Glendale Galleria Remodels With Upscale Look
The Glendale City Council unanimously gave design-review approval for an extensive remodel of the Glendale Galleria retail center Nov. 29.The council will further review plans and give its final approval in 2012, but construction is scheduled to begin in early 2012 and the project will finish in fall 2013, said Larry Martin, senior general manager of the regional mall, located in Glendale, Calif.
“You’ll see some dramatic changes,” Martin said. “With a lot of areas, you won’t recognize it.”
The new look for the Galleria will be decidedly upscale. One of the centerpieces of the mall’s new look will be a Bloomingdale’s department store, which will open in 2013.
While the Galleria was one of the first retail centers to open an Apple store, its physical plant had not changed much since it opened for business.It debuted in 1976, opened a new retail wing in 1988, and renovated its paint and its flooring in 1997. The 2012 renovation will be the most extensive in its more than three-decade history.
All of the Galleria’s entrances will be renovated. A public plaza area will be constructed outside of the main entrance, offering tables and seating. The mall’s carpeting will be taken out and replaced with tile flooring. The familiar brick finish on its walls will be stripped out, too.
The Galleria also will get new glass handrails, renovated restrooms, a new elevator and escalators, and new couches in rest areas, as well as brighter, more efficient lighting and a new look for the food court. Construction crews will work nights and early mornings so they will not disrupt mall shopping hours.
Kennon Architects and ELS Architecture and Urban Design will work with Galleria owner General Growth Properties Inc. to build the mall’s new look. Martin was hired in August and presided over major renovations at Southern California’s Montclair Plaza and Westfield Santa Anita shopping centers.
One of the keystones of the Galleria upgrade will be the new Bloomingdale’s department store, which was announced last month.It will be constructed on the site of the former Mervyns department store. When it opens in 2013, it will employ 175 people. The mall renovation is expected to attract new tenants, and some existing tenants will relocate in the mall.
GGP announced early this year it will spend up to $1 billion on 131 of its properties across America.
In an unusual partnership, the Galleria will work with the owner of its neighbor mall, The Americana at Brand, to find a new tenant for the Galleria’s Nordstrom. Americana owner Rick Caruso purchased the Nordstrom real estate at the Galleria from the Seattle-based specialty retailer for an undisclosed amount in March. Nordstrom willmove from the Galleria to The Americana in 2013.
No new tenant has been named for the Galleria’s Nordstrom space, but the operators of the enclosed mall are working well with Caruso. “We are working together to see what retailer would best fit the property,” Martin said. “It is in his best interest to find the highest and the best use for that location. He is the landlord of that property.”—Andrew Asch
