Madison Square Mall was a shopping mall in Huntsville, Alabama, United States. The largest in the city, it encompassed over . It was also the oldest extant enclosed shopping mall (after the Heart of Huntsville Mall closed) in the city until its closure in 2017. The mall was located on the corner of University Drive (US 72) and Research Park Boulevard (SR-255). In late January 2017, the mall permanently closed after 32 years of operation. Demolition of the former mall began on February 6, 2017. The property was redeveloped into MidCity District beginning in 2017. History Madison Square Mall opened on August 1, 1984, with anchors JCPenney, Parisian, Castner Knott, Pizitz, and a Sears which relocated from Heart of Huntsville Mall. Junior anchors included Yielding and Blach's. The opening day ceremonies were attended by the Miss America 1984 contestant, Suzette Charles, in her first public appearance as the successor to Vanessa Williams after she was forced to resign the title due to unauthorized publication of nude photographs. Over time, some of the anchors moved or were bought out by bigger companies. Blach's was closed by 1987 and replaced by The Limited and Victoria's Secret. Pizitz was acquired by Jackson, Mississippi-based McRae's in 1988 and renamed as such until McRae's was acquired by Charlotte, North Carolina-based Belk. Castner Knott was acquired in 1998 by Dillard's. Yielding closed their Madison Square Mall location around 1993. For the next 10 years, the space was used by Castner Knott/Dillard's for their menswear. Until 2008, Steve & Barry's used the space. In 2007, Belk, after purchasing Parisian, moved its store from the former McRae's space to the much larger former Parisian space and renovated it to fit the Belk model. The former McRae's building remained vacant from then until the mall closed. Belk departed for Bridge Street Town Center in late 2014. In addition to the in-line mall stores, several other businesses are located in the Madison Square complex, including a Holiday Inn hotel, a Steak 'n Shake restaurant, and a TouchStar Cinemas movie theater. Former businesses in the complex include Romano's Macaroni Grill and Lone Star Steakhouse & Saloon. Madison Square Mall had been renovated twice since its opening, first in 1994 and again in 2006. Decline & closure (2006-2017) In the years following the renovation of 2006, a decrease in foot traffic and an increased crime threat led to many tenants of the