Willowbrook Mall (New Jersey)

Last updated

Willowbrook Mall
Willowbrook Mall - Wayne, New Jersey.jpg
The Willowbrook Mall in 2024.
Willowbrook Mall (New Jersey)
Location1400 Willowbrook Mall, Wayne, New Jersey, United States
Coordinates 40°53′20″N74°15′36″W / 40.889°N 74.260°W / 40.889; -74.260
Opening dateSeptember 24, 1969;55 years ago (September 24, 1969)
Developer The Rouse Company [1]
Management Brookfield Properties
OwnerBrookfield Properties
No. of stores and services167 [2]
No. of anchor tenants 4
Total retail floor area 1,520,000 sq ft (141,000 m2) [2]
No. of floors1 with partial upper level
Parking Parking lot with 8,000 spaces [2]
Public transit accessAiga bus trans.svg NJT logo.svg NJ Transit Bus: 11, 28 (weekends only), 191, 193, 194, 195, 197, 198, 704, 705, 712, 748, 871, 874
Website willowbrook-mall.com

Willowbrook Mall is a one-level shopping center with a partial second floor located in Wayne, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is near the intersection of New Jersey Route 23, U.S. Route 46, and Interstate 80 in the New York metropolitan area and is situated close to both Essex and Morris counties near the Passaic River. The mall features more than 165 retail establishments and a leasable area of 1,518,006 square feet (141,027.4 m2). The mall opened in 1969 and was expanded or renovated in 1970, 1988, 2006, and 2015.

Contents

Macy's is the longest tenured anchor, having opened with Willowbrook as a Bamberger's in 1969. Bloomingdale's opened in 2002 in a former Stern's location. [3] JCPenney closed its Wayne Towne Center location and moved into the former Lord & Taylor location in March 2024. [4] As of July 2024, the mall's four anchor spaces are occupied by Macy's, Bloomingdale's, BJ's Wholesale Club, and JCPenney.

The mall also features a 14-screen Cinemark movie theater, which is located in the rear parking lot adjacent to BJ's auto center.

With blue laws in effect in neighboring Bergen County and even stricter restrictions in effect in Paramus, Willowbrook Mall has benefited from the spillover of shoppers on Sunday. [5] The mall and its surrounding access roads and parking areas are prone to flooding in rainstorms. The Passaic River flows near the mall and one of its tributaries, and the Pompton River, runs behind it. [6]

History

Planning

In 1962, Newark-based department store Bamberger's announced their plan to construct the Willowbrook Shopping Center on 100 acres of land beside Routes 80, 46, and 23. [7]

The Rouse Company of Baltimore, who also constructed the Cherry Hill Mall and Woodbridge Center, headed the project. [7] Department stores S. Klein, Sears, and Ohrbach's joined the project as anchor tenants, necessitating that the initial concept change "from a Y-shape to the mall’s current, cross-shaped form". [7]

Construction

Construction of Willowbrook Mall began in 1966 with the groundbreaking of the Bamberger's store. [8]

In September of 1968, The New York Times reported that department store Ohrbach's had begun construction on a two-floor, 100,000-square-foot store in the upcoming mall. [9] That year, Sears also confirmed their new location. [9]

The mall was originally planned as a 110-store indoor shopping mall, encompassing 1,500,000 square feet (140,000 m2). [10]

Opening and 20th century

It opened on September 24, 1969, [11] with four main department stores and 70 other shops, [7] including "Commonwealth Shoe & Leather Co., Custom Shirt Maker, Spencer Gifts, Sosin Jewelry, Merle Norman Cosmetics, and Belle Fashion Shoppes". [7] Dining options were Bagel Shop, O’Dea’s Bar-B-Que Pit, and Molinari Meat Market. The mall also featured art exhibits and galleries. [7]

A second phase opened on August 12, 1970, consisting of 47 specialty stores on two floors, and a Stern's department store. [12] Upon the opening of Stern's, Willowbrook Mall became the largest enclosed shopping mall in the world, [13] superseding its competitor, Garden State Plaza.

On October 15th, Wayne mayor and state senator Edward Sisco opened The Four & Twenty at the Willowbrook Mall, a luxury restaurant with live piano and organ music. [7] It was recommended by American Express as a The New Money cardholder destination the same year. [13]

On October 17th, the Willowbrook Cinema had its grand opening, featuring "a lobby decorated with potted trees, tiered lamps, and crystal chandeliers". [14]

In 1984, the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Division III hosted a three-day boating safety exhibit show with the vessel Blackjack. Wayne mayor Walter J. Jasinski cut the ceremonial ribbon. 5,000 visitors attended the show, and The Navigator magazine estimated that 50,000 cars passed by the Route 46 billboard for the event. [15]

In 1993, as part of an effort to attract non-smokers, the Willowbrook Mall became one of the first malls in New Jersey to ban smoking on mall grounds. [16] [17] The Bamberger's store was rebranded as Macy's in September 1986 after its corporate parent decided to rebrand its entire northeastern United States operation under its namesake marque. [18] [19] Ohrbach's was converted as part of the Steinbach chain, which went out of business in 1996. [20] [21] The building was expanded for its new tenant Lord & Taylor, which opened in 1997. [22]

21st century

Stern's closed its doors in 2001 after its parent company, Federated Department Stores, retired the brand; the store was converted to its sister brand, Bloomingdale's, which opened on April 11, 2002. [23] [24]

In 2015, it was announced that the mall would undergo a two-year, $23 million renovation. The renovation entailed new ceilings in the Sears & Macy's wings, an overhaul of the food court, new flooring throughout the mall, additional seating, and a two-story streetscape theme for the Bloomingdale's wing. [25] [26] In 2017, Sears opened an updated store format and subleased an unused space to Dave & Buster's, which opened on Valentine's Day 2018. [27] Seritage shuttered and razed the Sears Auto Center for a Cinemark movie theater, becoming the second movie theater within the mall area limits (after a 14-screen AMC Theatres, formerly Loews Theatres). On July 15, 2019, Sears announced that it would shutter as part of an ongoing decision to eliminate their traditional brick-and-mortar format. [28] [29] In October 2020, it was announced that BJ's Wholesale Club would plan to open a warehouse store and gas station where the previous Sears outpost was with the gas station opening north of the mall's parking lot. The store opened in November 2022. [30]

In August 2018, Macy's added a Macy's Backstage outlet in a portion of its store. [31] A P.F Chang's opened in a small space within the Bloomingdale's store on January 22, 2019. [32]

In August 2020, Lord & Taylor announced that it would shutter its traditional brick and mortar format as a direct result of the COVID-19 pandemic. [33] Shopper's Find opened in Lord & Taylor's former anchor location in June 2021 and closed in early 2023. [34] JCPenney, which had been an anchor at neighboring Wayne Towne Center since that mall's opening, moved to Willowbrook in the spring of 2024 to take over a space previously occupied by Ohrbach's, Steinbach, and Lord & Taylor.

BJ's Wholesale Club opened its Willowbrook outpost in late 2022 in a portion of the former Sears anchor, which had been downscaled and reconfigured before it was closed. [35] [36]

Public transportation

NJ Transit park & ride at the Willowbrook Mall, August 2025 Willowbrook Mall NJT Bus Park & Ride August 2025.jpg
NJ Transit park & ride at the Willowbrook Mall, August 2025

The mall and its parking lots serve as a transportation hub for the surrounding area. [37] An NJ Transit park and ride facility, opened in 1974, provides bus service to and from the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Midtown Manhattan. [38] The 11 , 28 , 191 , 193 , 194 , 195 , 197 , 198 , 324 , 704 , 705 , 712 , 748 , 871 and 874 buses serve the mall.

In the 1970 Life magazine, the Willowbrook Mall's Four and Twenty restaurant was advertised by American Express as a luxury culinary destination in the New York metropolitan area. The restaurant was compatible with its new Amex credit card, The New Money. [39]

In 1991, the Willowbrook Mall was the site of the Nickelodeon comedy The Adventures of Pete & Pete special episode "What We Did on Our Summer Vacation", in which Ellen's photo booth was located in the parking lot of the mall. [40]

References

  1. ↑ "Mall merchant head predicts great future". The News. Paterson, New Jersey. September 25, 1969. p. 49. Retrieved September 14, 2020.
  2. 1 2 3 "Willowbrook Mall (NJ)". Brookfield Properties.
  3. ↑ "Malls add new stores". The Star-Ledger. Newark, New Jersey. February 3, 2002. p. 202. Retrieved January 5, 2025.
  4. ↑ "Willowbrook Mall to get new anchor store. See who'll join Bloomingdale's, Macy's". North Jersey Media Group. Retrieved February 13, 2024.
  5. ↑ Strum, Charles. "Paramus Journal; On Sundays, Bergen Shoppers Rest", The New York Times , December 7, 1992. Accessed August 31, 2018.
  6. ↑ Service, US Department of Commerce, NOAA, National Weather. "National Weather Service Advanced Hydrologic Prediction Service". water.weather.gov. Retrieved November 5, 2018.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Payer, Tessa. "This Month in Wayne History- Willowbrook Mall Opens…With a Penguin?". TAPinto. Retrieved July 17, 2025.
  8. ↑ "Bamberger's Building Store In New Wayne, N.J., Center". timesmachine.nytimes.com. Retrieved March 31, 2020.
  9. 1 2 "Ohrbach's Begins Work On Willowbrook Store". The News. Paterson, New Jersey. September 27, 1968. p. 25.
  10. ↑ "Ohrbach's Builds in Jersey", The New York Times , September 27, 1968. Accessed August 31, 2018.
  11. ↑ "Ohrbach Names Executive". timesmachine.nytimes.com. Retrieved March 31, 2020.
  12. ↑ "Willowbrook Completes Largest Mall". Newspapers.com. August 12, 1970.
  13. 1 2 "12 Aug 1970, 48 - The Record at Newspapers.com". Newspapers.com. Retrieved March 31, 2020.
  14. ↑ Payer, Tessa (2022). "This Month in Wayne History- Willowbrook Mall Opens…With a Penguin?". TAPinto. Retrieved July 17, 2025.
  15. ↑ Navigator: The U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Magazine. Coast Guard Auxiliary Association. 1984. p. 3. Division III hosted a Boating Safety Exhibit with the vessel "Blackjack" for three days at the Willowbrook Mall, Wayne, New Jersey. The Mayor of Wayne, Walter J. Jasinski, cut the opening ceremonial ribbon. Divisions IV, V, X, and XIV participated in an act of fellowship for inter-Divisional comraderie. Approximately 75 Auxilaritsts participated as Watchstanders and talked to over 5,000 visitors to the show. The Marquee is on the main highway of Route 46 in Wayne, and is one of New Jersey's busiest highways. It is estimated that some 50,000 cars passed this tremendous billboard over the three day show.
  16. ↑ "2 Big Malls Ban Smoking", The New York Times , October 8, 1993. Accessed January 17, 2025. "Rules announced on Wednesday by Willowbrook Mall in Wayne and Paramus Park in Paramus, to take effect on Nov. 1, follow the policies this year at the Woodbridge Center, Cherry Hill and Bridgewater Commons shopping malls. Officials with the Rouse Company of Columbia, Md., which owns Willowbrook and Paramus Park, told The Record of Hackensack that they hoped the policy would encourage more nonsmokers to visit the centers."
  17. ↑ "Sears Closing Wayne Willowbrook Mall Store". Wayne, NJ Patch. July 15, 2019. Retrieved March 31, 2020.
  18. ↑ DiMeo, Jean. "Bamberger's is now Macy's; Chain wants national identity", Herald News , September 4, 1986. Accessed January 17, 2025, via Newspapers.com. "The R.H. Macy & Co. of New York announced Wednesday it's dropping the 93-year-old Bamberger's name from its profitable division and replacing it with Macy's effective Oct. 5.... The remaining 23 Bamberger's stores in New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, New York and Pennsylvania will sport the Macy's logo by Nov. 15, Friedman said at a press conference.... Bamberger's executives Wednesday would not say when the store in the Willowbrook Mall in Wayne also would carry the Macy's name."
  19. ↑ "Bam's becomes Macy's", The Star-Ledger , September 30, 1986. Accessed January 17, 2025, via Newspapers.com. "At the Willowbrook Mall in Wayne, it was out with the old and in with the new. Workers from Service Sign Erectors of New York begin dismantling the old Bamberger's sign (above), replacing It with the store's new name, Macy's (below)."
  20. ↑ "STERN'S: Department store nears the last sale". The Record. Hackensack, New Jersey. July 13, 2001. pp. B3.
  21. ↑ "Woodbridge Center names a co-anchor: Lord & Taylor". The Central New Jersey Home News. New Brunswick, New Jersey. April 12, 1996. p. 1. Retrieved January 14, 2025.
  22. ↑ "Malls expanding". The Star-Ledger. February 2, 1997. p. 270. Retrieved January 12, 2025.
  23. ↑ Combs, Heath E.; and Lillo, Andrea. "Stern's closing puts focus on Macy's, Bloomies", Home & Textile Today, February 12, 2001. Accessed September 3, 2017. "The Stern's locations in Willowbrook and Bridgewater, NJ, will be converted to Bloomingdale's stores."
  24. ↑ "Circle of Life". The Star-Ledger . Newark, New Jersey. April 10, 2002. p. 23.
  25. ↑ Verdon, Joan. "Willowbrook Mall in Wayne to get a facelift", The Record , June 4, 2015, backed up by the Internet Archive as of September 20, 2016. Accessed September 3, 2017.
  26. ↑ "At Willowbrook Mall | Seritage".
  27. ↑ "Willowbrook Dave & Buster's gives millennials a reason to go to the mall", North Jersey Media Group , February 13, 2018. Accessed October 15, 2019.
  28. ↑ Anzidei, Melanie (July 15, 2019). "Sears in Wayne to close by mid-September — and liquidation sales have already begun". northjersey.com. Retrieved September 10, 2019.
  29. ↑ Sears & Roebuck at Willowbrook and Staten Island to Close on Sunday, September 15th, 2019, archived from the original on December 13, 2021, retrieved October 8, 2019
  30. ↑ DeVencentis, Philip. "BJ's Wholesale Club announces opening date for new store at Willowbrook Mall", The recprd , November 14, 2022. Accessed January 25, 2025. "BJ's Wholesale Club will open a new warehouse store and tire center at Willowbrook Mall on Friday. The 105,031-square-foot club — the first BJ's location in the county — will be in the northwest wing of the mall. With its opening, the retail center will fill a vast cavity that was left empty by the closing of the Sears department store in September 2019."
  31. ↑ Verdon, Joan (July 3, 2018). "Macy's to open Backstage outlet store at Willowbrook Mall". North Jersey Media Group .
  32. ↑ "P.F. Chang's officially opens at Willowbrook Mall in Wayne". North Jersey. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  33. ↑ Willis, David P. (August 27, 2020). "Lord & Taylor closing all stores, including Freehold Raceway Mall location" . Asbury Park Press . Archived from the original on December 9, 2020.
  34. ↑ DeVencentis, Philip. "Shopper's Find department store closing permanently this week at Willowbrook Mall", The Record , November 29, 2022. Accessed August 28, 2023. "The Shopper’s Find department store will permanently close at Willowbrook Mall on Wednesday. The store, which opened in June 2021 to replace a Lord & Taylor department store, has been liquidating its merchandise since the beginning of last month."
  35. ↑ DeVencentis, Philip. "BJ's Wholesale Club announces opening date for new store at Willowbrook Mall". North Jersey Media Group.
  36. ↑ "Sears shows off downsized store". The Herald-News. Paterson, New Jersey. October 20, 2017. pp. L7.
  37. ↑ System Map Passaic County, NJ Transit. Accessed January 4, 2018.
  38. ↑ "Park-Ride Center to Open Monday at Willowbrook Mall". The New York Times . January 4, 1974. p. 64.
  39. ↑ American Express Inc (May 8, 1970). Most Credit Cards are Given Away. You Must Apply for the New Money. Time Inc.
  40. ↑ Milici, Lauren. "The Adventures Of Pete & Pete: Paying Tribute To A Quirky Nickelodeon Classic The legendary show gets its due.", Birth.Movies.Death., June 12, 2017. Accessed September 19, 2019. "The photo-booth-turned-command-center that Ellen worked at in the 'What We Did On Our Summer Vacation' special was housed in the parking lot of the Willowbrook Mall in Wayne, NJ."
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.