The Shops at Santa Anita explained

The Shops at Santa Anita
Coordinates:34.1347°N -118.0517°W
Address:400 South Baldwin Avenue
Location:Arcadia, California, U.S.
Previous Names:
  • Santa Anita Fashion Park (1974–1998)
  • Westfield Shoppingtown Santa Anita (1998–2005)
  • Westfield Santa Anita (2005-2022)
Developer:The Hahn Company
Owner:Riderwood USA
Number Of Stores:214
Number Of Anchors:4
Floor Area:1500000square feet
Floors:2 (3 in Macy's and Forever 21)

The Shops at Santa Anita (formerly Westfield Santa Anita) is a super-regional shopping mall located in Arcadia, California, adjacent to the Santa Anita Race Track.

History

The mall opened as Santa Anita Fashion Park on October 14, 1974,[1] with original anchors JCPenney, The Broadway, Buffum's and J. W. Robinson's. Only Buffums was open at the mall opening and the other anchors opened gradually through 1976. The western wing was demolished and expanded in the late 1980s, completing in 1994 with a Nordstrom store replacing Buffum's.[2] The J.W. Robinson's store became a Robinsons-May store in 1993, and The Broadway was converted into Macy's in 1996.

In 1998, Westfield America, Inc., a precursor to Westfield Group, acquired the shopping center from TrizecHahn Corporation[3] and renamed it Westfield Shoppingtown Santa Anita. "Shoppingtown" was dropped from the name in June 2005 and the mall became Westfield Santa Anita.[4]

On October 1, 2004, the first phase of a planned three-phase expansion of Westfield Santa Anita opened. The $113 million phase added a new food court, a 16-screen AMC Cinema, Dave & Buster's, a Cheesecake Factory, and 30 new retailers including American Eagle Outfitters and Hollister Co.[5]

On November 24, 2004, a new carousel in the center court was built and opened to the public.[6]

After the 2005 Federated Stores acquisition of The May Department Stores Company, the Robinsons-May store closed in 2006 and remained largely vacant for six years.

On May 7, 2009, the $120 million second phase of the mall's expansion opened. Dubbed "The Promenade", the outdoor expansion added 30 new stores between Macy's and Nordstrom with an emphasis on upscale brands like Coach, Williams Sonoma, Talbots, and Clarks.[7]

On November 3, 2012, Forever 21 relocated from its location on the first floor into most of the former Robinsons-May becoming an anchor tenant.[8] The Robinsons-May store was heavily renovated and repartitioned into smaller parts to accommodate this transition.

The former Robinsons-May store was used for filming the abandoned Bloomingdale's scenes in the 2008 blockbuster Cloverfield.[9]

In September 2013, Westfield Santa Anita hosted the first Haidilao restaurant in the US.[10] [11]

In 2014, major renovations of the mall will feature new flooring, distinctive fixtures and the upgrade of many seating lounges including a dramatic change to the center court. The renovations of the center court will result in the removal of the carousel after almost 10 years of operation.

In May 2021, Canadian artist the Weeknd performed "Save Your Tears", a song from his fourth studio album After Hours in the parking lot of Westfield Santa Anita for his 2021 Billboard Music Awards performance.[12]

In August 2021, the shopping center was featured in Olivia Rodrigo's "Brutal" music video.

In August 2022, the shopping center was sold for $538 million[13] to real estate investor Wen Shan Chang and was rebranded as The Shops at Santa Anita.[14]

On September 30, 2023, 99 Ranch Market opened an anchor store in the former first floor of Forever 21.

Anchors

Current

Former

See also

Notes and References

  1. News: Fashion Park Opens Officially . Monrovia Daily News-Post . October 14, 1974.
  2. Web site: BUSINESS : City Looks to Mall Upgrade for a Lift : New, upscale stores, including Nordstrom, at Santa Anita Fashion Park should boost tax revenues, Arcadia official says. The wing will open on Friday . . August 25, 1994 .
  3. Westfield America, Inc. announces aquistiion of Santa Anita Fashion Park, Parkway Plaza and Soland Mall. . September 28, 1998 . Westfield Corp. . .
  4. News: If you didn't call them 'shoppingtowns,' don't: Three local malls that called themselves by the Australian name will quietly drop the label. . . June 1, 2005 . Mark . Albright.
  5. Westfield Shoppingtown Santa Anita: $113 Million Renovation Offers San Gabriel Valley Shoppers More Shopping, Dining and Entertainment . . September 1, 2004 . .
  6. Web site: This article highlights the new carousel at the Santa Anita Mall and discusses some history of the carousel. . 2023-11-28 . arcadiahistory.andornot.com.
  7. News: Westfield Santa Anita celebrates opening of Promenade expansion . . May 7, 2009 . .
  8. Forever 21 Store Relocation in Arcadia, California . October 31, 2012 . . .
  9. Web site: Cloverfield (2008) - Filming Locations . . . .
  10. Web site: Hai Di Lao, Chinese Hot Pot Chain, Plans To Bring 'Noodle Dance' To The U.S.. Huffington Post. 22 May 2013 . 25 August 2017.
  11. News: Burkitt . Laurie . Chinese Hot Pot Chain Hai Di Lao Makes Move to U.S. . 2018-09-12 . Wall Street Journal . 22 May 2013.
  12. Web site: Média. Bell. Here's Story Behind The Weeknd's BBMAs Performance. 2021-10-28. www.iheartradio.ca. en-CA.
  13. News: Westfield Santa Anita mall sells for $538M . 30 August 2022.
  14. Web site: Vincent . Roger . 2022-09-15 . Westfield Santa Anita buyer is Southern California real estate investor Wen Shan Chang . 2023-01-08 . Los Angeles Times . en-US.
  15. News: JC Penney ad grand opening Santa Anita. Monrovia News-Post. August 7, 1975. 7.
  16. News: Advertisement for The Broadway . Los Angeles Times . November 10, 1974.
  17. News: Robinson's to Open on Monday in Santa Anita Fashion Park .