Riverchase Galleria. (Nathan Watson / Bham Now) — The iconic carousel in the Riverchase Galleria’s food court. (Nathan Watson / Bham Now)

Forty years after opening its doors on February 19, 1986, the Riverchase Galleria is celebrating a major milestone and making plans to revitalize Alabama’s largest mall.

The Riverchase Galleria is Alabama’s largest mall

When developer Jim Wilson, Jr. of Jim Wilson & Associates began construction of the Riverchase Galleria in the early 1980s, people thought he was crazy for building a massive, mixed-use indoor mall (seemingly) in the middle of nowhere. At the time, Hoover had fewer than 10,000 residents and I-459 was still a few years away from completion.

Yet, when the Riverchase Galleria first opened its doors on February 19, 1986, it quickly became a destination for visitors across the southeast.

“I was a young police officer working here on that crazy day. Crowds came from everywhere—it was the destination to come to. I remember seeing jaws drop when people looked up at the massive ceiling; they had never seen anything like this.”
Mayor Nick Derzis, City of Hoover

riverchasegalleria 9 scaled What's next for the Riverchase Galleria after 40 years in Hoover? — Hoover Mayor Nick Derzis speaking at the Riverchase Galleria. (Nathan Watson / Bham Now)

As the largest mall in the Southeast—a title it held until 1999—the Riverchase Galleria was more than a mall. With its soaring glass canopy, a world-class hotel, an office tower, an iconic carousel and eventually Alabama’s first Macy’s, the Galleria was a vacation destination for shoppers across the region.

Today, Hoover has grown to house nearly 100,000 residents—growth driven by the economic engine that is the Riverchase Galleria.

What’s next for the Riverchase Galleria?

The outside of the Riverchase Galleria. (Pat Byington / Bham Now)

On the heels of its 39th anniversary in 2025, the city of Hoover commissioned a $200,000 market assessment study to help inform future use of the Riverchase Galleria. Released in late 2025, the study proposed a two-part redevelopment of the mall:

Phase One is a smaller-scale redevelopment that would include:
- Demolition of the former Sears
- Construction of 282 apartments, 28,000 square feet of retail, a 1,100-seat center for the arts and a 25,000-square-foot public plaza & greenspace
Phase Two is a full build-out of the redevelopment with additional residential and retail space that would include:
- Demolition of the current Macy’s box and the adjacent triangular corridor of the mall
- Construction of 260 apartments, 16,000 square feet of retail and a 19,000-square-foot public plaza & greenspace

“As any real estate person will tell you, the number one asset is location. The Riverchase Galleria is the most infrastructure-rich commercial property in Central Alabama—period. With hundreds of thousands of passersby on I-459, Highway 31 and Highway 150, you cannot find a better-connected piece of commercial real estate in Central Alabama.

But over the years, the Galleria has had a problem. Retail landscapes change. Due to new competition and online shopping, visitor traffic has dropped.

But I want everyone to know that my administration and the Hoover City Council is doing everything we can to bring back the Galleria to the days that we remember. We are pursuing every opportunity to make sure we can get this economic engine back and—if possible—better than ever before.”
Mayor Nick Derzis, City of Hoover

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