Mazza Gallerie Opens Its Doors on Wisconsin Avenue
Mazza Gallerie opened in November 1977 after nearly four years of delays, bringing 300,000 square feet of retail, a Metro station link, and anchors Neiman Marcus and Raleigh Haberdasher.
The property had belonged to the Mazza family, with Olga Mazza setting a covenant that required future projects to bear her mother's name and photo, which still shaped development decades later.
Western Development Corporation, led by Herbert S. Miller, teamed with Stanley Marcus to create an upscale shopping hub. Since 1950, the corridor has held Woodward & Lothrop, with Lord & Taylor added in 1959 and Saks Fifth Avenue in 1964.
The Metro stop won approval in 1973, matching the mall's timing. Labor disputes and long delays extended construction almost four years and kept retailers uncertain about opening.
The final design offered three levels of shops connected directly to Friendship Heights station. The $25 million project was among the most expensive retail builds of the decade.
Raleigh Haberdasher partnered with Neiman Marcus as co-anchor, despite the presence of vacant storefronts from the outset.
Recruited smaller retailers went to White Flint Mall in Bethesda, which opened smoothly and drew steady traffic.
At Mazza Gallerie, Metro construction jammed nearby streets and discouraged visitors.
The marble interiors and direct rail link did not prevent the center from gaining a troubled image, caused by timing rather than design.
The area now holds several luxury retailers. Yet Mazza Gallerie's first weeks showed how delays weakened strong plans.
At the time, locals weighed it among the things to do in Washington, D.C., curious about whether the new mall could live up to its early promise.
A Troubled Reputation and the First Sale
By the early 1980s, Mazza Gallerie was already being described as a troubled center.
Delays at its launch had left empty storefronts, and the mix of tenants never matched the early promises.
The polished corridors carried vacant stretches that gave shoppers fewer reasons to linger.
In 1982, ownership changed hands. The property was sold to a group that included Prudential Insurance Company.
The transfer came less than five years after the opening, marking the first major shift in control.
New leadership faced the task of filling space in a mall that still had Neiman Marcus as a strong anchor but struggled with consistent leasing.
Through the late 1980s, tenancy remained uneven. While Neiman Marcus continued to draw, the second anchor, Raleigh Haberdasher, operated in a changing retail environment.
By 1992, the entire Raleigh chain went out of business, leaving a large vacancy in the building.
The closing marked the end of one of the original pillars of the project.
In 1993, Filene's Basement moved into the space vacated by Raleigh.
The Boston-based off-price retailer gave Mazza Gallerie a new anchor that was far different from the luxury image first envisioned.
This transition brought a fresh tenant but underscored how quickly the mall's direction was shifting within just over fifteen years of its debut.
Renovations and New Faces in the 1990s
In June 1997, a group led by Daniel McCaffery bought Mazza Gallerie for $28 million.
The new owners immediately began a $30 million renovation project that changed the building's look and feel.
Workers opened up the marble block exterior by cutting in new windows, and they added brighter lighting and more entrances to draw in foot traffic.
The upgrades were financed by Security Capital Group. For shoppers, the changes meant a mall that felt less closed off and easier to enter from Wisconsin Avenue.
The renovations also included new tenants meant to expand the mix beyond retail.
Among them was a General Cinemas theatre that gave the property an entertainment anchor, something it had lacked since the beginning.
General Cinemas also introduced a dining space called The R Room, managed by the restaurant division of Neiman Marcus.
It opened as part of the late-1990s refresh but shut down by December 2000.
Afterward, the theater continued to operate, while the restaurant spot was later filled by Rock Creek, which opened in 2007 and closed in 2009.
The additions marked a turn in the mall's history, bringing entertainment and dining into a property that had been known mainly for its retail base.
The 2000s: New Owners, Old Problems
By 2001, Security Capital Group was absorbed by General Electric.
That transfer placed the mall under a corporate umbrella far removed from its retail focus, leaving it to operate as a property within GE's expanding portfolio.
In June 2004, the building changed hands again. Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association of America, known as TIAA, paid $77 million to acquire the mall from General Electric.
The purchase price reflected confidence in the address, even as the center faced the challenge of filling space in a shifting retail market.
During these years, the mix of tenants leaned on anchors like Neiman Marcus and Filene's Basement, alongside smaller boutiques that cycled in and out.
The earlier renovations had opened the building visually, but leasing remained uneven.
TIAA held the property through the decade, while competition around the region continued to grow.
No major physical updates were recorded in this period. Instead, the mall functioned under its existing layout, waiting for a resurgence that never came.
The 2000s closed with Mazza Gallerie still standing, well located on Wisconsin Avenue and tied to the Metro, but struggling to maintain a steady pull for shoppers.
Decline in the 2010s
Filene's Basement closed at Mazza Gallerie in 2011 when the chain liquidated. By 2013, its former space was taken over by TJ Maxx.
In 2015, the opening of CityCenterDC drew high-end retailers into downtown Washington, pulling attention away from Friendship Heights.
Stores that once might have filled space at Mazza Gallerie chose instead to relocate to the newer development.
The district around Wisconsin Avenue began losing its edge as a luxury shopping corridor.
In January 2017, TIAA sold the mall to Ashkenazy Acquisition Corporation for $78 million.
By that time, vacancies had become harder to fill, and national chains were scaling back locations across the country.
The trend often described as the retail apocalypse left many enclosed malls struggling to keep pace with online sales and shifting shopping patterns.
The impact was felt directly at Mazza Gallerie.
In August 2020, Neiman Marcus announced that its store in the building would close, leaving the property without its original anchor.
Only months later, the theater that had once been General Cinemas, and later operated by AMC, was marked for closure in February 2021.
The back-to-back losses left the mall without two of its largest draws, pushing it further into decline.
Following these exits, the property went into foreclosure. Annaly Capital Management acquired control, stepping in at a moment when the center was nearly hollow.
Leasing had slowed to a trickle, and the building entered the 2020s in a diminished state, waiting for a change in direction.
The Last Christmas and Demolition
In May 2021, Tishman Speyer purchased Mazza Gallerie for $52 million.
The company announced plans to redevelop the property into 350 apartments with retail space on the ground floor.
That deal marked the beginning of the end for the mall in its original form.
Through 2022, only a handful of tenants remained. The final anchor was TJ Maxx. On December 24, 2022, the store closed its doors, and with it, the entire mall went dark.
Shoppers leaving that afternoon walked out of a property that had functioned as a retail center for forty-five years.
By 2023, demolition crews were on site. The project cleared the structure above ground but kept the four levels of underground parking intact.
That garage had been tied directly to Friendship Heights station since the opening in the 1970s, and it was folded into the redevelopment plans.
The seven-story mixed-use complex that followed was designed to contain 320 apartments and roughly 90,000 square feet of new retail.
The new structure began to take shape quickly, erasing the last traces of the original mall and preparing the site for its next chapter.
Residences at Mazza: A New Era Begins (2024–2025)
By August 2024, the redevelopment was reported to be progressing toward a spring 2025 delivery.
In March 2025, pre-leasing launched under the name Residences at Mazza.
The mix included studios, one to three-bedroom units, and penthouses over 1,300 square feet. First residents were expected in May 2025.
Leasing promotions listed coworking and conference rooms, a rooftop lounge, a fitness center, and a courtyard pool.
Rents ranged across the market, with the highest units priced above $8,000 per month.
Retail leasing moved forward alongside residential. TJ Maxx has committed to a return, and Total Wine & More has signed for space in the project.
By June 2025, local reports noted TJ Maxx was preparing to reopen.
By July, it was confirmed that the store would move back into the redeveloped site at 5300 Wisconsin Avenue.
As of August 2025, TJ Maxx had become the first operating retailer in the new building, marking the start of a different phase for a property that had once been a marble-clad shopping mall.