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Address | 3655 Portage Ave, Winnipeg, MB R3K 2G6 |
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Opening date | 1975 (as Unicity Mall) |
Developer | Trizec |
Owner | SmartCentres |
No. of stores and services | 28 |
Public transit access | ![]() Blue University of Manitoba/St. Norbert D15 Sage Creek 22 Polo Park 70 Polo Park 220 St Charles-Rouge Loop 885 Dale Blvd/Windmill Way On-Request 108 |
Website | https://smartcentres.com/property/1356/ |
Unicity Shopping Centre (Formerly Unicity Mall) is a shopping centre in Winnipeg, Manitoba. It is officially classified as a big-box centre. [1] [2] The location was originally the site of Unicity Mall, which was an enclosed shopping mall. It was named for the 1972 unicity restructuring of city management.
Originally known as Unicity Fashion Square when it opened in September 1975, the mall was anchored by a Woolco and The Bay, and was one of only three malls in the city, along with Polo Park and Grant Park Shopping Centre. Managed by Trizec Corporation, the mall initially prospered despite one wing being almost completely empty. The food court McDonald's was the first to be placed inside a mall in western Canada. The Mall was demolished in 2000 to make way for the current shopping centre. [3]
Unicity Mall was opened in September 1975 as Unicity Fashion Square, and was anchored by a Woolco and The Bay, and was one of only three malls in the city, along with Polo Park and Grant Park Shopping Centre.
In the mid 1980s, the local economy was slowing down and the mall began losing tenants. By the 1990s, it was mostly empty and the vacated spaces were used for temporary flea markets. During that time, Woolco became Walmart, and extensive pressure was placed on the mall ownership for expansion of the Unicity Walmart location.
In April 1995, owner Bramalea Limited, which had 67% stake in the mall, became bankrupt after all its board of directors resigned. [4] [5] At that time, the mall had 86 stores and an area of 485,000 square feet (45,100 m2). [6] Markborough Properties of Toronto, which had owned a smaller portion of the mall, immediately took over management and leasing. [7]
Despite various legal battles between store owners, local residents, and the new ownership, the mall was demolished to make way for a larger Walmart. [8] Ownership was transferred to First Pro and the mall was subsequently demolished in 2000 [9] and replaced with a SmartCentres big-box complex. [10]
The Unicity Shopping Centre is now home to Walmart, Canadian Tire, Sobeys, Staples Canada, Winners, Sport Chek, Tim Hortons, KFC, Burger King, Shoppers Drug Mart, Value Village, Mark's, Quiznos, Bulk Barn and Dollar Tree among others. [2]
Unicity Shopping Centre is an open-air mall located at the edge of Portage Avenue near the Perimeter Highway.