Cherry Hill Mall

For the Census Designated Place of the same name, see Cherry Hill Mall, New Jersey.

Cherry Hill Mall

Cherry Hill Mall signage
Location	Cherry Hill, New Jersey, USA
Coordinates	39°56′28″N 75°01′30″W / 39.941°N 75.025°W / 39.941; -75.025Coordinates: 39°56′28″N 75°01′30″W / 39.941°N 75.025°W / 39.941; -75.025
Opening date	October 11, 1961[1]
Developer	The Rouse Company
Management	PREIT
Owner	PREIT
No. of stores and services	160
No. of anchor tenants	3
Total retail floor area	1,248,347 square feet (115,975.2 m2)[1]
Parking	Lighted lot and parking garage
No. of floors	2
Website	cherryhillmall.com

Cherry Hill Mall, owned by Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust (PREIT), was originally known as Cherry Hill Shopping Center, the first indoor, climate-controlled shopping center east of the Mississippi River in the United States, and opened in October 1961. Cherry Hill Mall is located at 2000 Route 38 in Cherry Hill, New Jersey 08002 and is bound by Route 38, Haddonfield Road, Church Road, and Cherry Hill Mall Drive. The center was designed by architect Victor Gruen and built and managed by The Rouse Company.^[2] Rouse sold its shopping center portfolio to Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust in 2003 as PREIT converted its holdings from residential to retail. The mall has a gross leasable area of 1,248,347 square feet (115,975.2 m²)^[1] placing it in the top ten among the largest shopping malls in New Jersey. Cherry Hill Mall is widely held to be the source of the 1962 renaming of what had been called Delaware Township to its current name of Cherry Hill Township, New Jersey. In fact, the town was named Cherry Hill in a voter referendum due to the development of a new US Postal Service office for the region, and historical ties to Cherry Hill Farm, which once occupied land opposite the current mall site, and various locations named for the farm, including the Cherry Hill Estates housing development and the Cherry Hill Inn.

Anchors

• Macy's
• Nordstrom
• JCPenney

History

Cherry Hill Mall opened on October 11, 1961. At the time, it was the largest mall in the nation and the first enclosed, climate-controlled mall in the Eastern United States. It was unlike anything in what was called Delaware Township had ever seen, with tropical shrubbery, large fountains, parrots, aviaries, and spacious courts. The mall layout was very unique for the time. Unlike the dumbbell malls of the time, the mall started from the east anchor, Bamberger's, with a large "Delaware Mall" concourse to the west of it. About halfway along this concourse was an exit way that led back to a twin movie theatre and a giant arcade. The center of the mall featured Cherry Court, a court with high ceilings, more tropical plants, fountains, parrots, plus a staircase leading directly into the second floor into Strawbridge's. The northern wing featured the "Market Court", Food Fair, and Thrift Drug. There was also a Kresge, Woolworth's, and two liquor stores.^[3] The mall changed through the years. 1973 brought a detached nine-story office tower, and in 1977 a new, two-story wing was built in the north part of the mall, following the closure and demolition of Pantry Pride and the Market Court. This wing was anchored by JCPenney. The 1990s brought much change to the mall. The mall was remodeled, possibly for the third time, featuring a teal/gray color scheme and skylights. The Mall received different fountains and the ornate Strawbridge's staircase was replaced with a simple escalator/stairs combination. By the time 1997 rolled around, two distinct parts of the mall had formed: an upscale wing near Macy's featuring Banana Republic, Victoria's Secret, and Ann Taylor, while the JCPenney wing featured McDonald's, General Nutrition Centers, Radio Shack, and several urban shops. In the early 2000s, the mall was sold to PREIT.

Expansion (2007–2009)

Old Navy opened later, but PREIT had big plans for Cherry Hill. After Strawbridge's went under after the Macy's takeover, the store was razed and backfilled.^[4] The mall eventually went under a huge renovation, its biggest ever: it added several exterior-facing restaurants including, The Capital Grille, Seasons 52, California Pizza Kitchen, and Maggiano's Little Italy and a large-scale entrance to an H&M store to the frontage of Route 38. The food court was moved to the JCPenney wing, which is much smaller than the mall's original food court but now features A&W, Subway, and many other eateries. The mall also added The Container Store and Crate & Barrel as retailers outside the mall's parking lot. They also built a three-story parking garage, gutted the mall for a marble-and-wood color scheme, and created a new tenant mix to mirror King of Prussia Mall. The mall today consist of many upscale stores in a newly renovated interior and exterior. The new Nordstrom anchor store opened March 27, 2009. Cherry Hill Mall has completely changed its entire exterior and interior, bringing many high-end stores, new restaurants, and a revitalizing theme running throughout the center. The renovation and transformation of the Cherry Hill Mall cost $218 million.

New stores

Since the 2009 expansion, many new stores have arrived, such as: Apple, J.Crew, Garage, Gymboree, Backstage, Steve Madden, Urban Outfitters, BCBGMAXAZRIA, Brighton Collectibles, Tilly's, and AX Armani Exchange.

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} "Cherry Hill Mall Fact Sheet". PREIT. http://www.preit.com/download/leasing/detail/factsheet/24.pdf. Retrieved October 14, 2010. 
2. ^ "The Would-Be City That Won't Be", The Washington Post, July 31, 2005. Accessed December 2, 2008.
3. ^ Newman, Andy. "SHOPPING AROUND: AT THE MALL; The Making of a Mall: Managing the Mood and the Merchandise ", The New York Times, November 16, 1997. Accessed December 2, 2008.
4. ^ Central Salvage Co., Inc.

External links

• Cherry Hill Mall website
• Cherry Hill Mall, International Council of Shopping Centers
• Vintage Cherry Hill Mall Postcards