mall relocating to other locations. A riot erupted in December 2012 over the new Nike Air Jordan; police had to use pepper spray to calm the situation. No arrests were made. In July 2014, a video surfaced online of a Belk employee attempting to fight off a shoplifter in the parking lot. In September 2015, a woman was robbed at gunpoint in the parking lot of the mall. The pilot episode of the Food Network show, Food Court Wars was filmed at this mall. Kettle N' Spouts, the winner of the episode, received a year's worth of free rent in the mall that was valued at $100,000. Kettle N' Spouts closed only 6 months after the episode aired. Madison Square Mall was owned by CBL & Associates Properties, Inc., until it was sold to The Grove Huntsville LLC for $5 million in late April 2015. The new owners intended to redevelop the property, despite struggles with the city of Huntsville against property owners Sears, JCPenney, and most notably TouchStar Cinemas, who started a petition on June 7, 2016 to prevent their property from being demolished. Not even 24 hours later, the petition achieved over 1,000 signatures. Huntsville's Director of Urban Development, Shane Davis, made a statement regarding this move, and confirmed that the theater would not be demolished, and instead the plans would be reworked around the property. Madison Square Mall began liquidation in summer 2016. The last liquidation sale ended on January 8, 2017. On November 28, 2016, Sears announced it would be closing on January 29, 2017, making it the last tenant or anchor to close in the mall. Sears also announced it would return to the MidCity Huntsville development that will replace Madison Square Mall in a smaller store. In December 2016, JCPenney announced it would close on January 28, 2017. It is unknown if JCPenney will remain in the Huntsville area. With the closure of Sears and JCPenney, Madison Square Mall permanently closed on January 29, 2017. Demolition of the former mall began on February 6, 2017. The property is now the site of MidCity District. The last remnant of the mall, Touchstar's very own Madison Square 12 theater, closed its doors permanently on May 2nd, 2021, and was demolished months afterwards. References External links Madison Square Mall (archived site) Shopping malls in Huntsville, Alabama Shopping malls established in 1984 Shopping malls disestablished in 2017 CBL