"The management team and staff worked extremely hard last year," said Mallard Benton, Southlake Mall general manager. "It was an honor to have our specialty leasing and marketing programs recognized by our company as the best in the nation."

Benton added the center hopes to be the shopping destination for south metro shoppers.

"The mall team has a vision for Southlake Mall and has been working towards this goal. We call it the 'jewel of the Southern Crescent vision' where Southlake Mall is a family-friendly exciting and entertaining place to shop. We don't want people driving past us to shop on the north side of Atlanta," he said.

"We'll have all the bells and whistles when our food court redevelopment is complete including a carousel, 740 seats, new restrooms, including a deluxe family restroom, and a lounge area. We're also aggressively going after higher-end retailers as a part of our vision to broaden our mix," Benton said.

Last year, Southlake Mall opened Gymboree, The Icing, The Disney Store, Paul Harris and Gap Kids. The Finish Line, Gateway News, Children's Place and Uniform World will be opening in the next few months. A pylon sign was recently erected along the expressway giving the mall exposure to I-75 motorists. Plans are also underway to build a children's soft-play area which would be the first of its kind in an Atlanta mall.