Desert Sky Mall (originally Westridge Mall) began construction in late 1979 and opened in March 1981. It was developed by Westcor who had recently finished up development of Paradise Valley Mall in northeast Phoenix. Rafique Islam of Architectonics Inc. was the designer.[2] The mall was built with three anchor stores, Sears occupying the west space Diamond's occupying the center space and JCPenney occupying the east space. Sears and JCPenney opened in January 1981. Diamond's began construction of its store at that time and opened a year later.[3]
Desert Sky underwent an expansion in 1993 which added two new anchor stores, Mervyn's and Montgomery Ward. The new stores added 175,000 square feet to the mall. Also at this time the original mall underwent a renovation which added a parking lot sculpture, new flooring and windows in the food court. The expansion and renovation work was completed in October 1993.[4]
It is currently the only regional mall in the southwest valley (and as such serving major nearby suburban areas such as Avondale, Goodyear, and Tolleson). In the years since the center's opening, the demographics of the bordering neighborhood have reflected the expansion of the Latino population in the Phoenix area.
Originally owned by Westcor, in 2002 Desert Sky Mall became part of The Macerich Company's portfolio.
In 2015, Sears Holdings spun off 235 of its properties, including the Sears at Desert Sky Mall, into Seritage Growth Properties.[5] On October 15, 2018, it was announced that Sears would be closing as part of a plan to close 142 stores nationwide; it closed in January 2019.[6]
