Bramalea City Centre
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| Bramalea City Centre | |
 |
|
| Mall facts and statistics[1] | |
|---|---|
| Location | Brampton, Ontario, Canada |
| Opening date | 1973 (first phase) |
| Developer | Bramalea Limited |
| Management | Morguard Investments Limited |
| Owner | Morguard Investments Limited |
| No. of stores and services | 288 |
| No. of anchor tenants | 4 |
| Total acreage | 85 |
| Total retail floor area | 1,209,064 sq. ft. (112,000 m²) |
| Parking | 6,385 |
| No. of floors | 2 |
| Website | www.bramaleacitycentre.ca |
The Bramalea City Centre is an indoor shopping mall located in the city of Brampton, Ontario, Canada. With over a million square feet of retail space and more than 280 outlets, it is one of Canada's largest shopping malls, and a premier shopping destination in the Greater Toronto Area.
Since opening its doors to the public in the 1970s, the Bramalea City Centre has been an important retail hub for the city of Brampton, pumping hundreds of millions of dollars into the local economy. Extensive renovation and expansion have improved the mall's atmosphere. In 2005, the Bramalea City Centre was congratulated by Brampton's mayor and council.[2]
The Bramalea City Centre is located at 25 Peel Centre Drive, near the intersection of Queen Street and Dixie Road. It is just east of Highway 410. It is served by Brampton Transit, GO Transit, and York Region Transit buses.
Contents |
[edit] Major retailers
- A & P (63,809 sq. ft.)
- The Bay (131,438 sq. ft.)
- Best Buy (31,108 sq. ft.)
- Old Navy (21,010 sq. ft.)
- Price Chopper (25,989 sq. ft.)
- Sears (157,156 sq. ft.)
- Sport Chek (22,512 sq. ft.)
- Zellers (120,815 sq. ft.)
[edit] History
[edit] Development
In the 1960s, when Bramalea existed as an independent town, area planners implemented a masterplan to oversee local development. Included in this masterplan was a series of residential areas, industrial development, open parks, and amongst other things, a central shopping centre.[3] An eighty-five acre site, situated in the heart of Bramalea, was designated for mall development. Bramalea Limited, a local real estate developer, began mall construction towards the end of the decade on what was then the largest retail development in North America.[4] Construction was completed in 1973, as the surrounding landscape experienced rapid change as the result of a population boom. The Bramalea City Centre had its grand opening on March 28, 1973,[3] with 160 outlets—this was only four years after Brampton's first mall, Shoppers World Brampton, opened its doors in 1969.
Although Bramalea later became part of the city of Brampton during a 1974 amalgamation, the Bramalea City Centre, Brampton's largest mall, retained the name of the original community in which it was built. Mall expansion continued throughout the 1980s and 1990s under Bramalea Limited ownership and operation.
[edit] New ownership & renovation
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Construction timeline |
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| 1973: Mall and convenience centre opens to the public | |
| 1981: Second floor of mall, food court, and public entrances completed | |
| 1991: Brampton Transit's Bramalea Transit Centre opened, lower parking lot on south side renovated to provide more spaces, with removal of all buses, and safe walkway to Transit Centre. | |
| 2004: Full renovation of all common areas | |
| 2005/2006: Additional renovation of common space; installation of new escalators | |
The Bramalea City Centre was acquired by Canadian real estate firm Morguard Investments Limited in 2002.[5] In 2004 under the new ownership, the mall underwent a $26 million reconstruction to improve all common areas. The renovation, commencing in February of that year, transformed the mall into a more vibrant, aesthetically pleasing open shopping environment—adding automated kiosks, improved lighting, ceilings, floors, furnishings, increased security, and accessibility for shoppers; the renovation was completed in eight months, a majority of which was done during the night while the mall was closed.[6] Additional renovation projects were carried out in 2005 and 2006, revamping the food court, escalators, and other areas of the mall. Petroff Partnership Architects was in charge of the redesign; construction was carried out by Vanbots Construction. Morguard has spent over $30 million in mall improvements.[5]
[edit] Today
Regarded as a super regional mall, the Bramalea City Centre has a market of more than 500,000 residents and attracts 12 million visitors annually.[6] The mall had over $250 million in sales in 2004.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Property Facts. Morguard Investments Ltd.
- ^ Morguard Investments Ltd (October 20, 2005). The City of Brampton Congratulates Bramalea City Centre & Morguard. Press release.
- ^ a b Middleton, Julie (2003). "Satellite City, recalling the Bramalea days". City of Brampton Sesquicentennial Commemorative Publication: 39–40.
- ^ Douglas, Pam (2003). "History of Brampton". City of Brampton Sesquicentennial Commemorative Publication: 13.
- ^ a b Morguard Plans $30 Million Investment in Bramalea City Centre. Brampton Economic Development Office.
- ^ a b Bramalea City Centre. Vanbots Construction.
[edit] External links
