Rockaway Townsquare (commonly referred to as Rockaway Mall ) is located at Interstate 80 and Mount Hope Avenue in Rockaway Township, New Jersey. It was built on top of a wetland, which was not protected in New Jersey until 1988 with the passage of the New Jersey Freshwater Wetlands Protection Act. The mall features more than 180 specialty stores such as Abercrombie & Fitch, Aeropostale, J. Crew, Toys "R" Us, GAP, and a food court located near Sears and anchored by Macy's, Lord & Taylor, JCPenney, and Sears. The mall is currently owned by the Simon Property Group and has a gross leasable area of 1,250,000 ft², placing it in the top ten among the largest shopping malls in New Jersey.
Description
Rockaway Townsquare is located at the intersection of Interstate 80 and Mount Hope Ave. at exits 35 east and west. The mall includes 180 specialty stores including Abercrombie & Fitch, Aeropostale, American Eagle Outfitters, Ann Taylor, Apple, Babies "R" Us, bebe, Brookstone, Build-a-Bear Workshop, Cache, The Children's Place, Coach, The Disney Store, Express, Fossil, GAP, GAP kids, Godiva chocolatier, Guess?, Gymboree, H&M, Helzberg Diamonds, Hollister Co., J. Crew, Le Gourmet Chef, Swarovski, Tilly's and anchors JCPenney, Lord & Taylor, Macy's, Sears. Approximatley 40 boutiques or so at Rockaway Townsquare.
Mall history
The mall first opened on Labor Day Weekend of 1977. A glass elevator was added to center court in the 1990s. In 1999, the mall was purchased by Simon Property Group. Notable stores that have since closed include: Hahne's which was in the location currently occupied by Lord & Taylor, Child World which is now occupied by Office Depot. AMC Theaters had screens 1-6 in the location currently occupied by FYE inside the mall and screens 7-12 in the location currently occupied by Best Buy in the strip mall on the perimeter road (closed after the theater inside the mall). At the time when the theaters were open, it was the first multiplex in America.
On August 25, 2009, a small plane crash-landed in the parking lot. The only injury was the pilot, who walked away and was treated.
Anchors and former anchors
- J. C. Penney (181,000 square feet, two floors)
- Lord & Taylor (150,000 square feet, two floors) – Opened as Hahne's; became Lord & Taylor in 1988
- Macy's (260,000 square feet, two floors) – Opened as Bamberger's; became Macy's in 1986
- Sears (191,000 square feet, two floors)
Expansion and future plans
The mall has undergone several expansions since it opened. These include a strip mall in the southeast corner of the property currently anchored by Best Buy , ACME-Sav-on, Rite Aid, and Office Depot. A Hilton Garden Inn was opened next to an office building that is currently occupied by BASF. A row of three stores (Michaels, and Borders) was opened next to that. The west end of the property, called Rockaway Plaza, is now occupied by Target, Dick's Sporting Goods, Pier 1 Imports, PetSmart and a new 16 screen AMC Theatres (not connected to the original 12 screens), which will have one of its screens converted for digital IMAX projection by July 2008, although it has been delayed until next year. The Shops at Rockaway Mall, a strip mall developed by Transmark Company, also opened in the corner near Route 80 and features Dunkin' Donuts (it should noted that one used to exist in the mall next to the food court), Fatburger, Cold Stone Creamery, Quizno's, La Salsa and Supercuts along with a separate Olive Garden. Future plans include a Banana Republic, and a The Limited, and others but none has been built since the 2005 proposal. Recently, a Maui Wowi opened where the former Haagen Daz was located in the food court. Around the mall, the HDTVs located throughout the lobby of the mall now show updated news stories and events at the mall. In the renovated food court, there is a Charley's restaurant that serves subs.
Renovations
In 2007, the mall began renovations to both its interior and exterior and as of October 2008, is near completion. The renovations included updated flooring (carpeted upper level, ceramic tile on central portion of lower level, as well as a marble-floored center court), a remodeled and modernized food court that includes new ceilings, a rounded appearance and banquette seating, repainted ceilings in earth tones and new lighting. The mall entrances are still under renovation and the parking lot will receive new lighting. This is the malls 2nd renovation (the first taking place in 1995), which was finished just in time for the mall's grand reopening the weekend of November 21, 2008.
Transportation
The mall is served by several bus routes:
Taxis are plentiful and charge $5 to $8 for a one-way ride to the New Jersey Transit Dover Rail Station on the Morristown Line and the Montclair-Boonton Line.
Rail proposals
The mall has been included in many rail proposals to relieve traffic on Interstate 80. However, traffic has become increasingly worse and backups are common as far as Netcong.
If a rail station had been built when the mall was constructed, it probably would have sat unused until 1982 when the Comet II passenger cars arrived as any electrification would have been to the current that was going to be used on the Morris & Essex Lines and wasn't placed in service along with the Arrow III MUs until 1984.
The Comet I cars were equipped with low-doors and since most trains might have been sent via the Morristown Line providing for management concerns about diesel noise and exhaust from the U34CH locomotives near the mall.
References
- ^ International Council of Shopping Centers: Rockaway Townsquare Mall, accessed September 21 , 2006
- ^ AT THE MOVIES; How Resnais made a success with science. - New York Times
- ^ http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2009/08/25/2009-08-25_small_plane_crashlands_in_new_jersey_mall_parking_lot.html
- ^ Rockaway mall plans expansions, additions: Loews 16-screen movie theater, Olive Garden among new businesses, Daily Record , January 23 , 2005
External links
- Official Homepage
- The Shops at Rockaway Mall
- International Council of Shopping Centers: Rockaway Townsquare Mall
Coordinates: 40°54′25″N 74°33′14″W / 40.907°N 74.554°W / 40.907;
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