PARAMUS PARK
Garden State Parkway and East Midland RoadParamus, New Jersey
The Borough of Paramus, New Jersey became a major retail hub in the mid-20th century, with four mall-type centers being built within the jurisdiction. GARDEN STATE PLAZA and BERGEN MALL opened for business in 1957. FASHION CENTER made its debut in 1967.
Planning for Paramus' fourth shopping mall was underway by mid-1966. Cincinnati's Federated Department Stores concluded that the city would be a prime location for a new Abraham & Straus department store. Various plots were considered. A site located 14 miles northwest of New York City's Times Square was eventually chosen. Five individual parcels, totaling 64 acres, had been acquired by the spring of 1971.
By this time, a joint venture had been formed with Maryland's Rouse Company and the Connecticut General Insurance Company. Going under the provisional name of SEARS-A & S PARAMUS MALL, the complex-to-be was being designed by the Rogers, Taliaferro, Kostristky and Lamb (RTKL) firm, of Baltimore. The mall site, which was a worthless swamp, had to be drained and filled before construction work could get underway, in October 1972.
The new shopping complex would be known as PARAMUS PARK. When fully-realized, it would cover approximately 760,000 leasable square feet and house 117 stores under its roof. An official grand opening was held on March 14, 1974. Eighty-five stores made their debut. The dedication ceremony was attended by James W. Rouse, Charles E. Reid (Mayor of Paramus) and several other dignitaries.
PARAMUS PARK housed the nation's first successful shopping mall Food Court. Known as Pic-Nic In the Park, the 22-bay facility was situated on a mezzanine overlooking the Center Court and Fountain. The entire common area of PARAMUS PARK was an open (but enclosed) space, illuminated with skylights and featuring tree-lined promenades and park-bench seating. This was in a time when the standard, newly-built shopping mall consisted of dimly-lit corridors with virtually no natural lighting.
PARAMUS PARK was originally anchored by a 3-level (289,000 square foot), New York City-based Abraham & Straus, which was dedicated, along with the mall, on March 10, 1974. A 2-level (170,000 square foot) Sears welcomed its first shoppers on August 22, 1974.
Charter inline tenants included CVS Drug, Plaza Footwear, Littman's Jewelers, Shear Honesty Haircut Designers, The Lodge of Harvard Square and Pet Pourri. The original Pic-Nic In the Park included Chick-Fil-A, Magic Pan Creperie, Sgarlato's Pizza, Taco Pit, Jade Fountain, Nathan's Hot Dogs and a Farrell's Ice Cream Parlour.
Other major shopping centers in the PARAMUS PARK trade area included the aforementioned GARDEN STATE PLAZA (1957) {2.3 miles south}, BERGEN MALL (1957) {2.6 miles southeast} and FASHION CENTER (1967) {.50 of a mile northwest}. There were also WILLOWBROOK MALL (1969) {10.7 miles southwest, in Wayne} and RIVERSIDE SQUARE MALL (1977) {3.7 miles southeast, in Hackensack}.
Unlike several other shopping malls developed by the Rouse Company, PARAMUS PARK was not physically expanded during the 1980s or '90s. Moreover, until recently, the shopping hub had experienced only one anchor store rebranding. Abraham & Straus was shuttered April 29, 1995 and re-opened, as a Macy's, on the following day.
A small enlargement, first proposed in 1995, was not completed until late 2001. Envisaged by Cambridge, Massachusetts' Prellwitz Chilinski Associates, the renovation was done in two stages. Phase 1 entailed the addition of an east side Streetscape, which housed a (15,000 square foot) Foot Locker and (16,000 square foot) Old Navy. The Main Entrance on the southwest side of the complex was also rebuilt.
Phase 2 consisted of a thorough refurbishment of the existing mall. New elevators, escalators, flooring and lighting were installed. Moreover, Center Court was modified with a smaller fountain and new landscaping. The project, completed in October 2001, increased the gross leasable area of PARAMUS PARK to 779,000 square feet.
Each official was presented with a gallon jug. These had been filled with water from the Atlantic Ocean, Pacific Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, Mississippi River, the Great Lakes or Sprout Brook, in Paramus. The jugs were emptied, one by one, into the mall's Center Court Fountain, a 30-foot-high waterfall surrounded by a terraced tropical garden. A second ceremony unveiled a 20-foot-high "Boy Riding a Turkey" statue. The work, created by Christopher Parks of Delaware, was originally displayed in the mall's Abraham & Straus Court.
PARAMUS PARK housed the nation's first successful shopping mall Food Court. Known as Pic-Nic In the Park, the 22-bay facility was situated on a mezzanine overlooking the Center Court and Fountain. The entire common area of PARAMUS PARK was an open (but enclosed) space, illuminated with skylights and featuring tree-lined promenades and park-bench seating. This was in a time when the standard, newly-built shopping mall consisted of dimly-lit corridors with virtually no natural lighting.
PARAMUS PARK was originally anchored by a 3-level (289,000 square foot), New York City-based Abraham & Straus, which was dedicated, along with the mall, on March 10, 1974. A 2-level (170,000 square foot) Sears welcomed its first shoppers on August 22, 1974.
Charter inline tenants included CVS Drug, Plaza Footwear, Littman's Jewelers, Shear Honesty Haircut Designers, The Lodge of Harvard Square and Pet Pourri. The original Pic-Nic In the Park included Chick-Fil-A, Magic Pan Creperie, Sgarlato's Pizza, Taco Pit, Jade Fountain, Nathan's Hot Dogs and a Farrell's Ice Cream Parlour.
Other major shopping centers in the PARAMUS PARK trade area included the aforementioned GARDEN STATE PLAZA (1957) {2.3 miles south}, BERGEN MALL (1957) {2.6 miles southeast} and FASHION CENTER (1967) {.50 of a mile northwest}. There were also WILLOWBROOK MALL (1969) {10.7 miles southwest, in Wayne} and RIVERSIDE SQUARE MALL (1977) {3.7 miles southeast, in Hackensack}.
Unlike several other shopping malls developed by the Rouse Company, PARAMUS PARK was not physically expanded during the 1980s or '90s. Moreover, until recently, the shopping hub had experienced only one anchor store rebranding. Abraham & Straus was shuttered April 29, 1995 and re-opened, as a Macy's, on the following day.
A small enlargement, first proposed in 1995, was not completed until late 2001. Envisaged by Cambridge, Massachusetts' Prellwitz Chilinski Associates, the renovation was done in two stages. Phase 1 entailed the addition of an east side Streetscape, which housed a (15,000 square foot) Foot Locker and (16,000 square foot) Old Navy. The Main Entrance on the southwest side of the complex was also rebuilt.
Phase 2 consisted of a thorough refurbishment of the existing mall. New elevators, escalators, flooring and lighting were installed. Moreover, Center Court was modified with a smaller fountain and new landscaping. The project, completed in October 2001, increased the gross leasable area of PARAMUS PARK to 779,000 square feet.
With General Growth Properties' acquisition of The Rouse Company, in 2004, the mall became a GGP holding. An 88,600 square foot expansion of PARAMUS PARK was on the drawing board for several years. Originally announced in 2008, the project was postponed due to The Great Recession and GGP's early 2000s bout with bankruptcy.
Expansion plans we re-announced in 2013, and approved by the local governing body in 2014. As planned, the project would have added a Regal Premium Experience (RPX) 10-plex at the existing west mall entrance. The new cinema was to link with the upper level Food Court. A newly-built (Norwalk, Connecticut-based) Stew Leonard's supermarket was also plotted.
The shuttering of Sears, on February 3, 2018, caused a change of plans. It was decided not to add any new structures to the mall, but just repurpose the vacant Sears. Stew Leonard's would occupy the (79,400 square foot) lower floor and also utilize a section on the upper. The new grocery welcomed its first customers on September 18, 2019.
Meanwhile, Brookfield Property Partners, based in Hamilton, Bermuda, had acquired a share of General Growth Properties in 2016. In August 2018, Brookfield established 100 percent ownership of the corporation. Hence, PARAMUS PARK became part of the Brookfield retail center portfolio.
Sources:
The New York Times
The Record (Hackensack, New Jersey)
The Garfield-Lodi-Rochelle Park Shopper (Paramus, New Jersey)
Expansion plans we re-announced in 2013, and approved by the local governing body in 2014. As planned, the project would have added a Regal Premium Experience (RPX) 10-plex at the existing west mall entrance. The new cinema was to link with the upper level Food Court. A newly-built (Norwalk, Connecticut-based) Stew Leonard's supermarket was also plotted.
The shuttering of Sears, on February 3, 2018, caused a change of plans. It was decided not to add any new structures to the mall, but just repurpose the vacant Sears. Stew Leonard's would occupy the (79,400 square foot) lower floor and also utilize a section on the upper. The new grocery welcomed its first customers on September 18, 2019.
Meanwhile, Brookfield Property Partners, based in Hamilton, Bermuda, had acquired a share of General Growth Properties in 2016. In August 2018, Brookfield established 100 percent ownership of the corporation. Hence, PARAMUS PARK became part of the Brookfield retail center portfolio.
Sources:
The New York Times
The Record (Hackensack, New Jersey)
The Garfield-Lodi-Rochelle Park Shopper (Paramus, New Jersey)
www.paramuspark.com
https://www.blogto.com (BlogToronto)
http://www.therousecompany.com (Website on Internet Archive Wayback Machine)
http://www.labelscar.com
http://archive.northjersey.com
www.northjersey.com
"Paramus Park Mall" article on Wikipedia
http://www.labelscar.com
http://archive.northjersey.com
www.northjersey.com
"Paramus Park Mall" article on Wikipedia