Brookwood Village
Brookwood Village (officially Colonial Brookwood Village) is a 750,754 square foot shopping mall located in Shades Valley on Lakeshore Drive between Highway 280 and Highway 31 in Homewood. It was constructed in 1973 by the Shepherd family. The original building was designed by Giattina Fisher Aycock and won a design award that year from Shopping Center World Magazine. Because the mall is located in a streambed with weak soil, the foundation for the mall is built in deep piles bearing on rock strata. A feature of the original mall was a large skylit atrium in the center with a large fountain populated with tree-like sprayers that filled the area with white noise and mist.
An interior remodeling in the late 1980s decked over the fountain to create a dining and special events platform. New lighting, escalators and flooring were installed and many shop fronts were upgraded.
In 1997, Brookwood Village was purchased for $35 million by Colonial Properties Trust and renamed "Colonial Brookwood Village." Colonial embarked almost immediately on an extensive $50 million overhaul which was completed in 2001. Major additions include a new two-story food court with a "front entrance" for the mall, facing a new outdoor shopping street, modeled on "lifestyle centers" like the Summit. What had been a relatively anonymous interior-facing design was transformed into an attractive outdoor space with a pedestrian bridge over Shades Creek and a shared terrace for two anchor restaurants. This outdoor space also provides outside entrances for several mall tenants, features limited parallel parking, and serves as a valet parking station. The street is also part of a six-mile long walking trail which follows Shades Creek from Green Springs Highway to Jemison Park in Mountain Brook.
The enclosed parking decks have been connected through the former ground floor of the mall and faux building facades energize the outer walls of the deck. The redesign was conceptualized by Street-Works, an Arlington, Virginia-based urban design firm. HKW Architects served as architect of record and developed the conceptual designs for construction. Gar Muse of Cooper Carry, Inc. planned the interiors and contributed to the overall look, drawing from characteristics of the nearby Mountain Brook and Lakeshore communities. Brasfield & Gorrie were general contractors for the revitalization.
An adjacent "Brookwood Village Convenience Center" houses a Vincent's Market grocery store, Jos. A. Banks clothier, Cameras Brookwood and professional offices. An Applebee's restaurant is sited between the mall and convenience center and another restaurant, built as Jimmie's, then Micky's sits vacant nearby.
Future plans for Brookwood Village have included a luxury hotel and 6-story office building. No firm plans regarding these have been announced.
Tenants
Anchor tenants for Brookwood Village are Macy's on the east end, replacing Rich's which had been in the mall since 1975, and Parisian, occupying the western end, representing a same-owner upgrade from McRae's in the space originally occupied by J. C. Penny. Other major tenants include Gus Mayer, Betsy Prince, Ann Taylor Loft, Z Gallerie, Lillie Rubin, Books & Co., Victoria's Secret and Banana Republic. Full service restaurants include the Copper Grill, Brio Tuscan Grill, Cocina Superior and McCormick & Schmick's.
References
- Johnson, Rob. (October 1, 2000) "Turning Birmingham's Brookwood Village inside out." Retail Traffic [1] accessed March 26, 2006.
- Colonial Brookwood Village. Description of geotechnical engineering performed by BHATE Geosciences. [2] - accessed March 26, 2006.
External links
- Colonial Brookwood Village website