Brunswick Square (shopping mall)
 One of the two main entrances to the mall. | |
 | |
| Location | East Brunswick, New Jersey, USA |
|---|---|
| Opening date | 1970 |
| Developer | DeBartolo Realty Corp. |
| Management | Washington Prime Group |
| Owner | Washington Prime Group |
| No. of stores and services | 60+ |
| No. of anchor tenants | 2 |
| Total retail floor area | 769,041 sq ft (71,446.2 m2) |
| No. of floors | 1 (2 in JCPenney and 3 in Macy’s) |
| Parking | Parking lot |
| Public transit access |   NJ Transit bus: 811, 818 |
| Website | shopbrunswicksquare.com |
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Brunswick Square is a single story shopping mall located in East Brunswick, New Jersey at the intersection of Route 18 and Rues Lane. It is owned and managed by Washington Prime Group and has gross leasable area (GLA) of 769,041 sq ft (71,446.2 m2).[1][2][3] The current anchor stores are JCPenney and Macy's.
History
Brunswick Square Mall, originally owned by DeBartolo Corporation, opened in 1970 with anchors JCPenney and Bamberger's. Bamberger's had previously been a stand-alone store on the property, opening approximately two years prior to the mall itself.[citation needed] Bamberger's became Macy's in 1986 when the chain was phased out in favor of the Macy's name.
By 1989, expansion plans were discussed. Initial plans would have added an additional floor, more stores, a parking deck and an additional anchor store. The plans were scaled back slightly to gain township approval because area residents were apprehensive about the traffic that the new expansion would generate. Due to the recession of the early/mid-1990s, this major expansion never took place.[citation needed]
In 1999, a smaller expansion took place that added a Barnes & Noble and expanded the movie theater to 13 stadium seating screens. The theater expansion occupied an adjacent McCrory's, which was the only non-department store in the mall at the time to feature an outdoor entrance. Several eateries were incorporated into the movie theater, including Nathan's Famous, Ben & Jerry's, and Auntie Anne's, to make up for a lack of a proper food court. Also that year, Simon Property Group acquired the mall from DeBartolo.
In October 2000, the interior of the mall was renovated in which new ceilings, skylights, flooring and lighting was installed and a second main entrance was constructed on the west side of the mall through a space formerly occupied by Kinney Shoes, next to Spencer's Gifts. In 2011, JCPenney underwent major renovations to give the store a new look and add a Sephora inside the department store.
Numerous stores have come and gone since 2011. The movie theater Mega Movies closed down and was replaced by Starplex Cinemas in 2011. Starplex had also bought the fast food franchise licenses of the Nathan's Famous and Ben & Jerry's from Mega Movies but subsequently decided to close the ice cream store due to a lack of revenue.
In early 2013, construction was completed on a new entrance and hallway anchored with a Panera Bread, Tilted Kilt, and GoWireless.[4] In 2015, Starplex Cinemas was bought out by AMC Theatres. Also in 2015, the Subway sandwich store closed and was replaced by the Pop in Cafe. The Pop In Cafe had since closed in 2017 and in its place opened a spa.
In 2016, Simon Property Group sold the mall to WP Glimcher. Also that year, Ruby Tuesday closed to make way for Red Robin and Bar Louie. Red Robin opened in August 2017 and Bar Louie opened in Late 2016. In addition, Rainbow moved next to Famous Footwear during this time and its former storefront was used for Red Robin.
References
- ^ "The History of the Brunswick Square Mall...and Its Future". TAPinto. January 2, 2018.
- ^ International Council of Shopping Centers: Brunswick Square, accessed December 31, 2006.
- ^ "NJ Property Tax Records". State of New Jersey. NJ Department of Treasurey. Retrieved Jan 20, 2016.
- ^ "Panera Bread, Tilted Kilt to Open in Brunswick Square Mall".