11 hours Ago By Helmut Schmidt
MOORHEAD — Moorhead Vision Associates will be opening its new office in south Moorhead’s Azool Center on Monday, March 3. In an email to The Forum, owner Dr. Casey Bartz, said Moorhead Vision will be moving into its new building at 855 37th Ave.
S. over several days, starting Wednesday, Feb. 26.
Bartz said Moorhead Vision will open as the only occupant in the new building, but it's built to house tenants. “There are ‘build-to-suit’ leasable spaces on the east and north wing of the building. These spaces can be very large square footage, or divided into small suites as the tenant would desire,” Bartz said.
The clinic will be able to support three full-time optometrists. “We have recently added a few new instruments to better detect and manage eye diseases,” Bartz added. The building also features plenty of windows to bring in lots of natural sunlight.
“Having been inside the mall for 50-plus years, we will enjoy seeing the outside,” Bartz said. Moorhead Vision has been one of the last tenants in Moorhead Center Mall. Nearly all of the other tenants have moved or closed their businesses over the last couple years.
The mall was first opened in 1972, built after a major urban renewal project razed much of what had been downtown Moorhead before then. For many years, the mall had been a shopping and dining hub for the city’s downtown, but over the last couple decades, its vitality waned as online shopping became more popular. A major blow for the mall was the closure of the Herberger’s department store in 2018.
The Herberger’s part of the mall was demolished in 2024. A new regional public library and community center is now under construction by the intersection of 5th Street North and Center Avenue. It is expected to be completed in spring 2026.
Meanwhile, developer Kevin Bartram and Sterling Companies are building the nearly $25 million 650 Block apartments and commercial complex on the east side of what had been the Center Mall property, at 7th Avenue and Center Avenue. That building is projected to be completed by this fall..
