San Pablo and Fairmount Avenues
El Cerrito, California
The first mall-type shopping hub in Contra Costa County was built on a 22.4-acre parcel. This was located 10 miles northeast of San Francisco's Union Square, in suburban El Cerrito. The shopping complex was designed by Paul Hammarberg, a well-known Bay Area modernist, and was developed by the Albert Lovett Company.
Open-air in format, EL CERRITO PLAZA encompassed approximately 450,000 leasable square feet and -when fully realized- housed fifty-five stores and services. The majority of the center consisted of a single retail level. Two southwest store blocks had upper levels which housed twenty-two office suites.
The mall site had a lengthy history. El Rancho San Pablo, an historic adobe structure, had been built there in 1836. It housed a speakeasy bar in the 1920s and casino from the mid-1930s to early 1940s. This structure burned to the ground in 1956. Meanwhile, the remainder of the land parcel had contained a greyhound -and then ostrich- racing track and makeshift trailer park. The Blumenfeld Theatres El Cerrito Motor Movies drive-in opened on October 11, 1948 and closed for good in late 1956.
Construction of a 6 million dollar Capwell's department store was underway by June 1957. One of the first operational stores at EL CERRITO PLAZA was Leed's Qualicraft Shoes, which began business on April 5, 1958. The 3-level (232,000 square foot), Oakland-based Capwell's-El Cerrito was officially dedicated on July 9, 1958. At the time, it was the largest merchandising building in Contra Costa County.
The 15 million dollar mall was inaugurated with a 3-day Fiesta celebration, which commenced on October 23, 1958. The dedication was officiated by Mrs. Doris Hormel (Mayor of El Cerrito), and was attended by members of the El Cerrito Chamber of Commerce and El Cerrito City Council. During the festivities, Miss Donna Jacobson was crowned Queen of the El Cerrito Fiesta.
A final group of tenants had opened their doors by March 1959. The mall now housed Longs Drugs, Lingren's Family Shoes, Crescent Jewelers, Hunt's Do-Nuts, Jackson's Party Service and Virginia Cleaners. There were also an F.W. Woolworth 5 & 10 and Lucky Stores supermarket.
The PLAZA became accessible via the BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) in the early 1970s. The 11-route-mile MacArthur-to-Richmond extension served the El Cerrito Plaza Station. This terminal, officially dedicated on January 29, 1973 was adjacent to the northeast corner of the mall site.
The decline of EL CERRITO PLAZA was a slow process which started with the 1976 dedication of HILLTOP PLAZA {5.5 miles north, in Richmond}. By the early 1990s, the mall was in a downward spiral. Capwell's had been rebranded as an Emporium-Capwell in 1979, although the store's original nameplate was not updated. A new nameplate was installed with the store's conversion to the Emporium banner, in 1990. This store went dark in January 1996 with the building never retenanted.
A ripple effect was created by the shuttering of The Emporium. Several national tenants had bailed by 1997, leaving the mall predominantly populated by mom & pop-type tenants. In early 1999, the complex had forty-one operational businesses. These included McPhee's Junior Bootery, Sizes Unlimited, Sara's Nail Salon and Mel-O-Dee Club cocktail lounge.
A final group of tenants had opened their doors by March 1959. The mall now housed Longs Drugs, Lingren's Family Shoes, Crescent Jewelers, Hunt's Do-Nuts, Jackson's Party Service and Virginia Cleaners. There were also an F.W. Woolworth 5 & 10 and Lucky Stores supermarket.
The PLAZA became accessible via the BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) in the early 1970s. The 11-route-mile MacArthur-to-Richmond extension served the El Cerrito Plaza Station. This terminal, officially dedicated on January 29, 1973 was adjacent to the northeast corner of the mall site.
The decline of EL CERRITO PLAZA was a slow process which started with the 1976 dedication of HILLTOP PLAZA {5.5 miles north, in Richmond}. By the early 1990s, the mall was in a downward spiral. Capwell's had been rebranded as an Emporium-Capwell in 1979, although the store's original nameplate was not updated. A new nameplate was installed with the store's conversion to the Emporium banner, in 1990. This store went dark in January 1996 with the building never retenanted.
A ripple effect was created by the shuttering of The Emporium. Several national tenants had bailed by 1997, leaving the mall predominantly populated by mom & pop-type tenants. In early 1999, the complex had forty-one operational businesses. These included McPhee's Junior Bootery, Sizes Unlimited, Sara's Nail Salon and Mel-O-Dee Club cocktail lounge.
With its stores pulling up stakes, maintenance was deferred. The mall became so dilapidated that the City of El Cerrito considered taking over it via eminent domain. The 1998 dedication of the community-class PACIFIC EAST MALL {.3 mile west, in Richmond}, only exacerbated the mall's decline.
Jacksonville, Florida-based Regency Centers bought the ailing shopping hub in the year 2000. They announced a demalling plan and began evicting tenants. The old Capwell's, a vacant Capwell's Tire Center and Chuck E. Cheese's structure, were razed in late 2000. Four store blocks from the original mall remained intact. These were renovated and worked into a redesigned, open-air, power center.
Jacksonville, Florida-based Regency Centers bought the ailing shopping hub in the year 2000. They announced a demalling plan and began evicting tenants. The old Capwell's, a vacant Capwell's Tire Center and Chuck E. Cheese's structure, were razed in late 2000. Four store blocks from the original mall remained intact. These were renovated and worked into a redesigned, open-air, power center.
Retaining the name EL CERRITO PLAZA, the 255,800 square foot facility was dedicated in early 2002. Anchoring the new and improved PLAZA was a 1-level (67,000 square foot) Albertsons-Sav-On supermarket and pharmacy. Big box tenants included a (30,200 square foot) Ross Dress For Less, (25,000 square foot) Barnes & Noble and (30,000 square foot) Bed, Bath & Beyond.
Sources:
The Oakland Tribune
Sources:
The Oakland Tribune
The San Francisco Chronicle
The San Jose Mercury News
Scott Parsons / "BigMallRat"
The San Jose Mercury News
Scott Parsons / "BigMallRat"
https://www.contracosta.ca.gov / Contra Costa County, California
http://www.ibabuzz.com / "Vintage views of El Cerrito Plaza, which opened this month in 1958" / Chris Treadway
http://www.elcerritoplaza.com / El Cerrito Plaza (website on Internet Archive Wayback Machine)
https://www.regencycenters.com / Regency Centers
