In 2015, the strip center is essentially the same...only some nameplates have changed. Thrifty Drug was acquired by the Rite Aid chain in late 1996.
Photo from https://www.lee-associates.com / Lee & Associates Commercial Real Estate Services
Signage promoting the 2020s version of SANTE FE SPRINGS MARKETPLACE. The "Your Name Here" slot used to be occupied by a Rite Aid sign.
Photo from https://www.lee-associates.com / Lee & Associates Commercial Real Estate Services
WHITTIER DOWNS MALL
Norwalk and Washington Boulevards
Los Angeles County (Santa Fe Springs), California
Plans for this eastern Los Angeles County shopping hub were announced in January 1954. Designed by renowned Southern California architects William Pereira and Charles Luckman, WHITTIER DOWNS MALL was developed on a 13.7-acre site, situated 10 miles southeast of the center city.
A King Cole Market, built on a 5.6-acre portion of the site, had opened for business on January 7, 1951. This (25,000 square foot) grocery, designed by Archibald Quincy Jones, anchored KING COLE SQUARE, a 60,000 square foot strip center dedicated in November 1952.
Two years later, construction was underway on a 200,000 square foot mini-mall; this built northwest of KING COLE SQUARE. The 3 million dollar WHITTIER DOWNS MALL was developed to serve the adjoining Whittier Downs subdivision. The open-air complex featured an underground freight delivery tunnel. Four shopping concourses converged on a central landscaped patio, which included a children's play area. Free parking was provided for 800 autos.
The mall's first operational stores were dedicated on August 11, 1955; a 2-level (35,000 square foot) J.C. Penney, 2-level (23,500 square foot) F.W. Woolworth 5 & 10 and (11,300 square foot) Thifty Drug. Gallenkamp Shoes and a 2-level (21,000 square foot) Food Giant welcomed first customers on August 16th.
By September 1955, there were fourteen stores and services. These included Jaxson's ladies' wear, Dave's Sportswear, Follin's Shoes, Adrienne's Camera, Luggage & Jewelry and Uncle Dom's Toy Shop. When fully-leased, WHITTIER DOWNS MALL contained twenty-four tenant spaces. The complex, originally in unincorporated Los Angeles County, was annexed into the City of Santa Fe Springs in May 1959.
Shopping hubs in the vicinity included WHITTIER QUAD (1953-1990) {2.3 miles southeast, in Whittier}, WHITTWOOD CENTER (1956-2004) {4.6 miles southeast, also in Whittier} and -eventually- SANTA FE SPRINGS MALL (1985-2001) {2.5 miles southeast, in Santa Fe Springs}.
Competition began to put the hurt on WHITTIER DOWNS. By the mid-1970s, it was in a downward spiral, with eleven vacant storefronts out of a total of twenty-four. The completion of SANTA FE SPRINGS MALL was the final nail in the proverbial coffin. In late 1987, only one store -Thrifty Drug- remained in business. The rest of the shopping center had been fenced off.
A redevelopment plan was put in motion by the Irvine-based Hopkins Development Company. Government approval to join the WHITTIER DOWNS and KING COLE SQUARE parcels into one was granted in November 1988. By this time, the mall had been demolished, with construction of a new shopping center already underway. A portion of KING COLE SQUARE was left standing.
The new, open-air power center was known as SANTA FE SPRINGS MARKETPLACE. It was built in two stages. The first, which included a (45,000 square foot) Ralph's supermarket, was officially dedicated on December 15, 1988. By mid-1990, the 175,300 square foot retail center was complete. Tenants included a (17,800 square foot) Thrifty Drug and (18,000 square foot) Kragen Auto Parts.
Santa Monica-based Watt Commercial Properties (a.k.a. Watt Companies) acquired SANTA FE SPRINGS MARKETPLACE in October 2003. By this time, a few of the center's thirty-three stores had changed nameplates. Ralph's morphed into a Food 4 Less as a result of a January 1995 merger. Thrifty Drug was rebranded by Rite Aid Drug in November 1996.
Sources:
The Los Angeles Times
The East Review (Whittier, California)
The Whittier News (Whittier, California)
Whittier City Directories 1957 and 1976
Information from "TokyoMagic!"
www.groceteria.com
http://digi.whittierlibrary.org/awweb/main.jsp
http://betaworld.cat.org
Los Angeles County property tax assessor website
http://www.wattcompanies.com
http://www.wattcommercial.com (Website on Internet Archive Wayback Machine)
https://www.supermarketnews.com
FAIR USE OF WHITTIER DOWNS MALL IMAGE:
The photograph from the Kelly-Holiday Aerial Photo Collection / University of California helps illustrate a key moment in the shopping center's history that is described in the article. The image is not replaceable with free-use or public-domain images. The use of the image does not limit the copyright owners' rights to distribute it in any way. The image is being used for non-profit, informational purposes only and its use is not believed to detract from the original image in any way.
