Chesterfield, Missouri: The Suburb That Out-Earned Its Own Mall (and Is Building a "Downtown" to Prove It)

Welcome to Chesterfield, Missouri, the western St. Louis suburb where the lawns are immaculate and the median household income is well into six figures. If you're searching for things to do in Chesterfield, MO, grab a latte and a parking spot. You'll have no trouble finding either.

A Mall Walks Into a Bulldozer: The Chesterfield Mall Saga

Let's start with the elephant in the (formerly anchor) room. Chesterfield Mall was once a major shopping mall in the St. Louis Metro. After nearly 50 years, the doors closed Aug. 31, 2024, and the building came down shortly after.

The decline was not subtle. By the end, the mall was mostly vacant. One of the last stores standing was a pickleball and badminton operation, which is the most suburban way imaginable to go out. The Cheesecake Factory closed too, so even the 4,000-calorie comfort food had checked out.

The replacement is Downtown Chesterfield, a multibillion-dollar redevelopment that its developer pitches as "an urban downtown in a suburban location." We're not saying that's a contradiction, but we are saying it with our eyebrows. The plan calls for high rises and millions of square feet of development, with residential units included.

The plot twist: Dillard's sued to stop the demolition, then reached a settlement. That's a department store that fought to stay in a town that, per our roast, can't keep one open. Respect.

Gumbo Flats and the Great Flood of '93

Every great town needs an origin story. Chesterfield's is about mud. The valley was known as "Gumbo Flats," derived from its soil, which though very rich, resembled gumbo when wet. Yes, the soil is rich, and yes, we're still going to make fun of the name.

The area has real history, too. Native American sites in the Chesterfield area show people were hanging out here long before the first Panera. The city itself is a baby by comparison: it was incorporated in 1988.

Then came the drama. On July 30, 1993, the levee that protected Gumbo Flats from the Missouri River failed, and the whole area was flooded by feet of water. Today that same floodplain is the Chesterfield Commons retail area. The lesson: Chesterfield looked at a river-flooded mudflat and saw a Target.

The Longest Outdoor Strip Mall in America (Allegedly)

The Chesterfield Valley is a retail sprawl of big-box stores, chain restaurants and parking lots. It's the kind of place where you can get a mattress, a rotisserie chicken and a kayak in a single trip, and never once walk on anything but asphalt.

It's also a reminder that this is a city of roughly 50,000 people, one of the most populous cities in the state. Population has dipped slightly, perhaps because residents finally got tired of left-turn lanes.

Peaceful, Family-Oriented, and Wealthy: Life in West County

Here's the demographic snapshot. The median resident age skews well above the Missouri average. Home values are far higher than they were in 2000. 45% of households earn $150k or more. In other words, the "peaceful" and "family-oriented" label comes with a mortgage.

It's not all cul-de-sacs, though. Chesterfield has a nerdy streak: the Chesterfield Village Research Center is where early work on genetically modified organisms took place. So the town's biggest claim to scientific fame is a spud. It's fitting for a place that's fundamentally a very successful side dish.

And the future is arriving whether you like it or not: Downtown Chesterfield sits near another large mixed-use development, Wildhorse Village. Chesterfield may be about to get something it has never had: a personality, with a leasing office.

Final Verdict

Chesterfield is wealthy, tidy, easy to drive in, and in the middle of a $2 billion identity crisis. Visit for the parks, the shopping and the fresh-poured concrete. Stay for the Dillard's comeback story.

Think we were too nice? See the full roast on RoastMyTown.com.