LORETTO DE LAS CRUCES CENTER
South Main Street and East Lohman Avenue
Las Cruces, New Mexico
The first enclosed shopping center in the Land of Enchantment was built on a 21.8-acre parcel, located at the southern edge of the Las Cruces Central Business District. LORETTO DE LAS CRUCES CENTER was developed by Frank O. Papen, under the auspices of the Loretto Development Company, Incorporated.
Consisting of a single level of retail, the complex was designed by the Nesmith & Lane firm of El Paso, Texas. It was based on a 415 by 30 foot, climate-controlled shopping concourse. An open-air South Wing extended from the mall proper.
A 1-level (30,000 square foot), Lubbock-based Dunlap's became the mall's first operational tenant, on March 1, 1965. Three South Wing stores opened their doors in October; a (23,900 square foot) Safeway, (15,700 square foot) Super S Drug and (9,100 square foot) Levine's. The Super S store was rebranded -as a Skaggs Drug Center- soon after its grand opening.
A mall-wide dedication, held on March 17, 1966, brought fifteen new stores. These included Melody Music, Hanley Paint, Mode O'Day Frock Shop, Geller's Bootery, Rayburn's men's and an (11,800 square foot) TG&Y 5 & 10.
Bob Hoffman, director of the New Mexico Department of Development, gave the principal speech. As a homage to the Saint Patrick's Day holiday, a green ribbon was cut by four Loretto Development officials; Frank O. Papen, Charles Haner, Leo Valdes and Claud Tharp. Also in attendance were Thomas J. Graham (Mayor of Las Cruces) and Ellen Growden, "Miss New Mexico 1965."
The mall's exterior was done in Territorial style, with interiors reflecting an ultra-modern look. The shopping concourse was landscaped with Aucuba, Sedum, Jade, Wilson holly, philodendron, elephant ears, Chinese evergreen, dracina marginata, Boston fern and Kentia Palm. A 3-tier wishing well fountain stood at the center of the mallway.
A second anchor store was dedicated on April 27, 1966. The 1-level (66,000 square foot) J.C. Penney included departments for home furnishings, large appliances, tv & stereo, sporting goods, hardware & paint and lawn & garden. There was also a beauty salon and freestanding Penneys Auto Center.
LORETTO DE LAS CRUCES CENTER encompassed approximately 211,000 leasable square feet and housed twenty-three stores and services. There would eventually be thirty. The mall's Patrician Cafeteria was rebranded by the Luby's chain in September 1966. On December 1, 1972, the Dunlap's store was converted to an El Paso-based The White House.
Other stores came and went. Levines pulled up stakes in April 1977, with the vacant building retenanted by Oklahoma's C.R. Anthony Company (a.k.a Anthony's) in August. At this time, inline stores at LORETTO CENTER included House of Fabrics, Day's Card & Party, The Wearhouse, The Toy Palace and Pumpkin Seed maternity & infant wear.
A 7-block section of Main Street in downtown Las Cruces had been closed to vehicular traffic and reconfigured as a pedestrian shopping concourse. The DOWNTOWN MALL {2. mile northwest} was completed in August 1972. The two City of the Crosses shopping hubs coexisted peaceably. However, commercial competition came with the 1981 completion of MESILLA VALLEY MALL {1 mile northeast, in Las Cruces}.
J.C. Penney bolted from the LORETTO mall on July 28, 1981 and dedicated a newly-built store -at MESILLA VALLEY- on the following day. The loss of its major anchor store immediately put the hurt on LORETTO CENTER.
The complex began a downward spiral. It was converted to LORETTO TOWNE CENTRE, a retail and office complex, in 1988. The Las Cruces Public School District bought the vacant J.C. Penney structure in October 1989. The Dunlap's-White House building was acquired by Citizens Bank-Amador Bancshares in November of the same year.
Over the years, LORETTO TOWNE CENTRE has never been physically expanded, although interior and exterior face lifts have been performed. The current owner is Houston's Fidelis Realty Partners. Tenants in today's mall include the Citizens Bank, Las Cruces Public Schools, New Mexico Public Defender, Internal Revenue Service, Wells Fargo and Motor Vehicle Division. There are five outparcels; a Peter Piper Pizza restaurant, Citizens Bank drive-thru and ATM, historic Don Nestor Armijo homestead and (16,200 square foot) Professional Office Condominium.
Sources:
The Las Cruces Sun News
https://assessor.donaanacounty.org / Dona Ana County, New Mexico
G. O'Graffer / "The Second Downtown of Las Cruces"
https://digitalrepository.unm.ed
Karla K. Poe / "New Mexico Adopts the Modern Approach to Interpreting Ambiguities: C.R. Anthony Company verses Loretto Mall Partners" / 1993
https://libexhibits.nmsu.edu/ (NM State University)
https://trostsociety.org / The Trost Society
https://www.frpltd.com / Fidelas Realty Partners
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