Westfield Garden State Plaza

Westfield Garden State Plaza

Westfield Garden State Plaza as seen in July 2014 by AMC parking lot.
Location	Paramus, New Jersey
Address	1 Garden State Plaza, Paramus, NJ 07652
Opening date	May 25, 1957
Developer	Macy's
Management	Westfield Corporation
Owner	Westfield Corporation
No. of stores and services	335 (As of March 2014)[1]
No. of anchor tenants	5[2]
Total retail floor area	2,118,718 sq ft (196,835.3 m2)[2]
No. of floors	2 (Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus, Macy*s, and JCPenney are three floors)
Parking	10,796 parking spaces.[2]
Website	Westfield.com/GardenStatePlaza

Westfield Garden State Plaza is a two-story, upscale shopping mall located in Paramus, New Jersey, owned and managed by the Westfield Corporation, and located at the intersection of Route 4 and Route 17 near the Garden State Parkway, about 15 miles west of Manhattan.^[3] With 2,118,718 sq ft (196,835.3 m²) of leasable space,^[2][4] and housing over 300 stores,^[3] it is the largest mall in New Jersey, the third-largest mall in the New York metropolitan area, and one of the highest-revenue producing malls in the United States. Its department store anchors are J.C. Penney, Lord & Taylor, Macy's, Neiman Marcus and Nordstrom.^[2] It was the first large scale shopping mall in New Jersey.^[5]

The mall had sales of $775 per square foot in 2013, about $320 above the national average; Garden State Plaza is one of the most profitable malls in the country.^[6]

History

Aerial view of Garden State Plaza

Garden State Plaza was built in 1957 by the Muscarelle Construction Company for owner/developer R.H. Macy & Co. as an open-air shopping "plaza".^[7]

The original anchor was Bamberger's (owned by R.H. Macy since 1929). Gimbels and J.C. Penney were added in 1958.^[8] Total construction costs were $26 million in 1957 for the mall and its original group of 90 stores.^[9]

Garden State Plaza drew much business from nearby New York towns and cities, whose shoppers wandered across state lines to take advantage of New Jersey's lower sales taxes and its policy that exempted clothing purchases from sales tax. By 1961, it was the world's largest mall.^[9]

The mall was enclosed between 1981 and 1984 in response to competitive pressure from newer fully enclosed malls such as the Willowbrook Mall in nearby Wayne.^[10]

In the late 1980s, the mall added a new lower level by converting a former basement truck tunnel into regular retail. The existing J.C.Penney basement was given a new entrance on the lower level, but since the floors were at slightly different elevations, that entrance features the shortest escalator in North America, at a height of six steps.^[11] In 1989, a Nobody Beats the Wiz store was added to the mall site. It closed when The Wiz went out of business and was replaced by a Best Buy. ^[12]

The AMC Theatres at Westfield Garden State Plaza.

As part of this expansion, Nordstrom opened its first New Jersey location on September 7, 1990, building a $37 million, 272,000 sq ft (25,300 m²)., three-level store on the former Gimbel's site.^[13] Lord & Taylor opened a store in the mall in 1996, its seventh in the state at the time.^[14]

In 1996, Garden State Plaza marked the completion of a $200 million expansion and major remodeling project that added over 700,000 sq ft (65,000 m²) of retail space and two four level parking structures, Parking Garage A, and Parking Garage B. The downstairs food court was connected to the lower level from the previous expansion. J.C.Penney grew by 62,000 to 150,000 sq ft (5,800 to 13,900 m²), and two new anchors were added, a 150,000 sq ft (14,000 m²) Neiman Marcus on three levels and a 135,000 sq ft (12,500 m²) Lord & Taylor on two levels, both targeted at the upscale fashion-conscious shopper.^[10] A Venetian Carousel was also added at that time of the expansion and remodeling and was located in front of Macy's. The carousel closed in 2016 and was removed so that the mall could use that space for The Bergen Performing Arts Center to give performances and shows. There is also a Bergen PAC ticket center located nearby as well.^[15]

Westfield acquired the mall in 1986 from Macy's in a deal that also included New Jersey's Brunswick Square Mall and Quaker Bridge Mall.^[16][17]

The Borough of Paramus petitioned the New Jersey Supreme Court to review a decision by borough's Planning Board, asking it to review the plans to construct a 163,000-square-foot (15,100 m²) "entertainment lifestyle precinct" at the mall that includes a 16-screen AMC movie theater and 10 specialty retail stores, along with a 158,000-square-foot (14,700 m²) parking lot below the new wing, known as "Parking Garage C".^[18] The petition was turned down, and the mall celebrated its 50th Anniversary with the new expansion and stores opened on May 25, 2007.^[19]

In 2013, the mall rebuilt the east parking garage, expanding it to five levels and 1,800 parking spaces. Adjacent were built a new guest services office and a valet lounge. A year later, the mall added a 55,000 square foot wing at a cost of $160 million known as the "Fashion District" that has 22 stores and restaurants.^[20][21]

Blue laws

Due to highly restrictive blue laws in effect in Bergen County and more restrictive limitations in place in Paramus, Westfield Garden State Plaza is completely closed on Sundays, except for some of the restaurants and the movie theater, all of which have special Sunday entrances. Westfield Garden State Plaza's parking lot is accessible, on Sundays, only from the Route 4 and Route 17 access points. Gates are down so that the access roads from the secondary streets are blocked. The Paramus Borough Code forbids the performance of any "worldly employment" on Sunday, with very limited exceptions.^[22] These laws were enacted shortly after Westfield Garden State Plaza opened out of fear that the mall would cause high levels of congestion in the borough.^[23] Governor Chris Christie was unsuccessful in removing the blue laws in 2010 which would have opened the mall on Sundays and bring extra sales and tax revenue. During the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, he suspended the blue law forcing it to be open on Sunday, November 4, 2012 for those severely affected by the hurricane. A week later, the blue laws were put back into effect.

Public transportation

The following New Jersey Transit bus lines serve Westfield Garden State Plaza:

• 163 to Ridgewood and Port Authority Bus Terminal
• 171 to Paterson, the IKEA shopping center in Paramus, and George Washington Bridge Bus Terminal
• 175 to Ridgewood Bus Terminal and George Washington Bridge Bus Terminal
• 707 to Paterson City Hall
• 709 to Bloomfield
• 756 to Bergen Community College and Edgewater Commons via Hackensack Bus Terminal
• 758 to Paramus Park and Passaic Bus Terminal
• 770 to Hackensack Bus Terminal and Paterson Broadway Bus Terminal

Of the eight buses that serve Westfield Garden State Plaza, the 707, 709, 756, and 758 does not provide service on Sundays.

Incidents

On November 4, 2013, 20-year-old Richard Shoop fired multiple shots near the Nordstrom store in the mall. Customers and employees were evacuated immediately from the mall premises shortly after the shots fired and the mall was on lockdown for hours. No one was injured. The day after the shooting at 3:20 AM, Shoop committed suicide.^[24][25]

See also

• Shopping malls in New Jersey
• Westfield Group

References

External links

• Westfield Garden State Plaza
• Westfield Garden State Plaza, International Council of Shopping Centers
• Aerial View
• Garden State Plaza Reshaped Landscape, Retail Traffic Magazine, May 1, 1999

Westfield Shopping Centers in the United States Connecticut Meriden Trumbull Florida Brandon Broward Citrus Park Countryside Sarasota Square Southgate Illinois Old Orchard Los Angeles Century City Culver City Fashion Square Palm Desert Promenade Santa Anita Topanga Valencia Town Center Maryland Annapolis Montgomery Wheaton New York City area Garden State Plaza South Shore Sunrise World Trade Center Northern California Galleria at Roseville Oakridge San Francisco Centre Valley Fair San Diego Horton Plaza Mission Valley North County Plaza Bonita UTC Washington Southcenter Former properties Carlsbad (1994–2015) Olympia (1998–2013) Hialeah (2007–2012) Connecticut Post (1981–2015) Mainplace (2002–2015) Fox Valley (2002–2015) Hawthorn (2002–2015) Vancouver (1994–2015) West Covina (1998–2013) El Cajon (1998–2013) Westfield Corporation

Coordinates: 40°55′14″N 74°04′20″W / 40.920578°N 74.072189°W / 40.920578; -74.072189