McFarland Mall was a regional 497000sqft L-shaped shopping mall on Skyland Boulevard (U.S. Route 11) in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Located near the interchange of Interstate 20/59 with McFarland Boulevard (U.S. Route 82), it was in the southern section of the city. Opening on February 19, 1969, the mall replaced Woods Square Shopping Center and Leland Shopping Center as the main commercial retail center in the Tuscaloosa area. Brandon Crawford and Associates of Birmingham was the architect for the mall. General contractor for the project was N.C. Morgan Construction Company of Tuscaloosa. McGiffert and Associates of Tuscaloosa provided the engineering services for the mall.At its opening in 1969, McFarland Mall had 2 anchor stores, Woolco and Gayfers and 30 stores. At its height, McFarland Mall had 4 anchors, 40 stores, a 12-screen movie theater and a food court. Despite the opening of the larger University Mall in 1977, the mall survived an additional 30 years. However, the mall saw a steady 10 year decline during the 2000s following the closing of two anchors. Redevelopment was slated for 2013.Grand OpeningThe grand opening of McFarland Mall was at 9:30am on Wednesday, February 19, 1969. Tuscaloosa Mayor George Van Tassel and Tuscaloosa County Probate Judge John Puryear held the ribbon at the mall’s main entrance. Mary Katherine Hinton, 7, and Elizabeth Russell Hinton, 5, daughters of co-developer, James “Jimmy” Hinton, cut the ribbon, signaling the opening of the mall.
