Portage Place

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Portage Place is a mixed-use shopping centre located on the north side of Portage Avenue, between Vaughan and Carlton Streets in downtown Winnipeg. It opened on September 17, 1987[1] [2].

Contents

[edit] History

In the early 1980s north Portage Avenue was in decline, due in part to the "flight to the suburbs" and free parking at suburban malls.

The three levels of government created the Core Area Initiative in 1981 to counter this decline, and rebuild this part of downtown.

One of the proposals in 1983 to "fix" the North side of Portage Avenue was to realign the roadway and build a new arena. But this proposal was rejected by City Council.

The North Portage Development Corporation came into being in late 1984, and they announced the Portage Place mall[3], which included the apartments behind it, known as The Promenade. Signers included Federal MP for Manitoba Lloyd Axworthy, and Mayor Bill Norrie.

By the summer of 1985 buildings within the land area of Portage Place were demolished, and the mall opened in September, 1987[4].

By the Summer of 1988, barely a year since it opened, there were doubts of the shopping centre's success. Originally The Bay and Eaton's had extended their hours early in the week to encourage people to shop there. But the shoppers stayed away, and instead became a hangout for young people. Some store owners in the shopping centre said that after 5:30 p.m. there was a big drop in customers visiting the mall, some tenants wanted their rent reduced.[5] [6]

Portage Place is now owned by Peterson Investment Group Ltd., a privately-owned company located in Vancouver, British Columbia.

[edit] How the Mall is Organized

Under the shopping centre is a 1000-spot parking garage. Two "skybridges" cross Portage Avenue and connect with The Bay and MTS Centre. There is a connection to the YMCA.

The main and second floors are home to various retailers. Anchor stores include Staples, Hangers, McNally Robinson, HMV, and Shoppers Drug Mart.

The third floor is designed for arts and entertainment related functions. The former Famous Players three-plex cinema (Alto, Rio, and Bijou; named after former downtown cinemas) is now operated by Landmark Cinemas as the Globe Theatre, which specializes in foreign and independent film. The third floor is also home to an IMAX theatre[7], and the Prairie Theatre Exchange.

The food court is located at the east end of the building on the main floor. It houses several fast-food outlets clustered around a central seating area.

[edit] List of retailers

  • A Buck or Two
  • A&W
  • Academy Florists
  • Airsource Rogers Wireless
  • Ardene
  • Argento
  • Athlete's World Superstore
  • Barnes & Castle
  • Baskin Robbins
  • Bentley
  • Black's Photography
  • The Body Shop
  • Brass N' Lite
  • Burger King
  • Carlton Cards
  • Cherry Creek Cafe/Mumbo Jumbo Bar
  • Chester Fried Chicken
  • City Jewellers
  • City Submarine
  • Claire's Boutique
  • Cookies By George
  • Cotton Ginny
  • Court News
  • Foot Locker
  • Giselle's
  • Globe Cinemas
  • The Gourmet Cup
  • Hallmark
  • Hangers
  • HMV
  • IMAX Theatre
  • International Clothiers
  • Joey's Only Seafood
  • La Senza
  • Labels for Less
  • Laura
  • Laura Petites
  • Le Chateau
  • The Leather Ranch
  • Mach Artwork
  • Manchu Wok
  • Mariposa
  • McNally Robinson
  • Mrs. Vanelli's
  • MTS The Wireless Age
  • Northern Images
  • Oriental Gifts
  • Partners Restaurant
  • Payless Shoes
  • Pita Pit
  • Prairie Theatre Exchange
  • Pura Vida
  • Quark Shoes & Urban Trail
  • Ricki's
  • Rings N Things
  • Shoe Warehouse
  • Shoppers Drug Mart
  • Sirens
  • Smart Set
  • Staples Business Depot
  • Starbucks Coffee
  • Sterling Shoes
  • Stitch It
  • Stitches
  • Subway
  • Sunrise Health Foods
  • Suzy Shier
  • Sweetz
  • Taco Time
  • Telus Mobility
  • Teriyaki Experience
  • Thai Express
  • Circuit City
  • Tim Hortons
  • Tradewinds
  • WK Chan Jewellers

[edit] References

  1. ^ Sandra Lewis; Lavonne Boutcher. "Thousands Turn Out for the Opening of Portage Place", CBWT 24Hours, September 17, 1987. 
  2. ^ "Thousands crowd Portage Place mall", Winnipeg Free Press, September 18, 1987, p. 3. 
  3. ^ (March 26, 1984) "Final Concept and Financial Plan for North Portage Redevelopment: Report to Shareholders by Board of Directors"., Winnipeg: North Portage Development Corp.. 
  4. ^ McCourt, Mike; Walker, David. "Background info on Portage Place", CBWT 24Hours, September, 1987. (English) 
  5. ^ Ross Rutherford. "Portage Place Has Failed to Attract Shoppers", CBWT 24Hours, July, 1988. 
  6. ^ "Portage Place success argued", Winnipeg Free Press, July 24, 1988, p. 2. 
  7. ^ "IMAX Theatre projector lowered into Portage Place", Winnipeg Free Press, August 18, 1987, p. 30. 

[edit] External links

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Shopping malls in Winnipeg
Winnipeg