stores, but its location at the intersection of Duke Street and Shirely Highway made it accessible to thousands of Northern Virginia residents. Though each department store was distinct, the same architectural firm, Abbott, Merkt & Company of New York City, was responsible for designing all of them, more than 30 smaller retail spaces and the open air mall that connected the stores. During the 1970s and 1980s, open air malls went out of favor, and enclosed shopping malls opened in Springfield, Fairfax, Arlington, Tysons Corner and Manassas. In the late 1980s, Landmark was completely renovated into a three-story enclosed mall but its original anchors remained intact. Today, the mall's vacancy rate is well above the national average, and its owners have approval to redevelop it.