Originally an open-air center, the mall was anchored by
Burdine's (spelled with an apostrophe at the time), and also boasted a
Food Fair grocery, full-service
Gray Drug and the Summit Restaurant, Lounge and Cafeteria (later known as
The Forum). A
Jordan Marsh anchor store was added to the west end, which opened in November 1966. A major construction project, started in late 1969, doubled the size of the mall by creating a twin structure (leaving the large Burdine's in the center) and adding a fully enclosed retail wing to the east end. Additionally, the existing courts and concourses were completely enclosed and air-conditioned. Another feature of this expansion was the King of the Mall, an enormous
Burger King (whose corporate headquarters were then located across from Dadeland on
North Kendall Drive). This renovation project was completed with the opening of
JCPenney, the mall's new east anchor store, in early 1971. A 1979 drug-related shooting spree at the mall began the
Miami drug war. In broad daylight, two gunmen exited a paneled truck, entered a liquor store and gunned down two men, wounding the store clerk. The dead men were eventually identified as a
Colombia-based cocaine trafficker and his bodyguard. On December 3, 1981, a 13-month-old boy was found alive behind the mall, after having gone missing four days earlier, around three miles away. His parents, Alfonso Jesus Arrubla, a former M-19 guerrilla turned drug dealer and his wife María Eugenia Delgado were shot in the head along with four others at their Southwest Dade townhouse. A third expansion, undertaken in early 1983, added
Saks Fifth Avenue and
Lord & Taylor to the south-facing front of the complex. A food court had also opened, in the shuttered
Pantry Pride (former
Food Fair) supermarket, in late 1983. From 1984 to 1987, a massive renovation project, orchestrated by architect Dick Johnson, had the aging animal statues and
drop ceiling removed. Considered a new approach at the time, it modernized the entire mall. The iconic seahorse statue was deliberately cut in half during a renovation and placed into storage. It was unable to be reassembled and scrapped. The other modern smooth colored concrete animals and geometric slides were donated to Miami-Dade County and can be seen in Dante Fascell Park in
South Miami and at the Miami-Dade County children's day care center play yard to the east of
Jackson Memorial Hospital. In 2004
Lord & Taylor repositioned and shuttered their location entirely. It became
Nordstrom that same year. One of the unique trademarks of the shopping complex is the concrete tower with a giant "D" (for Dadeland) at the top. This local landmark was there from the beginning. Today, Dadeland is managed by the Indianapolis-based Simon Property Group, who purchased 50% of the center in 1997. Morgan Stanley owns the other 50%. Several additional replacement tenants are in the midst of early on discussions. On October 13, 2021, the AC Hotel Miami Dadeland opened to guests. In collaboration with Simon and Concord Hospitality Enterprises and Marriott, the hotel was constructed with European design and flexibility in mind. In addition to the pool, lounge, fitness center, and artwork featured in their public spaces, the hotel offers flexibility with available meeting rooms and a 3,610 sq. ft. venue space.
Dick's Sporting Goods purchased the former Nordstrom building to build one of their large format Dick’s House of Sport stores, which opened in February 2025. ==Anchor stores==