Lake Square Mall: bowling, arcade, and go-karts under one roof
On U.S. 441, the mall's sign marks the turn into the property, and cars enter a large, well-lit parking lot. The entrances are spaced along the building and are easy to locate, even during a quick stop with children in tow.
Inside, the main walkways carry the routine sounds of a mall, including footsteps and shopping bags. Further in, the noise shifts toward entertainment areas.
Bowling pins strike and reset. Arcade games beep and chirp. Tires squeal from an indoor go-kart track, a sound that carries beyond its section of the building.
Teenagers move in slow groups and often occupy the center of the corridor. Parents usually walk quickly and then slow down once they are inside the cool, air-conditioned room.
The storefronts are a mix of long-running tenants and newer, short-term operators. Some stores look established and blend into the interior.
Others appear more temporary and resemble pop-ups. The corridors stay cool under steady lighting.
Visitors continue from store to store, pausing and moving again, and time passes without much notice.
Opening day, 1980, and the new habit
Lake Square Mall was developed in the late 1970s by General Growth Properties as a regional retail center for Leesburg and surrounding communities.
It was planned as a single-level enclosed mall intended to keep shopping indoors and local. The mall officially opened on September 24, 1980, becoming the first and only enclosed shopping mall in Lake County.
The original center measured about 559,000 square feet and was organized as a single-floor loop of stores. Three department stores anchored the layout.
Belk-Lindsey, a Florida division of Belk, opened as one anchor. JCPenney and Sears opened as the other two anchors.
Between the anchors, the mall opened with a mix of national chain stores and local shops typical of the period.
The mall also opened with on-site amenities aimed at keeping visitors inside longer. It included an indoor food court. It also included an AMC movie theater with six screens as part of the initial layout.
With no other enclosed mall in the county, Lake Square drew shoppers who previously traveled to Orlando and other cities for a comparable mall trip.
The Target wing and the 1990s shine
Through the 1980s, Lake Square Mall operated as a steady community shopping center and remained busy enough for management to plan an expansion.
In 1989, the mall proposed a major project that would add Target as a fourth anchor. Construction on the Target wing began in the early 1990s.
Target opened in March 1992, and the expansion added ten new storefronts along with the new anchor space.
In the mid-1990s, the mall made a series of updates and enlargements. In 1995, Belk expanded by taking over adjacent space that had previously been occupied by Rite Aid.
That same year, the AMC Lake Square 6 theater was expanded into a 12-screen multiplex, increasing the mall's entertainment capacity and reinforcing the theater as a major draw.
Interior updates continued the next year. In 1996, the center court was updated and an existing stage was removed.
By the end of these changes, Lake Square Mall had four anchors, a larger theater, and a refreshed interior layout.
Books, deals, and a corporate handoff
In the late 1990s, Lake Square Mall continued adding national tenants and filled out its tenant mix during a period of strong occupancy.
In 1997, Books-A-Million opened at the mall and added a bookstore and cafe-style stop that fit into the mall's daily traffic.
In early 1998, Lake Square Mall was acquired as part of a portfolio sale involving 12 malls.
Simon Property Group and Macerich jointly acquired the property in a deal connected to an IBM pension fund portfolio that had been managed by DeBartolo Realty.
The DeBartolo name reflected the Simon-DeBartolo structure that later became the Simon Property Group banner.
After the acquisition, Simon eventually assumed management of Lake Square Mall and kept it in its portfolio into the 2000s.
During these years, the mall operated at a high level of activity, with four active anchors and steady traffic supported by retail, food, and movies.
Recession quiet, and anchors start to blink
In the 2000s, Lake Square Mall faced increasing competition and shifting shopping patterns. Big-box retail centers expanded in nearby markets.
New retail development in places such as The Villages to the north and Clermont to the south drew shoppers away, and the mall no longer held a captive trade area.
The late-2000s Great Recession affected Central Florida and contributed to store closures at the mall.
Vacancies increased, and by the early 2010s some sections had noticeably thinned traffic and were described by local shoppers as having a "ghost town" feel.
PetSmart opened in 2011 as a new large tenant, but it did not reverse the broader decline.
Anchor instability followed. In November 2013, Target announced it would close its Lake Square store on February 1, 2014, citing underperformance.
Macerich moved to divest the property and put the mall up for auction. In January 2014, JCPenney was listed among 33 stores the chain planned to close, and the Leesburg location closed by May 3, 2014.
Kohan Retail Investment Group took ownership in March 2014 for about $13.28 million.
The parking areas sat largely empty, and a car dealership used parts of the lot to store excess inventory. A Kentucky Fried Chicken at the mall entrance closed.
ViaPort Florida paints over the bad years
In September 2014, Kohan sold the mall to Via Properties, an international developer based in Istanbul.
Soon after the purchase, Via changed the name from Lake Square Mall to "ViaPort Florida" and presented the rebrand as a reset for the property.
Via began with visible building and interior improvements. By May 2015, the mall had been repainted and updated with new flooring and upgraded lighting.
Restrooms and the food court were renovated. A decorative fountain was added inside the mall.
A new roadside sign was installed along U.S. 441 to improve visibility and attract passing traffic.
Via's larger strategy focused on entertainment uses for the vacant Target space.
The company announced plans to convert the former Target building into a major indoor attraction. By 2016, the mall opened Via Entertainment as a new anchor.
This 88,000-square-foot family entertainment center included a 22-lane bowling alley, a sports bar and restaurant, and a large arcade.
In November 2017, Adrenaline Rush Raceway opened as a 55,000-square-foot indoor go-kart facility using electric karts.
Via also added boutique and specialty tenants in 2016 and 2017, including Georges Marciano Ranch, Pajar, Lucky Seven, and Yvonne Marie.
The City of Leesburg supported the redevelopment effort. The city approved permits for new development on 65 acres behind the mall.
Later, the City Commission approved a grant for Lake Square Mall up to $500,000 for infrastructure, landscaping, and signage upgrades.
Local owners, Sears leaves, events move in
By fall 2017, Via began divesting its U.S. mall holdings, and the Leesburg property was sold again.
Exclusive Management and Properties, Inc., a Florida firm based in Pompano Beach, purchased the mall for $23 million.
After the acquisition, the name was changed back from ViaPort Florida to Lake Square Mall, which remained the name most residents used.
The new ownership focused on upgrades and leasing. In early 2018, the owners announced $3-5 million in upgrades that included a new covered walkway, new entryway designs, and a more modern outside look.
Five new stores were added soon after. By 2019, the owners expected the number of empty spaces to go down from about 22% at the time of purchase to somewhere in the mid-teens.
Events became a regular way to bring traffic to the property. The mall hosted seasonal festivals, car shows, and charity events.
In 2019, it hosted a hurricane preparedness expo that featured The Weather Channel's Jim Cantore.
Another anchor closure followed. In August 2019, Sears announced the Lake Square store would close as part of a nationwide round of shutdowns, and the store closed in December 2019.
In 2020, COVID led to temporary closures and limits on capacity.
Despite these challenges, the mall stayed open during the pandemic and later expanded its community events, such as artisan markets, cosplay gatherings, and classic car shows.
Halloween became especially popular with the annual Vaudeville Hotel Haunted House.
Markets, meet and greets, and new homes
By 2025, Lake Square Mall was described as a comeback property and reached 45 years of operation. The present mix holds a little of everything that kept the place alive.
Belk remains the surviving traditional department-store anchor.
The entertainment zone continues as a draw and has expanded its menu over time, adding an indoor inflatable park, laser tag, escape rooms, axe-throwing, and mini golf.
The AMC 12-screen theater still runs first-run films. Books-A-Million continues operating, and Bath & Body Works remains a favorite for shoppers.
Lake Square covers about 73 acres, with parking that can handle big crowds for events, just like it did for holiday shopping in the past.
Over 45 years, it has given jobs to thousands of local people and brought steady tax money to the city. More shoppers may be coming soon.
The planned Villages of West Lake project will add 8,000 new homes to the south side of Leesburg, and city leaders see this growth as a reason to keep the mall going.
The event listings keep the place in motion. A new Farmers and Artisan Market started on October 10, 2025, set for the second and fourth Fridays.
Early February 2026 includes in-mall programming on February 7, with "Fantasy Fairy Fest" and "Tink and Peter!", and on February 14, with a Saturday Artisan Market and a "Hercules" meet and greet.
