Ridgeway Shopping Center is a 365,411 sq ft (33,947.8 m2)[1] shopping center in Stamford, Connecticut, now classifying as a power center but when first opened in 1947, the first department store-anchored suburban shopping center in the Eastern United States.[2][3]
Stamford designer and architect Alfons Bach planned the initial section of the center in 1946, which opened on March 26, 1947, with 110,000 sq ft (10,000 m2) of retail space on a 20,000-square-foot (1,900 m2) parcel. Initial tenants included W.J. Sloan Home Furnishings (October 1948), Pennsylvania Drug (May 1949), Deena's, The Lurie Company, Chizzini and a Slenderella Figure Salon.[4][5]
In 1951, Bach added a three-story office tower and a Sears department store.[4] A six-story office building was added in 1956.[6]
In 1958, in a third expansion of the center, Gimbel Bros. opened a branch of Saks-34th, which briefly formed a small 4-store chain, positioned as an upper-middle-market, yet more value-conscious sibling of Saks Fifth Avenue. Its addition to the center made Ridgeway the largest retail center in Connecticut. By 1960, when the center was sold fo $5 million, it had 367,000 sq ft (34,100 m2) of gross leasable area and parking for 1000 cars.[6]
When Gimbel Bros. closed the New York City Saks 34th Street flagship store in July 1965, the three Saks-34th branches including Stamford were converted to Gimbels branches.[7]
In the mid-to-late 1990s, Ridgeway went through a massive refurbishment and expansion, with the ousting of Sears, Gimbels, and Grand Central Market, along other stores. In their place stood Stop and Shop, Bed Bath and Beyond, Staples, Michaels, Marshalls, Old Navy, Amazing Savings/Just-A-Buck, Dress Barn, and many other new tenants. Elevators and escalators by Montgomery KONE were installed through the mall and its six-story parking garage. The Professional Building was replaced with small business spaces a loading dock, and new back hallways for employees. In 2003, a LA Fitness gymnasium moved into the space formerly taken over by the Ridgeway Theater. In 2015, the former US Post Office next to LA Fitness became a Wells Fargo bank.
Anchors as of June 2023 were Burlington (taking over a portion of the space of the Bed Bath & Beyond that had closed earlier in 2023), Michaels, Marshalls, Old Navy, and a Stop & Shop supermarket.[8][9][10]
Other tenants include Staples, Five Below, Carter's, Ideal Image, Snipes, AT&T, Starbucks, LA Fitness, and other small businesses along Sixth Street on the site of the old Professional Building (demolished 1997-1998.)
References
edit- ^ "Four Corners Town Center Revitalization Plan: Discovery Findings Four Corners – Town Center District Conditions April 2, 2012" (PDF). Brookfield, Connecticut municipal website. Brookfield, Conn. 2012. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
- ^ Reft, Ryan (7 April 2014). "Retail California: Shopping Centers, Malls, and Creating a New Consumerism". Tropics of Meta. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
- ^ "Stamford Man Disclosed as Interested Developer". Hartford Courant. Manchester, Connecticut. 16 June 1955. p. 4. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
- ^ a b "The First Shopping Mall in Each New England State". New England Historical Society. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
- ^ "Ridgeway Center", Mall Hall of Fame (blog)
- ^ a b "Shop Park Sold for $5 million". Bridgeport Post. Stamford, Connecticut. 2 October 1960. p. 36. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
- ^ "'Hot Lines' at New Gimbels (Saks 34 St. branches become Gimbels 2011-07-12)". Daily News. 11 July 1965. p. 526. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
- ^ Soule, Alexander (19 June 2023). "Stamford retailer taking over Bed Bath & Beyond store". CT Insider. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
- ^ "Ridgeway Shopping Center, Stamford, CT 06905 – Retail Space | Regency Centers". www.regencycenters.com. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
- ^ ""Ridgeway Shopping Center 2235 Summer St. 18,436 SF of Retail Space Available in Stamford, CT"". LoopNet. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
External links
edit- "Guide to the Alfons Bach Papers (Archive)" (PDF). Smithsonian National Museum of History Kenneth Behring Center., "The files on the Ridgeway Center mall are particularly extensive. Photographs cover the period from 1937-1961 and document Bach's design projects, particularly the Ridgeway Center."