Abella Center facts for kids

Abella Center was once called International Marketplace and even earlier, El Portal Shopping Center. It is a special place in San Pablo, California that combines city services, businesses, shops, and homes. It's designed to be easy to reach by public transport, which is called a transit-oriented development.

History of Abella Center

How it Started

The shopping center first opened in the 1960s. It had big stores like Simon's Department Store (which later became Mervyn's), a HomeBase home improvement store, and a Safeway supermarket.

But over time, the center started to struggle. Safeway left in the 1990s, Mervyn's moved to a new shopping center nearby, and HomeBase stores closed down. The center also wasn't very close to the main highway, Interstate 80, even though the highway passed by. A much bigger mall, Hilltop Mall Shopping Center in Richmond, California, also opened and attracted many shoppers away.

Making it New Again

In the early 2000s, the city of San Pablo decided to make the shopping center better. They hired experts who knew how to fix struggling malls. The center was renamed International Marketplace. The idea was to make it a special place for different cultures to shop.

The old Safeway store was turned into an Asian Supermarket. The former HomeBase building became a two-story market with many small shops. Parts of the mall were torn down to build new homes, like apartments and condos. This new area was called Abella. A big archway was built over San Pablo Avenue with the center's name on it.

The city also moved its city hall to the center. Other important services, like the Contra Costa County social services and library, also moved there. Some people thought the archway should have said "San Pablo" instead of just the center's name. The city started holding fun events here, like Halloween parties.

Changing Plans Again

By the late 2000s, the city was not happy because many shops were empty. The experts they hired had promised to bring a movie theater, but they didn't. So, the city stopped working with them.

The San Pablo City Council then approved a new plan. More of the shopping center was torn down. New restaurants and services for people traveling were added along San Pablo Avenue. More homes were also built, connecting better with the rest of the area. At this point, the city changed the sign on the archway to say "Welcome to San Pablo." They also renamed the entire mall to Abella Shopping Center.

Neighborhood Around Abella

The Abella Center is right next to Contra Costa College. This means many students and people who travel for work use the center. Many AC Transit bus lines, like 71, 72, 72R, 74, 76, 376, 607, 609, 669, 673, 674, 676, and 677, stop here. These buses connect the center to nearby Richmond and El Cerrito del Norte BART stations. There is also a special BRT station at San Pablo Avenue and the Abella Center. Another bus service, WestCat line C3, also serves the area. The city now calls this whole area the "Abella District."