Sunrise Mall[2] is a shopping mall located in East Massapequa, New York. The mall opened on August 30, 1973 as the first two-level shopping mall on Long Island.
 | |
| Location | East Massapequa, New York |
|---|---|
| Opening date | August 30, 1972 |
| Closing date | August 30, 2023 |
| Previous names | Sunrise Mall 1973-2005 Westfield Sunrise 2005-2019 |
| Developer | Muss-Tankoos Corporation |
| Management | Urban Edge Properties |
| Owner | Urban Edge Properties |
| Architect | Lathrop Douglass |
| No. of stores and services | 3 (previously 63) |
| No. of anchor tenants | 3 (3 open, 4 vacant) |
| Total retail floor area | 1,244,386 sq ft (115,607 m2)[1] |
| No. of floors | 2 (3 in Macy's and former Sears, 3rd floor offices in former JCPenney) |
| Parking | 7,000 |
| Website | https://www.sunrisemallny.com |
History
editBuilt by the Muss-Tankoos Corporation, the 1.3-million-square-foot mall cost $45 million and featured 140 individual shops, plus four department stores, as the first two-floor mall on Long Island.[3][4] Opened on August 30, 1973, Sunrise Mall was originally anchored by JCPenney, Gertz, Macy's, and E. J. Korvette.[5][6] Other stores included F. W. Woolworth, Fanny Farmer, Herman's, Thom McAn, Lerner Shops, Nathan's, and Sam Goody.[7] A five-screen movie theater operated by United Artists opened at the mall in 1976. Two more screens were added in 1979.[8]
It was remodeled in 1991 to modernize the space and add a glass elevator and skylights.[4] A koi pond was installed in the mall in 1996, converting a 4,000-gallon duck pond.[9][10] The theater closed at the end of its lease in 1999 and was replaced by multiple stores.[8] The mall was acquired by the Westfield Group in 2005 for $143 million and renamed Westfield Sunrise.[11][12][13] In June 2007, a man was arrested after driving his car through the mall and causing $60,000 worth of damage.[14]
Walmart closed its store in the mall on March 6, 2015 after 12 years and was replaced by Dick's Sporting Goods.[15][16][17] On March 17, 2017, it was announced that JCPenney would be closing their store in the mall and liquidation sales were expected to begin on April 17, 2017.[18] However, on April 13, it announced that, due to more shoppers coming to the store, liquidation sales would begin on May 22, 2017 instead of April 17, 2017. The store ultimately closed on July 31, 2017.[19]
In October 2018, SeaQuest announced its plan to open an interactive aquarium in the Sunrise Mall.[20] However, the company later pulled out in May 2019, citing the lengthy approval process and ongoing resistance from activists, including actor Alec Baldwin.[21] On October 1, 2021, it was announced that Sears would be closing on October 3. This left Macy's as the only traditional anchor left in the mall.[22][23]
On March 19, 2020, the mall closed due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.[24] It remained closed until July 15.[25] On August 4, 2020, it was announced that the mall would be going back to its original name, Sunrise Mall.[26] On January 4, 2021, Sunrise Mall was purchased by Urban Edge Properties from Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield for $29.7 million.[27][28]
In February 2022, it was announced that Urban Edge Properties would not be renewing leases for its remaining 50 tenants and was considering other ways to redevelop the space.[29][30] By September, the mall's 50 koi had been relocated to local schools and the Long Island Aquarium.[9]
Transportation
editNassau Inter-County Express (NICE) buses that serve the mall are the n54 (Hempstead-Sunrise Mall via Washington Avenue), n55 (Hempstead-Sunrise Mall via Jerusalem Avenue), and the n71 Farmingdale State College-Amityville via Hempstead Turnpike). The n54 does not run on Sundays, while the n55 and n71 run seven days a week.
As of September 1, 2024, the n19 and n80 no longer serve the mall, with the n19 terminating at Hicksville Road and the n80 terminating near the mall at Unqua Road and Sunrise Highway.[31]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Sunrise Mall". urbanedge.propertycapsule.com. Retrieved November 5, 2021.
- ^ Bleyer, Bill. "List of Geographical Misnomers". Newsday. Archived from the original on September 30, 2007.
- ^ Sloane, Leonard (August 3, 1973). "First Store Opens at Big Mall on L.I." The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved August 21, 2024.
- ^ a b "Postings: Sunrise Mall Renovation; A Second Dawning". The New York Times. February 24, 1991. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved August 21, 2024.
- ^ DiSclafani, Paul (March 4, 2017). "The Sunrise Mall". Farmingdale Observer. Retrieved August 21, 2024.
- ^ Barrow, Elaine (August 26, 1973). "Huge Mall Casting Competitive Shadow". New York Times. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
- ^ Sloane, Leonard (February 18, 1973). "Sunrise Mall Damning In Nassau Next August". New York Times. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
- ^ a b "Going to the Movies". Historical Society of the Massapequas. February 10, 2018. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
- ^ a b Winzelberg, David (September 1, 2022). "With Sunrise Mall closing, its fish are going to new homes | Long Island Business News". Retrieved August 21, 2024.
- ^ Dunson, Cheryl L. (September 1, 1999). "As Fete Would Have It". National Real Estate Investor. Retrieved August 21, 2024.
- ^ "Westfield Group to buy US shopping mall". The Sydney Morning Herald. June 6, 2005. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
- ^ Ritter, Ian (June 6, 2005). "Westfield Acquires Long Island Mall for $143M". Globest.com. Retrieved August 21, 2024.
- ^ Costello, Alex (August 4, 2020). "Westfield Sunrise Mall Returning To Its Original Name". Massapequa, NY Patch. Retrieved August 21, 2024.
- ^ "Teen turns N.Y. mall into drive-through". NBC News. June 8, 2007. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
- ^ Doyle, Heather (January 5, 2015). "Massapequa Walmart to Close". Massapequa, NY Patch. Retrieved August 21, 2024.
- ^ Stieglitz, Brian (January 13, 2015). "Walmart to leave Sunrise Mall". Herald Community Newspapers. Retrieved August 21, 2024.
- ^ Korb, Priscilla (June 16, 2016). "New Dick's Sporting Goods Store to Open in Massapequa". Massapequa, NY Patch. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
- ^ Korb, Priscilla (March 17, 2017). "Sunrise Mall JCPenney To Close". Massapequa, NY Patch. Retrieved August 21, 2024.
- ^ Korb, Priscila (April 13, 2017). "JCPenney Postpones Store Closures". Massapequa, NY Patch. Retrieved July 16, 2018.
- ^ Costello, Alex (October 10, 2018). "Interactive Aquarium Could Come To Long Island". Massapequa, NY Patch. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
- ^ Costello, Alex (May 17, 2019). "SeaQuest Pulls Application To Build Massapequa Aquarium". Massapequa, NY Patch. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
- ^ Valinote, Nicole (October 4, 2021). "Final Long Island Sears Store Closing, Report Says". Nassau Daily Voice.
- ^ Sweet, Jacqueline (October 5, 2021). "Long Island's Last Sears Store, In Massapequa Mall, Closes". Massapequa, NY Patch. Retrieved August 21, 2024.
- ^ "5 Long Island malls to close today amid coronavirus outbreak". bronx.news12.com. March 19, 2020. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
- ^ Costello, Alex (July 10, 2020). "Westfield Sunrise Mall To Reopen Next Week". Massapequa, NY Patch. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
- ^ Costello, Alex (August 4, 2020). "Westfield Sunrise Mall Returning To Its Original Name". Massapequa, NY Patch. Retrieved August 21, 2024.
- ^ Costello, Alex (January 4, 2021). "Sunrise Mall Sold For Nearly $30 Million". Massapequa, NY Patch. Retrieved August 21, 2024.
- ^ Bonfiglio, Briana (January 6, 2021). "Sunrise Mall in East Massapequa Sold For $29.7M". www.longislandpress.com. Retrieved August 21, 2024.
- ^ McLogan, Jennifer (February 23, 2022). "Sunrise Mall in Massapequa tells tenants to vacate, leaving store owners and employees scrambling". CBS News.
- ^ Winzelberg, David (February 22, 2022). "New owners planning redevelopment of Sunrise Mall". Long Island Business News. Retrieved August 21, 2024.
- ^ "Service Alerts". Nassau Inter-County Express. Archived from the original on August 30, 2024. Retrieved August 30, 2024.