PARK CENTRAL CENTER
North Central Avenue and East Catalina Drive
Phoenix, Arizona
The first mall-type shopping center in the Grand Canyon State was situated on a 46 acre tract, formerly a dairy farm, located 2 miles north of the State Capitol.
Developed by Phoenix's Ralph and A.J. Burgbacher, PARK CENTRAL CENTER was an open-air mall, which was completed in 1957.
Anchored by Phoenix-based Goldwater's and a 2-level (166,000 square foot) Diamond's, the single-level complex also included Coffee Dan's Cafe and Walgreen Drug.
Regional retail rivals of PARK CENTRAL CENTER were MARYVALE SHOPPING CITY (1958) [September 2007 archive], CHRIS-TOWN MALL (1961) [December 2006 archive], SCOTTSDALE FASHION SQUARE (1961) [October 2007 archive], SEARS-RHODES / COLONNADE MALL (1961) [September 2007 archive], THOMAS MALL (1963) [September 2007 archive] and BILTMORE FASHION PARK (1963).
A 2-level parking deck was built at the northeast corner of the PARK CENTRAL complex. Moreover, a 2-level (215,000 square foot) J.C. Penney was added -along with a northwest wing of stores- in the mid-to-late 1960s.
By the 1970s, larger, fully-enclosed shopping centers were being built on the outskirts of the rapidly expanding desert metropolis. These included METROCENTER MALL (1973) [August 2007 archive], PARADISE VALLEY MALL (1979) and DESERT SKY MALL (1981).
PARK CENTRAL CENTER, still an open-air venue, could not effectively compete with so many newer, more trendy shopping centers. By the 1980s, the 712,000 square foot mall was in decline.
Diamond's was rebranded a Dillard's in 1984, eventually being reduced to a clearance center. Goldwater's became a Los Angeles-based J.W. Robinson in 1989 and closed in 1990. The store space was used as an Office Depot for some years, but this location was eventually shuttered as well.
J.C. Penney and Walgreen Drug held on until the summer of 1990. With their closing, the outlook for PARK CENTRAL CENTER looked especially bleak. The owner of the mall, Phoenix-based Noble Park Central, embarked upon a reinvention of the mall in 1995, renovating and remarketing most of its vacant leasable area as office spaces.
New tenants included Catholic Healthcare West, Banner Healthcare Systems and United Health Group. These businesses were joined by retailers and restaurants such as Fusili's, Qdoba Mexican Grill, Jamba Juice and Starbuck's Coffee.
Also in the new tenant mix were holdovers from the original retail mall, such as Otto Schmeider's Jewelers (a tenant since 1965) and Green Woodpecker Flowers and Gifts (in the mall since 1974).
The new-style. mixed-use complex, known as simply PARK CENTRAL, was sold to Phoenix-based Mall SPE Limited Liability Company in November 2000.
The PARK CENTRAL site is adjacent to the initial segment of Phoenix's Valley Metro Light Rail starter line, which is scheduled to begin revenue service in December 2008.
Sources:
Mitch Glaser's PARK CENTRAL memories
"Park Central Mall" article on Wikipedia
Maricopa County, Arizona tax assessor website
www.parkcentralphx.com
Phoenix Business Journal
www.valleymetro.org
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12 comments:
Park Central established a new development pattern for the Valley of the Sun. The focus of activity quickly moved from Downtown Phoenix to several "edge city" locations anchored by regional malls.
When Park Central opened, Goldwater's and Diamond's closed their stores in Downtown Phoenix. Korrick's, Sears, Penney's, and Wards would soon follow, and the central city never regained its status as a retail draw, even after Rouse Co.'s Arizona Center opened in the early 1990's.
The area around Park Central became "Uptown Phoenix" as office towers, hotels, and apartment buildings grew along the Central Avenue corridor. Uptown, an early edge city, rivaled Downtown in prominence and business activity.
After Sears-Rhodes Mall (later The Colonnade) and Biltmore Fashion Park opened along Camelback Road, a similar development pattern emerged. In the following years, the areas around Metrocenter, Paradise Valley Mall, and Fiesta Mall also became home to office buildings, hotels, apartment buildings, and other activity hubs. The Valley has grown around its malls, not its central city, following the precedent of Park Central.
Having grown up in the Valley of the Sun in the 1980's and 1990's, I have memories of Park Central as a successful retail center. Its death knell came when Robinson's and JCPenney closed within months of each other. After the Dillard's Clearance Center closed around 1995, it just wasn't viable as a shopping complex.
I think it's remarkable that Park Central is still intact even though it's now mostly occupied by offices. I know of no other "dead malls" that have transitioned to another use without substantial renovation or demolition. I visited earlier this year and found it to be a pleasant environment.
Park Central sits on a prime tract of real estate that will become more valuable after Valley Metro Rail is completed. It's only a matter of time before the complex is demolished and replaced with new uses.
Great info, Mitch!
I must add that without the assistance of you and John Bueker, the 3 Valley Of The Sun mall articles on this blog would not have been possible. I cannot thank you and John enough for all of your help here.
Thanks for perusing and posting, too.
Cheers,
Quite honestly I wonder if it will transition purpose, or instead, will light rail just be a big bust? The light rail just doesn't really go anywhere - Phoenix is too suburban and the light rail doesn't hit population centers much.
I just look at all the construction and wonder if light rail will have any positive effect at all.
Interseting -and thought-provoking-comment...
Personally, I feel that Phoenix's future light rail system is a needed addition to transport in the area.
It seems that us rail proponents have had to fight a never-ending battle against all of the entrenched, pro-auto/freeway factions.
Do people complain about the enormous cost of building and maintaining freeways? Does anyone cite what a "bust" a new freeway is when it spends most of the time commuter-clogged and (later) partially closed -and essentially useless- due to constant maintenance and repairs....and constructioin "upgrades" (whether truly necessary or not)?
I am glad to see that cities such as Phoenix, L.A., Denver, Houston and Minneapolis (at long last) have replaced the light rail (streetcar) systems that the big auto makers and oil companies destroyed in the 40s and 50s.
Frankly, I DO NOT like having to drive (especially with so many self-entitled, impatient road-rage fools on the highways these days). I would gladly ride a rail system anytime...if it were available.
When I lived in Atlanta, I always took MARTA to the airport and LENOX SQUARE and PERIMETER malls.
I feel confidant that riding the Valley Metro to/from Sky Harbor....to PARK CENTRAL and CHRIS-TOWN/SPECTRUM will make shopping and travelling much easier and more efficient (no matter what the anti-rail factions want everybody to believe).
Thanks for perusing and posting on the blog Sarah. You might, very well, like the new light rail system after all of the construction mess clears.
Cheers,
I believe Phoenix may have been the first major U.S. city to experience an exodus of their downtown department stores.
Oh yes, Phoenix needs light rail, but with such suburban sprawl out here, you can't get out into the suburbs much at all via light rail.
Perhaps though marketing it to visitors flying in might be a great way to go. That could have some good potential.
Yeppers on that, Sarah,
Phoenix is a VERY sprawled out metropolis, and it will be difficult (if not impossible) to effectively connect points "a", "b", "c","d"....through "x", "y" and "z".....with lines of the prospective Valley Metro LRT.
However, this could prove easier to do than trying to build a TRULY regional rail transit system in a place such as Atlanta.
That metro area here is divided into umpteen different counties....and getting counties "a", "b" and "c" to go along with counties "d", "e" and "f" (to approve construction of rail lines into their respective jurisdictions) has been an insurmoutable -impossible- task.
A whole lot of the Phoenix metro area lies within Maricopa County, and there are only 2 other counties involved. Maybe this could make the construction of far-reaching rail lines (for the prospective Valley Metro) a bit easier to do............if they can find the $$ to do so.
If they operate it like Valley Metro in Phoenix currently operates, it's basically just an umbrella name for a bunch of interconnected city bus lines. Each city has almost complete latitude as to where and when and how far buses will run. So Tempe might have wonderful bus coverage (and it does) while Mesa has sparse coverage. So the Phoenix area may run into the same problems that Atlanta has in establishing regional rail except on a city level, not a county level.
Nonetheless I suppose this is a bit of an aside!
Sarah,
Yup....hopefully the cities in Maricopa County will not become embroiled in the same kind of politics (in metro-Atlanta) that keep the MARTA subway restricted to only 2 "core counties" (Fulton and Dekalb).
What was the name of the Bar after Coffee Dan's at Park Central?
Scott,
I don't know what went in after Coffee Dan's closed....
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