The mall was constructed in 1995–1997 behind the former
Arthur Barnett building in
George Street which was designed by
Edmund Anscombe (1874–1948) and completed in 1924. The new complex is a central retail hub, with
JB Hi-Fi and
Smiths City anchoring (there is space for another anchor and it was previously filled by H&J Smith). It opened on 5 September 1997 with the final development costs close to NZ$50 million. Arthur Barnett sold the mall to ING Real Estate Australia for $52.65 million in April 2003, using the proceeds to retire debt. In 2010 it was purchased by Lend Lease Group (LLC) for $185 million, along with three
Dress Smart outlets in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch. In October 2011, Lend Lease sold the four shopping centres to its new Lend Lease Real Estate Partners New Zealand Fund for $NZ197 million. Above these three levels is a multi-storey car park, office space and a doctor's office. The neon advertising sign for Arthur Barnett that sat atop the mall was a prominent feature on the Dunedin skyline. Named ''Can't Stop'', it featured a small man trying to control a large horse, possibly a
Clydesdale. It was designed by the New Zealand artist Heber Thompson for the 1924 building. The historic neon sign was turned off in May 2016 "for maintenance" and is still inoperative as of January 2019. In 2020, after anchoring the mall since its opening, K-mart closed due to "quake concerns"; they announced that they would be moving to the former Smiths City site for 4 years while they searched for a new location, but as of August 2022 they had still not moved to the old Smiths City site. When K-Mart left the Mall, Smiths City moved into the old K-mart location. In 2021, the mall was sold to Meridian Mall Ltd. ==Golden Centre Mall and Wall Street Mall==