Mall revitalization to bring new restaurants, shops to Conway, SC. Here’s when, what to expect

Construction on what was once a major Conway shopping center is set to ramp up this summer after government officials and developers officially broke ground Monday.

New shops and restaurants at the Coastal Centre strip mall could open to the public as soon as late summer 2026.

Located along 16th Avenue and Church Street in Conway, the retail hub originally opened as the Coastal Centre in 1969. Now-defunct stores that once called the shopping center home include Goody’s, K-Mart and Winn Dixie locations.

Amid years of decline, K-Mart’s 2017 closure marked a shift for the mall, according to city spokesperson June Wood.

As storefronts emptied and remained vacant, Conway City Council classified parts of the shopping center as abandoned under the South Carolina Abandoned Buildings Revitalization Act. Commercial real estate firm Rise Partners acquired the property to revitalize the center in October 2024.

“This once-thriving center had seen better days, with shuttered storefronts and aging infrastructure,” Wood said in an email. “But now, with new life being breathed into this space, we’re seeing the kind of smart growth that benefits everyone in Conway.”

Rise Partners leasing manager Carter Smith estimated the revitalized center will bring in more than 140,000 square feet of new national retail. It’s not yet clear how many new storefronts will open or which restaurants and stores will move into the updated spaces, but the city touts the mall as a way to bring in jobs and offer residents more local options.

In addition to the revitalized storefronts, the mall will feature outdoor areas for visitors to enjoy, including a new green space connected to the current Belk site.

“That’ll kind of give the center some connectivity with what’s existing and what is new to come … kind of just a destination center of sorts,” Smith said. “We want to make it a place where customers and clients of the different retailers and the different restaurants can enjoy themselves for multiple hours to time in the open air.”

According to Smith, construction will wrap between spring and summer of 2026. Storefronts should open by the end of 2026, but doors could open in the summer or fall. Interested businesses can reach Smith for leasing updates at (423) 883-4942 or csmith@risepartners.net.

This story was originally published July 18, 2025 at 6:00 AM.