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Macy's is an anchor store of the new Promenade Bolingbrook. This Macy's, the first to be built in the Macy's North division, is scheduled to open April 17.

Coming soon to a town near Lewis

Grey's Anatomy star to appear at gala of new Bolingbrook mall

By: Lisa Oesterreicher

Posted: 4/20/07

For years, southwestern suburban Bolingbrook, a neighboring suburb of Romeoville, has consisted of a string of subdivisions, lacking a 'main street' or a locale its residents could name 'downtown.'

However, later this month, Bolingbrook will get its first real downtown marked by a two-block shopping center called The Promenade Bolingbrook. The grand opening ceremony of the shopping center will take place Thursday, April 26. The shopping center, located at Interstate Highway 355 and Boughton Road, approximately eight miles from Lewis University, will offer a variety of shops and restaurants.

The Promenade, anchored by a Macy's and a massive Bass Pro Shop, is described as a place where trees, sidewalks and sky meet shops and cafés. It will feature a Village Green where shoppers can relax in an open park-like setting that includes a performance stage and a giant outdoor fireplace. While the shopping center is not expected to open until April 26, Macy's will open April 17. The Bolingbrook store is the first built in the Macy's North division-Illinois, Minnesota, Michigan and Indiana.

On April 26, at 6 p.m. the Promenade Bolingbrook's Macy's will host a Gala Celebration called One Red Hot Night, featuring food, music, a silent auction and a celebrity appearance by Grey's Anatomy star Kate Walsh. Walsh plays the role of Dr. Addison Montgomery Shepard on the popular ABC primetime drama. Tickets for the Gala are $75 per person, and all proceeds benefit the children's pediatric emergency room at the new Adventist Bolingbrook Hospital. Two-thousand people are expected to show at the Gala, and tickets are still available. The deadline to RSVP is April 16.

Restaurants at the Promenade Bolingbrook will include: Bar Louie, Johnny Rockets, BD's Mongolian Barbeque, Go Roma Italian Kitchen, Salad Creations, Great Steak and Potato Company, and more.

The shopping center's stores will include: Bakers, Barnes & Noble, Champs Sports, Coach, Forever 21, Ulta, Victoria's Secret, H&M, Hollister Co., PacSun, Yankee Candle and many more.

To some people, the Promenade may sound like any other mall in the Chicago land area such as Yorktown Center in Lombard or Fox Valley Mall in Aurora; however, the Promenade's distinction lies in its details. Its streets are named for significant Illinois residents, such as Gwendolyn Brooks, the late Illinois poet, and its prairie-style architecture includes several types of locally made brick and store entryways with embellishments suggestive of Frank Lloyd Wright.

The Promenade was also designed with the central idea of a clean and healthy environment in mind. This meant building for higher efficiency and using a better selection of building materials. Signs have been installed throughout the shopping center to highlight many of its accomplishments in green building and sustainable design. Green building is a design and construction practice that promotes the economic health and well-being of the environment.

Across from the Promenade Bolingbrook, on Boughton Road, is a 446,400-square-foot destination center featuring the second Midwestern home of the Swedish furniture giant IKEA, Bed Bath & Beyond, and Staples.

The Village of Bolingbrook is one of the most accessible suburbs in the Chicago area and is listed in Crain's Chicago as one of the most affluent suburbs due to its consistent efforts to promote industrial and commercial growth.