Top Ryde City facts for kids
View of Top Ryde City from Devlin Street
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| Location | Ryde, New South Wales, Australia |
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| Coordinates | 33°48′44″S 151°06′22″E / 33.812182°S 151.1060215°E |
| Address | Cnr Devlin St &, Blaxland Road, Ryde NSW 2112 |
| Opening date | 11 November 1957 (original) 20 August 2010 (current) |
| Owner | The Blackstone Group |
| No. of stores and services | 276 |
| Total retail floor area | 78,125 m2 (840,931 sq ft) |
| No. of floors | 6 |
| Parking | 6,150 |
Top Ryde City is a big shopping center in Ryde, a suburb in Northern Sydney. It used to be called Top Ryde Shopping Centre. This large indoor and outdoor center is owned by a company called The Blackstone Group.
Contents
Getting to Top Ryde City
Top Ryde City is easy to reach by bus. Buses connect the center to the Sydney CBD, the North Shore, and other Northern Suburbs. You can find most bus stops on Devlin Road and Blaxland Road, right in front of the shopping center.
There isn't a train station directly in Ryde. The closest train stations are at Meadowbank and West Ryde. There's also a metro station nearby at Macquarie Park.
The History of Top Ryde City
How the Original Center Started
The first Top Ryde Shopping Centre opened a long time ago, on November 14, 1957. The Premier of New South Wales, John Joseph Cahill, officially opened it. This was a very important event because it was the first big open-air shopping center built in New South Wales after World War II. It was also only the second open-air mall-style center in all of Australia.
The idea for the center came from Peter Benjamin, whose family owned A.J. Benjamin's stores. In 1953, Peter visited many shopping centers in the United States. He met his friend Peter Yeoman, who was studying American shopping centers. Together, they planned the design for a new kind of shopping center in Sydney.
Early Features and Growth
The original Top Ryde center had a large department store called A.J. Benjamin & Co. It also had a Franklins supermarket, a variety store, and 45 other shops. These stores were all around a walking area, and there were 400 parking spaces. A cool modern sculpture by artist Gordon Andrews was a main feature. The center's motto was "come as you are...shop in comfort." It offered a new way to shop, as people usually had to travel far to find a big department store.
In 1962, the center was sold to Lend Lease, who made it bigger. A Woolworths supermarket opened in 1963. More shops and 200 extra parking spaces were added. The A.J. Benjamin store closed, and Grace Bros took its place in 1964. In the 1970s, a bowling alley called WondABowl-Top Ryde opened, which later became AMF Bowling.
Changes and Challenges Over Time
The center was updated in 1986 and changed its name to Top Ryde Shopping Square. They built a new multi-story car park and improved the mall area. A store called Venture moved into the spot where Grace Bros. used to be.
Venture closed in 1991. After that, a Target store opened, and the shops were reorganized. Banks and service stores were grouped together, and a food court with McDonald's was added.
Over the years, new shopping centers like Macquarie Centre and Rhodes Shopping Centre opened nearby. This made it harder for Top Ryde to attract shoppers. Many stores left, including Target, which closed around 2005–2006.
By the end of its original life, the center was almost empty. It mainly had Woolworths, Franklins, the bowling alley, and about 90 smaller stores like banks. The center had two main floors and a smaller third level for the bowling alley.
The Big Redevelopment
In July 2007, the old center was torn down. Soon after, construction began to build a brand new shopping center. The new center was named Top Ryde City, a name chosen by the City of Ryde Council.
The first part of the new Top Ryde City opened on November 5, 2009. It included about 115 stores, such as Woolworths, Big W, Dan Murphys, and JB Hi-Fi. More sections opened throughout 2010.
The second part opened in March 2010, bringing in Aldi, Rebel Sport, and 60 more shops. This also included the first part of La Strada, a special area for fashion stores.
The third part opened on August 4, 2010, with the Myer department store and more fashion shops in La Strada. Top Ryde City had its official grand opening on August 20, 2010. The Prime Minister at the time, Julia Gillard, was there for the event.
The final parts of the center opened in February 2011. These included Event Cinemas, a childcare center, a medical center, a gym, the new Ryde Library, and the Ryde Planning and Business Centre. There were plans for a Strike Bowling alley, but it never opened.
The project faced some challenges during construction, but these were managed. In 2011, the original owners faced financial difficulties. A new company, Blackstone Group, bought the center in November 2012.
In 2014, a company called Crown Group Holdings finished building apartments above the shopping center. This complex, called Top Ryde City Living, has seven towers and over 600 apartments. It offers great views of Sydney. This development won an award in 2014 from the Urban Development Institute of Australia.
In 2018, Blackstone announced that Top Ryde City was for sale.
Recent Changes and Stores
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On May 5, 2015, the Myer department store at Top Ryde City closed. Many customers were choosing to shop at other Myer stores. Because of this, the center started another big update in June 2015. Some stores closed or moved during this time.
Here are some of the new stores that opened:
- A large Kmart store opened on June 16, 2016. It took the place of a former supermarket.
- A new Coles supermarket, including a liquor store, opened on November 9, 2016. It is on the first floor where Myer used to be.
- A new fresh food area and other new stores also opened on November 9, 2016.
- Harris Scarfe opened its first full Sydney store here on July 22, 2017. However, this store closed in January 2020. It was replaced by Supreme Furniture, which opened in August 2020. Then, Timezone and Zone Bowling opened in that spot on November 21, 2021.
- TK Maxx also opened its store on the same date as Harris Scarfe.
What You Can Find at Top Ryde City
Top Ryde City has a huge floor space of 78,125 square meters. It is home to many popular stores and entertainment options.
Some of the main places you can visit include:
- Big W
- Kmart
- Aldi
- Coles
- Woolworths
- TK Maxx
- JB Hi-Fi
- Rebel (for sports gear)
- Fitness First (a gym)
- Timezone (an arcade and entertainment center)
- Event Cinemas (a movie theater)
