Intercity Shopping Centre
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Intercity Shopping Centre is a shopping mall in Thunder Bay, Ontario. It was one of the first shopping malls in Thunder Bay and is the largest of its kind in Northwestern Ontario. The mall was initially constructed in the 1950s on land that bordered the two former cities of Port Arthur and Fort William.
Simpson-Sears was the first store to open on the site, and was served as the largest store. Because the parking lot had not yet been paved, a large sign proclaimed "Please excuse our muddy face". It was built alongside a smaller strip mall that featured several smaller local businesses and national chains such as Loblaws, Woolworths and Consumers Distributors.
In the 1990s, the entire Intercity site was redesigned. Part of the expansion would take place on land formerly used as part of the Canadian Lakehead Exhibition. The strip mall was demolished and a new more modern mall was constructed with Sears (the Simpsons part was dropped in the 1980s) and a new Zellers serving as anchor tenants. The two popular national chains are linked by several national stores all under one roof, making the Intercity Shopping Centre an attractive place for shoppers.
The expansion also led to further development in the Intercity area. Other big box stores were constructed on lands not far from the Intercity Shopping Centre. Among the stores include Canadian Tire, Home Depot, Old Navy, Pier 1 Imports, Walmart, Sportmart, Chapters, Future Shop, JeanWarehouse, Super Pet and Winners.
During the time the shopping centre was owned by Campeau, a parcel of land was purchased across Fort William Road. It was claimed publicly that the lot was purchased for employee parking during holiday seasons. It was purchased as a tactic to prevent a competing developer from building a similar mall adjacent to the shopping centre. This obviously has not stopped development of further shopping areas.
The mall is jointly owned by Osmington Inc. and the CPP Investment Board, a Crown Corporation created by Parliament in 1997 to invest the money of the Canada Pension Plan.
