A Look at Eisenhower Crossing
Eisenhower Crossing sign facing Log Cabin Dr
In 2001, Eisenhower Crossing was built on the corner of Eisenhower Pkwy and Log Cabin Dr. This new shopping center brought tons of new stores to the Macon area, as well as relocating existing stores.
In the 90s, Kroger, Old Navy, Ross, and Michaels all had locations near the Macon Mall. Kroger stood across the street, where Macon Flea Market sits now. Old Navy was located inside the Macon Mall. Ross was located on Mercer University Dr, where Ollies is now, and Michaels was located on Bloomfield Rd, which was later Big Lots.
Outside of those stores, Target, Bed Bath & Beyond, Goody's, Marshalls, Dick's Sporting Goods, Staples, Party City, LifeWay Christian Stores, Famous Footwear and Best Buy all entered the Macon market.
Eisenhower Crossing map (2002/2003)
Eisenhower Crossing wasn't done yet, as in 2005, Home Depot would build a new store, and a year later, Eisenhower III was built, featuring hhgregg and PetSmart. Famous Footwear closed around 2005, and Shoe Carnival opened in 2006.
Goody's at Eisenhower Crossing (2001-2009)
Goody's closed their doors in 2009 due to the company going bankrupt. In 2010, Ashley Furniture moved into the former Goody's. In 2014, Dick's Sporting Goods would close their Eisenhower Crossing location, likely due to them wanting to focus on their River Crossing store. In 2017, hhgregg closed due to bankruptcy.
Target at Eisenhower Crossing (2001-2018)
On November 7th, 2017, Target announced that 12 locations would be closing in February 2018, one of those being the Macon location. On February 3rd, 2018, Target officially closed its doors in Macon.
Eisenhower Crossing managed to remain stable for a few more months, until September of 2018, when it was announced that a new shopping center on Bass Rd would be built. This new shopping center intended to feature many stores that already had locations at Eisenhower Crossing, including Marshalls, Old Navy, Michaels, and LifeWay. Speaking of LifeWay, the new location never opened due to its bankruptcy in 2019.
Marshalls at Eisenhower Crossing (2001-2019)
In September of 2019, Marshalls officially moved to their new Bass Rd location. Around this time, it was announced that PetSmart would also be closing their location at Eisenhower Crossing. PetSmart closed in October 2019. Michaels soon followed in March of 2020.
Bed Bath & Beyond at Eisenhower Crossing (2001-2020)
On December 13th, 2020, Bed Bath & Beyond officially closed its Macon location, just over 2 years before the company would go bankrupt. The Old Navy location also closed around this time. In 2021, Ashley Furniture announced they were building a new store on Riverside Dr, meaning that the Eisenhower Crossing location would close as well.
Closures slowed down. In 2022, Spirit Halloween opened in the former Marshalls building. They returned again in 2024. In 2023, the Target building was demolished. In December of 2024, Party City announced that they would close all of their stores. The Party City at Eisenhower Crossing closed in Feburary.
Let's take a visit to Eisenhower Crossing and see what it looks like today.
Presidential Pkwy
Presidential Pkwy is nearly empty at this point. It's really sad to see what this place has become.
Former Target
Yes, that's all that's left of Target... some tiles on the ground. Considering all of this free land they have, it makes me wonder if they intend to build something here.
Former Bed Bath & Beyond
I never went to Bed Bath & Beyond much, to be honest I didn't even realize they had closed until a few months into 2021. The building seems like it's in good shape so they should put something new here. The former Bed Bath & Beyond in Warner Robins is now a Burlington Coat Factory.
Former Goody's/Ashley HomeStore
Ashley HomeStore has had a really weird history in the Macon area. They were originally on Eisenhower Pkwy next to Service Merchandise (now Academy Sports), then they moved to Bloomfield Village, then to Eisenhower Crossing, and now to Riverside Dr. This store has moved 3 times in the past 22 years.
Former Famous Footwear/Shoe Carnival
This building looks ROUGH, and it's only been closed for about a year. Famous Footwear was originally here in the early 2000s. Shoe Carnival relocated here from Westgate in 2006. Famous Footwear actually tried to make a comeback in Macon back in 2019, but it closed pretty recently.
Former Old Navy
Old Navy was the only one of the North Macon Plaza stores to keep their Eisenhower Crossing location open... but not for long. This store closed pretty quickly after the newer store opened. I couldn't even find any information on its closure. It was probably pretty quick, considering the fact that all of the fixtures are still inside.
Former Marshalls/Spirit Halloween
It appears that Spirit Halloween is coming back to this location in September. I don't know why, but in 2023 they opened their West Macon location in the former Linens-N-Things/OfficeDepot near the mall. They're adding a new grocery delivery company into that building, so they definitely aren't going back there.
Dick's Warehouse Sale
Dick's Sporting Goods was one of the first stores to close at Eisenhower Crossing, back in 2014. However, 10 years later, they reopened it as this "warehouse sale" store which appears to be where they have discounted, unsold items. They also have another brand like this called "Going... Going... Gone!".
Staples
These are the 3 of the 5 major retailers still surviving at Eisenhower Crossing. I fear they won't last long though, as apparently they're building a new shopping center across from The Shoppes at River Crossing.
Former Michaels
Michaels was one of the last to open in North Macon Plaza. They completely renovated the store around 2018, and now here it sits abandoned.
Eisenhower III outparcels
Not much to talk about here, but the Kreme Cheesecake shop is brand new. That space used to be a Starbucks. I'm glad stores are still opening here at Eisenhower Crossing.
Home Depot
Not much to talk about here either. It opened in 2005, and it's still here.
More outparcels
The T-Mobile used to be a CarpetOne store, then Bedzzz Express, and now it sits as a T-Mobile. The middle business used to be a popcorn shop, until it closed and now it's The Art Bar.
More outparcels
Former PetSmart (left) and hhgregg (right)
Personally, I have a lot of memories at this PetSmart location. It featured a BanField vet place, which doesn't exist at the Riverside Dr location. I never went to hhgregg, but to my understanding it was like Best Buy.
Former Sears Hometown Store
To end off this blogpost, we will take a look at the former Sears Hometown Store. For those who don't know, these are small form-factor Sears stores that sell lawn supplies and appliances. The only notable thing here is the PetSmart cart that's in there for some reason.
Eisenhower Crossing was once the #1 place to shop in Macon, but bankruptcies, closures, new shopping centers have turned it into a shell of what it once was. I hope new stores move into these old spaces. Westgate has already been turned into an industrial park, and Macon Mall is 50% government spaces now. I hope Eisenhower Crossing gets redeveloped as a shopping center, with newer stores.
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