Willow Grove Park Mall Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids
Willow Grove Park Mall
The third-floor carousel entrance of the Willow Grove Park Mall
Coordinates	40°08′25″N 75°07′24″W / 40.1402°N 75.1234°W / 40.1402; -75.1234
Address	2500 Moreland Road Willow Grove, PA, 19090
Opening date	August 11, 1982 (1982-08-11)
Developer	Federated Department Stores and The Rubin Organization
Management	Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust
Owner	Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust
Architect	RTKL
No. of stores and services	120+
No. of anchor tenants	6 (5 open, 1 under redevelopment)
Total retail floor area	1,203,423 square feet (111,802 m²)
No. of floors	3 (1 in Nordstrom Rack and Sears, 2 in Primark, Forever 21, and future Studio Movie Grill)
Parking	Parking lot, parking garage
Public transit access	SEPTA bus: 22, 55, 95, 310, 311

The Willow Grove Park Mall is a large, three-story shopping mall in Willow Grove, Pennsylvania. It's located where Easton Road and Moreland Road (Pennsylvania Route 63) meet. This mall has more than 120 stores and several restaurants. Some of its biggest stores, called anchor stores, include Bloomingdale's, Sears, Primark, Macy's, and Nordstrom Rack. You can also find popular places to eat like The Cheesecake Factory and Yard House.

The mall is owned by a company called Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust (PREIT). It's one of the most popular malls in the Philadelphia area. Inside, you'll find a cool fountain, a fun carousel, and a scenic elevator. Every October, the fountain lights up pink to support Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

Where to Find Willow Grove Park Mall
What Stores Are Inside?
A Look Back: The Mall's History
Why the Mall is Important
Images for kids
See also

Where to Find Willow Grove Park Mall

The Willow Grove Park Mall is built on the same spot where the old Willow Grove Amusement Park used to be. This is in the area known as Willow Grove, Pennsylvania, which is part of Abington Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. It's about 15 miles (24 km) north of downtown Philadelphia.

The mall is surrounded by several roads. Pennsylvania Route 63 (Moreland Road) is to its northeast. Easton Road is to the southeast, and Old Welsh Road is to the southwest. The mall is also close to Pennsylvania Route 611. It's just over a mile from the Willow Grove exit of the Pennsylvania Turnpike.

Many SEPTA bus routes stop at the mall, including 22, 55, 95, 310, and 311. You can also get there by train, as it's near the Willow Grove station on the Warminster Line of SEPTA Regional Rail. People from eastern Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, and parts of Philadelphia and Bucks County, Pennsylvania often visit this mall.

What Stores Are Inside?

A view of the mall from the third floor near The Grove food court

The Willow Grove Park Mall has six main anchor stores. The largest one is Bloomingdale's, which opened when the mall first did in 1982. Another big store is Macy's, added in 2001 during a mall expansion. Sears is also an original anchor, though it became Sears in 1987 after starting as B. Altman and Company. In 2015, Sears made its space smaller, and Primark took over some of the extra room.

One of the original anchor spots used to be Abraham & Straus, then Strawbridge & Clothier. After Strawbridge's closed in 2006, parts of its space became new restaurants and stores. For example, The Cheesecake Factory opened there in 2007. Later, a Bravo! Cucina Italiana opened and then became Yard House in 2019. A two-story Forever 21 also moved into a part of this space. The lower floors of the old Strawbridge's became a JCPenney in 2012, but that store closed in 2017. The plan is for a Studio Movie Grill to open there soon. The smallest anchor store, Nordstrom Rack, opened in 2012 in another part of the former Strawbridge's.

Besides these large stores, the mall has over 130 smaller shops. These include popular places like Apple Store, a two-story H&M, Sephora, Victoria's Secret, Build-A-Bear Workshop, and GameStop. When you get hungry, you can visit the food court with many options or sit down at restaurants like The Cheesecake Factory, TGI Fridays, and Yard House.

A Look Back: The Mall's History

Carousel on the third floor of the mall

Before the mall was built, this spot was home to Willow Grove Park, a very popular amusement park that was open from 1896 to 1975.

In 1978, two companies, Federated Department Stores and The Rubin Organization, announced plans to build a new shopping mall where the amusement park once stood. The local government approved the plans in 1979. The Willow Grove Park Mall officially opened its doors on August 11, 1982. It was designed with a Victorian style to remember the old amusement park.

When the mall first opened, its main stores were Bloomingdale's, Abraham & Straus, and B. Altman and Company. Bloomingdale's moved here from another location nearby. The mall was meant to be a fancy, upscale place to shop. Over time, the types of stores changed to also attract more middle-class shoppers. In 1987, B. Altman and Company became Sears. In 1988, Abraham & Straus changed to Strawbridge & Clothier.

Third floor of the mall looking toward Primark

In 2001, the mall got a big makeover. This included adding Macy's as a new anchor store and building a large parking garage. A fun carousel was also added on the third floor. In 2005, a special mosaic wall was put up in the mall. It shows images from the old Willow Grove Park and was created by local art programs.

In 2006, Strawbridge's closed. Part of its space became The Cheesecake Factory in 2007. On November 25, 2006, a small fire happened in the Forever 21 store. About 6,000 shoppers had to leave, but luckily, no one was hurt.

Why the Mall is Important

The Willow Grove Park Mall is a very important place for the Abington Township area. It's one of the most successful malls in the Philadelphia region. In fact, it's known as one of the best places for new stores to open in the Philadelphia market because of its location and wide variety of shops.

The mall also provides many jobs. In 2018, it employed 2,065 people, making it one of the biggest employers in Abington Township. When the mall opened, it changed how people shopped in the area. Many department stores that used to be on Old York Road in nearby towns moved to the mall.