Legacy Village
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Legacy Village is a lifestyle center in Lyndhurst, Ohio. Owned by First Interstate Properties Ltd and designed by Dorsky Hodgson Partners of Cleveland, it opened on October 24, 2003.[1] Located at the intersection of Cedar and Richmond Roads, it stands on a portion of the former TRW headquarters property, which was previously the Dudley S. Blossom estate. Beachwood Place mall is located across the street.
The center combines upscale dining, shopping, and entertainment. Upon its opening, 60% of its stores were new to Ohio.[2] During the summer weekends, the complex hosts a series of outdoor concerts which it has dubbed Legacy Live.[3]
[edit] Opening
Legacy Village was so popular on its first day that police officers were forced to direct traffic.[4] While traffic became more normalized and regulated in the following months, the complex was built near an already busy intersection, and Legacy Village did not contain the amount of parking spaces it was required to by city law, even though Lyndhurst voters had already changed the laws for parking spaces specifically to benefit the complex.[5] Legacy Village officials added insult to injury by issuing "parking tickets" that were not legally binding, which led to increased calls to the police station.[6]
About a month after its opening, Steven Litt complained in the Cleveland Plain Dealer that Legacy Village was "a shopping center in the midst of a vast parking lot".[7] He stated that the design, which sets some restaurants apart from the "village" mall area, created problems for foot traffic, and decried the center as a failed experiement in New Urbanism.
Despite these problems, Legacy Village had an extremely successful first year, netting over $225 million and pulling shoppers to the area from far-away towns. The complex celebrated with a birthday cake and fireworks.[8]
