Seattle Times: Macy's to close its Northgate store

Site plan submitted to Seattle planning dept in March 2018

Goodbye to the Bon Marché.

First it was absorbed into Macy's and now - at Northgate - it will be closed altogether. And Penney's is closing as well.

According to an article in Tuesday's Seattle Times

The Northgate closure marks a somber milestone for the Seattle mall. The mall’s “anchor” tenant, when it was founded back in 1950, was The Bon Marché, which became Macy’s in 2003. Last October, another Northgate anchor tenant, J.C. Penney, announced it would close in 2019. 

Both closures also reflect somber times for all brick-and-mortar retailers as shoppers increasingly turn toward Amazon and other online players.

Many of us have not gotten over the loss of Aurora Village - Frederick and Nelson (Frango mints), Penney's, Woolworth, Nordstrom...

Plans have been filed with the City of Seattle to redevelop the entire Northgate site, with 95 foot buildings, with apartments over retail space. The redevelopment is still in the review phase.

I remember Northgate when it didn't have a roof. Hard to envision now but I remember getting rained on between the stores. The mall has been through at least two major redevelopments, but this is the most dramatic, urbanizing the original suburban mall. Northgate used to be the end of the freeway - because why would you want to go any further?

--Diane Hettrick