Lilia Barrett

The mall houses services related to health, hair and beauty. It also includes restaurants like Ocean Sushi, and even thrilling events like axe throwing and an arcade.

The Winona Mall is closing down after many years of serving the community. The mall, located at 1213 Gilmore Ave, Winona, opened in October of 1983 after a major remodeling and rebranding of the previous mall–Miracle Mall.

The mall houses services related to health, hair and beauty. It also includes restaurants like Ocean Sushi, and even thrilling events like axe throwing and an arcade. John Alexander has been the owner of the Winona Mall for years, bringing services to the community.

The Hiawatha Valley Education District’s (HVED) has recently decided to purchase the Winona Mall and transform it into a learning facility for students. This fifteen-million-dollar project has been in the works for months, and it is said that the special education school that HVED is putting in place will be open and ready for students by Spring of 2025. The Winona Post shares some insights into the HVED organization.

“HVED, a special education collaborative of 12 area school districts, aims to move its programming from various Southeast Minnesota locations to one central site at the Winona Mall, to reduce some costs and improve how it serves students,” the Winona Post states.

Renovations and remodeling for the new school system will be in place for months to come, as well as the search for a place to relocate other businesses that were once in the mall. Ethan Barthel, a fourth-year student at Winona State, and a member of the community since birth, was asked what he will miss most about the mall.

“My buddies and I used to get together every few weekends and throw axes in the mall, and then head over to Backwater BBQ to eat,” Barthel said.

Barthel goes on to say throwing axes has been some of his best memories while being a student and member of the Winona Community. Another member of the Winona Community and frequent visitor of the mall, Mary Olson, shares her thoughts on the replacement of a mall with a school.

“Although it is hard to watch something that has been a big part of the community leave, I think a special education program is the perfect project to replace it with. Opening learning facilities is something that needs to happen more often, so it’s exciting that it’s happening in my town,” Olson said.

This costly project will, allegedly, allow for greater opportunity for children in their education–specifically special education.