Garden State Plaza facts for kids
Garden State Plaza by the AMC parking lot, 2014
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| Location | Paramus, New Jersey |
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| Address | 1 Garden State Plaza |
| Opening date | May 25, 1957 |
| Developer | R.H. Macy Company |
| Management | Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield |
| Owner | Unibail-Rodamco Westfield |
| No. of stores and services | 335 (As of March 2014) |
| No. of anchor tenants | 3 at 1957 opening |
| Total retail floor area | 2,118,718 sq ft (196,835.3 m2) |
| No. of floors | 2 (3 in Macy's, Neiman Marcus, and Nordstrom) |
| Parking | Parking lot, parking garage, and valet parking with 10,796 parking spaces. |
| Public transit access |   NJ Transit bus: 163, 171, 175, 707, 709, 756, 758, 770 |
Westfield Garden State Plaza, often called Garden State Plaza, is a large shopping mall in Paramus, New Jersey. It is owned and managed by Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield. The mall is located near major roads like Route 4 and Route 17. It is about 15 miles west of Manhattan.
The mall first opened in 1957. It was the first suburban shopping mall in New Jersey. It has over 2 million square feet of space for stores. With more than 300 shops, it is one of the biggest malls in New Jersey. It is also one of the largest in the New York metropolitan area. It makes a lot of money, making it one of the most successful malls in the United States.
Most of the mall's stores are closed on Sundays. This is because of special rules called blue laws. These laws are in place in New Jersey and Paramus.
History of Garden State Plaza
Garden State Plaza opened on May 25, 1957. It was the first suburban mall in New Jersey. When it first opened, it had three main department stores. These were Bamberger's, Gimbel's, and J.C. Penney. There were also 90 smaller shops. People at the time called it "the largest shopping center in the world."
The mall was built by the Muscarelle Construction Company. The owner and developer was R.H. Macy & Co.. It started as an open-air shopping area. The total cost to build the mall and its first stores was $26 million in 1957.
Garden State Plaza attracted many shoppers from nearby New York. People came to New Jersey to save money. New Jersey had lower sales taxes. Also, clothing purchases were free from sales tax. By 1961, it was known as the world's largest mall.
The mall was changed to be fully enclosed between 1981 and 1984. This was done because newer malls were enclosed. In the late 1980s, a lower level was added. This was made from a former basement tunnel. The J. C. Penney store got a new entrance on this lower level. This entrance has a very short escalator, only six steps high. It is known as the shortest escalator in North America.
In 1990, Nordstrom opened its first store in New Jersey at the mall. It was a large, three-level store. In 1996, Lord & Taylor also opened a store there.
In 1996, the mall finished a big expansion. This project cost $200 million. It added over 700,000 square feet of shopping space. Two large parking garages were also built. The food court downstairs was connected to the new lower level. J. C. Penney became much bigger. Two new main stores were added: Neiman Marcus and Lord & Taylor. These stores were for shoppers looking for high-end fashion. A Venetian carousel was also added near Macy's. The carousel closed in 2016. The space is now used for performances by the Bergen Performing Arts Center.
Westfield bought the mall in 1986 from Macy's. This deal also included other malls in New Jersey.
In 2007, the mall celebrated its 50th anniversary. A new area called the "entertainment lifestyle precinct" opened. This new part included a 16-screen AMC movie theater. It also had 10 new stores. A new parking garage was built under this new area.
In 2013, Parking Garage B was rebuilt. It was made bigger with five levels and 1,800 parking spaces. A new guest services office was also added. In 2014, the mall added a new area called the "Fashion District." This cost $160 million. It has 22 new stores and restaurants.
In 2018, Best Buy closed its store at the mall. It moved to a nearby shopping center. J. C. Penney also closed its store in March 2018. In 2019, Uniqlo moved from Garden State Plaza to another mall nearby.
In July 2019, Toys "R" Us announced it would open a new store at Garden State Plaza. This new store was smaller than old Toys "R" Us stores. It focused on play areas and interactive displays. It opened in November 2019 but closed in January 2021. In August 2020, Lord & Taylor announced it was closing all its stores, including the one at Garden State Plaza.
Blue Laws and the Mall
Blue laws are old rules that limit certain activities on Sundays. In Paramus, these laws are very strict. Because of these rules, Garden State Plaza is almost completely closed on Sundays. Only some restaurants and the movie theater are open. They have special entrances for Sundays.
The mall's parking lot can only be entered from Route 4 and Route 17 on Sundays. Other roads leading to the mall are blocked. Paramus has these strict laws to prevent too much traffic congestion on Sundays. These rules were put in place shortly after the mall opened.
After Hurricane Sandy in 2012, the Governor of New Jersey allowed stores to open on Sunday, November 4. This was to help people affected by the storm. However, after people complained, the blue laws were put back into effect a week later.
Public Transportation
Westfield Garden State Plaza is a local transportation center. Many NJ Transit bus lines serve the mall. These include routes 163, 171, 175, 707, 709, 756, 758 and 770.
See also
In Spanish: Westfield Garden State Plaza para niños
