By Andy Ashby, – Daily Memphian
October 21, 2026
The last vestiges of the Oak Court Mall are marked for demolition, clearing the way for what’s next.
Memphis-based general contractor Grinder Taber & Grinder filed a $1 million demolition permit to clear the last of the main Oak Court Mall building.
The permit lists the remaining building as 220,000 square feet. The site should be cleared by the end of the year.
Southern Works is the demolition company on the project.
Oak Court Partners — a group of investors that includes Josh Poag, president and CEO of Poag Development Group —bought the 31-acre property at 4465 Poplar Ave. in December 2023 for $18.3 million.
“This is the next step we anticipated in the demolition of the mall,” Poag said. “We started with the Macy’s and are now able to roll into the demolition of the mall itself.”
Heavy machinery works on the last stages of demolition at the Oak Court Mall on Poplar Avenue. (Andy Ashby/The Daily Memphian)
The new demolition work is happening on a 11.9-acre parcel at 4465 Poplar Ave. The overall property also has parcels at 4445 Poplar Ave. and 530 Oak Court Drive.
Crews have been working on demolishing the former Macy’s portion of the property this year.
Dillard’s is open and operating at 4433 Poplar Ave., a property it owns. The 230,651-square-foot department store was built in 1988, according to the Assessor of Property.
The site has a 120,000-square-foot office building which is open and currently 50% leased.
“Dillard’s, the office building and Pinnacle will remain open and operating,” Poag said. “This final step in the demolition will clear the way for the eventual development of the land.”
The new owners are still determining the long-term vision for the property.
“This group is not intending to move forward on the vertical development,” Poag said in a February interview. “That vertical developer may be us but there’s no guarantee of that. We want to do what’s right for Memphis and what’s right for the investment group, not necessarily what’s right for Poag (Development Group).”
