El Cerrito Plaza (Shopping Center)
Encyclopedia
El Cerrito Plaza is a shopping center in El Cerrito, California
, a suburb in the San Francisco Bay Area
.
An access ramp connects the Plaza with the Ohlone Greenway
bike and pedestrian pathways which run below the elevated BART tracks from Berkeley
to Richmond.
Mexican land grant to Francisco María Castro
. Several buildings were constructed by the Castro family over the years. Víctor Castro
, Francisco's son, built his wood frame adobe home here in the early 19th century and it remained standing until it burned down in 1956, shortly before the original shopping center was built. During the 1930s, the Castro adobe housed a gambling casino, and the eastern side of the current Plaza housed a dog racing track. After the track closed, its parking lot housed a trailer park for Kaiser shipyard workers, with the track field area used by El Cerrito High School. In the late 1940s, a drive in theatre (Cerrito Motor Movies) was built there and operated until the mid 1950s.
El Cerrito Plaza originally opened in 1958 as a 350000 square feet (32,516.1 m²) regional mall, centered around a Capwell's department store. Until Hilltop Mall
opened in nearby Richmond
, it was the only shopping center outside of the various downtown shopping districts in this part of the East Bay
.
El Cerrito Plaza began to decline with the 1976 opening of the Hilltop Mall
in Richmond
. Many of the Asian owned and operated merchants relocated to the Pacific East Mall
when it opened nearby in 1998. and the major redevelopment of Emeryville
in the 1990s and later the Bay Street Emeryville
mall in the 2000s. The closures of the Woolworth's store in 1993 and the Emporium (formerly Capwell's) anchor store in 1996 accelerated the Plaza's decline.
In 2002, El Cerrito Plaza was partly demolished, remodeled, and reopened in its present form. The San Francisco Chronicle panned the newly reconstructed Plaza, calling it "in a nutshell, dysfunctional and dull" and an example that "[i]f a city doesn't insist on good development and then stick to its guns, things can go from bad to worse."
In 2003, as part of the renovation, the shopping center's parking lot was drawn back from the edge of channelized Cerrito Creek
, which runs along the southern boundary of the Plaza, and marks the boundary separating Alameda and Contra Costa Counties. The creek was re-contoured to give it a more natural flow pattern, planted with native vegetation, and edged with a pathway with seating walls by Friends of the Five Creeks.
El Cerrito, Contra Costa County, California
-Transportation:The city's primary transportation infrastructure consists of the El Cerrito Plaza and El Cerrito del Norte BART stations along with several local bus lines, operated by AC Transit, providing access to the surrounding area and the nearby cities of Albany, Berkeley and Richmond...
, a suburb in the San Francisco Bay Area
San Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a populated region that surrounds the San Francisco and San Pablo estuaries in Northern California. The region encompasses metropolitan areas of San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, along with smaller urban and rural areas...
.
Location
El Cerrito Plaza is located on the southern border of El Cerrito (adjacent to Alameda County and the City of Albany) between San Pablo Avenue and the BART rail tracks. Directly to the north is the El Cerrito Plaza BART station.An access ramp connects the Plaza with the Ohlone Greenway
Ohlone Greenway
The Ohlone Greenway is a pedestrian and bicycle path in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area.The path is named for the Ohlone Indians who originally lived in the area....
bike and pedestrian pathways which run below the elevated BART tracks from Berkeley
Berkeley, California
Berkeley is a city on the east shore of the San Francisco Bay in Northern California, United States. Its neighbors to the south are the cities of Oakland and Emeryville. To the north is the city of Albany and the unincorporated community of Kensington...
to Richmond.
History
El Cerrito Plaza is located on a part of the June 12, 1834 Rancho San PabloRancho San Pablo
Rancho San Pablo was a land grant in present day Contra Costa County, California given in 1823 by Governor Luís Antonio Argüello to Francisco María Castro , a former soldier at the San Francisco Presidio and one-time alcalde of the Pueblo of San José. The grant was reconfirmed by Governor José...
Mexican land grant to Francisco María Castro
Francisco María Castro
Francisco María Castro was a landowner in an area of Alta California which later became part of Contra Costa County, California.Francisco María Castro was the third son of Joaquin Ysidro de Castro, one of the founding settlers of the Pueblo of San José and Maria Marina Botiller...
. Several buildings were constructed by the Castro family over the years. Víctor Castro
Víctor Castro
Víctor Ramón Castro was a landowner in an area of Alta California which later became part of Contra Costa County, California.Víctor Castro was the son of Francisco María Castro, a former soldier at the San Francisco Presidio, one-time alcalde of the Pueblo of San José, and grantee of Rancho San...
, Francisco's son, built his wood frame adobe home here in the early 19th century and it remained standing until it burned down in 1956, shortly before the original shopping center was built. During the 1930s, the Castro adobe housed a gambling casino, and the eastern side of the current Plaza housed a dog racing track. After the track closed, its parking lot housed a trailer park for Kaiser shipyard workers, with the track field area used by El Cerrito High School. In the late 1940s, a drive in theatre (Cerrito Motor Movies) was built there and operated until the mid 1950s.
El Cerrito Plaza originally opened in 1958 as a 350000 square feet (32,516.1 m²) regional mall, centered around a Capwell's department store. Until Hilltop Mall
Hilltop Mall
Hilltop Mall is a mall in the Hilltop neighborhood of Richmond, California. Hilltop is managed and co-owned by Simon Property Group, and is anchored by longtime tenants JC Penney, Macy's, Sears, and lastly Wal-Mart, a 2007 addition. -History:...
opened in nearby Richmond
Richmond, California
Richmond is a city in western Contra Costa County, California, United States. The city was incorporated on August 7, 1905. It is located in the East Bay, part of the San Francisco Bay Area. It is a residential inner suburb of San Francisco, as well as the site of heavy industry, which has been...
, it was the only shopping center outside of the various downtown shopping districts in this part of the East Bay
East Bay (San Francisco Bay Area)
The East Bay is a commonly used, informal term for the lands on the eastern side of the San Francisco Bay, in the San Francisco Bay Area, in California, United States...
.
El Cerrito Plaza began to decline with the 1976 opening of the Hilltop Mall
Hilltop Mall
Hilltop Mall is a mall in the Hilltop neighborhood of Richmond, California. Hilltop is managed and co-owned by Simon Property Group, and is anchored by longtime tenants JC Penney, Macy's, Sears, and lastly Wal-Mart, a 2007 addition. -History:...
in Richmond
Richmond, California
Richmond is a city in western Contra Costa County, California, United States. The city was incorporated on August 7, 1905. It is located in the East Bay, part of the San Francisco Bay Area. It is a residential inner suburb of San Francisco, as well as the site of heavy industry, which has been...
. Many of the Asian owned and operated merchants relocated to the Pacific East Mall
Pacific East Mall
Pacific East Mall is an Asian mall in Richmond, California. It is owned by Pacific Infinity Company Incorporated.The mall opened in 1998 in Richmond's Richmond Annex neighborhood but straddling the El Cerrito border at a former Breuner's location...
when it opened nearby in 1998. and the major redevelopment of Emeryville
Emeryville, California
Emeryville is a small city located in Alameda County, California, in the United States. It is located in a corridor between the cities of Berkeley and Oakland, extending to the shore of San Francisco Bay. Its proximity to San Francisco, the Bay Bridge, the University of California, Berkeley, and...
in the 1990s and later the Bay Street Emeryville
Bay Street Emeryville
Bay Street Emeryville is a large shopping mall in Emeryville, California which currently has 65 stores, ten restaurants, a sixteen-screen movie theater, 230 room hotel, and 400 residential units with 1,000 residents.-Surroundings:...
mall in the 2000s. The closures of the Woolworth's store in 1993 and the Emporium (formerly Capwell's) anchor store in 1996 accelerated the Plaza's decline.
In 2002, El Cerrito Plaza was partly demolished, remodeled, and reopened in its present form. The San Francisco Chronicle panned the newly reconstructed Plaza, calling it "in a nutshell, dysfunctional and dull" and an example that "[i]f a city doesn't insist on good development and then stick to its guns, things can go from bad to worse."
In 2003, as part of the renovation, the shopping center's parking lot was drawn back from the edge of channelized Cerrito Creek
Cerrito Creek
Cerrito Creek is one of the principal watercourses running out of the Berkeley Hills into San Francisco Bay in northern California. It is significant for its use as a boundary demarcation historically, as well as presently. In the early 19th century, it separated the vast Rancho San Antonio to...
, which runs along the southern boundary of the Plaza, and marks the boundary separating Alameda and Contra Costa Counties. The creek was re-contoured to give it a more natural flow pattern, planted with native vegetation, and edged with a pathway with seating walls by Friends of the Five Creeks.
Anchors
- Barnes and Noble
- Bed Bath and Beyond
- CVS Pharmacy (formerly Longs DrugsLongs DrugsLongs Drugs is an American chain of over 40 drug stores throughout the State of Hawaii. Before being acquired by CVS Caremark in 2008, it was a chain of over 500 stores, located primarily on the West Coast of the United States...
) - Dress Barn
- JoAnn Fabrics
- Lucky StoresLucky StoresLucky Stores is an American supermarket chain founded in Alameda County, California in 1935. Lucky is currently operated by SuperValu in Southern California and Nevada and by Save Mart in Northern California and Nevada.In 1998, Lucky's parent company, American Stores, was taken over by Albertsons,...
(formerly AlbertsonsAlbertsons LLCAlbertsons LLC is a North American grocery company based in Boise, Idaho, with over 240 supermarkets located in Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, and Florida under the Albertson's and Super Saver Foods banners...
) - PetcoPETCOPETCO is a chain of retail stores that offers pet supplies and services such as grooming and dog training. Founded in 1965 and incorporated in Delaware, it is headquartered in San Diego, California...
- Ross Dress For LessRoss Dress For LessRoss Stores, Inc. , is a chain of American off-price department stores headquartered in Pleasanton, California, operating under the name Ross Dress for Less. It is the third largest off-price retailer in the United States, behind T.J. Maxx and Marshalls, both of which are owned by TJX Companies.As...
- Trader Joe'sTrader Joe'sTrader Joe's is a privately held chain of specialty grocery stores headquartered in Monrovia, California. , Trader Joe's had a total of 365 stores. Approximately half of its stores are in California, with the heaviest concentration in Southern California, but the company also has locations in 30...
Restaurants and Eateries
- Chef's Chinese Food
- Jamba JuiceJamba JuiceJamba Juice is a chain of smoothie restaurants, headquartered in Emeryville, California, with over 700 locations operating in 30 states, the Bahamas, Canada, Korea, and the Philippines. Over 500 locations are company-owned, with the remainder being franchised...
- The Junket
- Pasta PomodoroPasta PomodoroPasta Pomodoro is an Italian food typically prepared with pasta, olive oil, fresh tomatoes, basil, and other fresh ingredients that may vary. It is intended to be a quick light dish, rather than a dish in a heavy sauce.Pomodoro means tomato in Italian....
- Panda ExpressPanda ExpressPanda Express is a fast casual restaurant chain serving American Chinese cuisine. It operates mainly inside the United States, in casinos, shopping malls, supermarkets, airports, train stations, strip plazas, theme parks, stadiums, college campuses and The Pentagon...
- Rubio's
- Romano's Macaroni GrillRomano's Macaroni GrillRomano's Macaroni Grill is an Italian-style chain of casual dining restaurants with locations throughout the United States, Mexico, and Canada. The first restaurant was founded by Texas restaurateur Philip J. Romano in Leon Springs, Texas, on April 19, 1988. Brinker International bought the...
- StarbucksStarbucksStarbucks Corporation is an international coffee and coffeehouse chain based in Seattle, Washington. Starbucks is the largest coffeehouse company in the world, with 17,009 stores in 55 countries, including over 11,000 in the United States, over 1,000 in Canada, over 700 in the United Kingdom, and...
- Wing Stop
- Yami Sushi
- Lords (formally Coldstone)
Other Retail Stores
- AT&TAT&TAT&T Inc. is an American multinational telecommunications corporation headquartered in Whitacre Tower, Dallas, Texas, United States. It is the largest provider of mobile telephony and fixed telephony in the United States, and is also a provider of broadband and subscription television services...
- GameStopGameStopGameStop Corporation is an American video game and entertainment software retailer. The company, whose headquarters is in Grapevine, Texas, United States, operates 6,500 retail stores throughout the United States, Canada, Australia, Austria, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, New...
- Pier 1 ImportsPier 1 ImportsPier 1 Imports Inc. is a Fort Worth, Texas based retailer specializing in imported home furnishings and decor, particularly furniture, table-top items, decorative accessories and seasonal decor. The chain operates over 1,000 stores under the name Pier 1 Imports in the United States, Canada, Mexico...
- See's CandiesSee's CandiesSee's Candies is a manufacturer and distributor of candy, particularly chocolate, in the western United States. It was founded by Charles See, his wife Florence, and his mother Mary in Los Angeles, California, in 1921. The company is now headquartered in South San Francisco, California...
- Silver Screen Video
- T-MobileT-MobileT-Mobile International AG is a German-based holding company for Deutsche Telekom AG's various mobile communications subsidiaries outside Germany. Based in Bonn, Germany, its subsidiaries operate GSM and UMTS-based cellular networks in Europe, the United States, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands...
- Verizon WirelessVerizon WirelessCellco Partnership, doing business as Verizon Wireless, is one of the largest mobile network operators in the United States. The network has 107.7 million subscribers as of 2011, making it the largest wireless service provider in America....
- The UPS StoreThe UPS StoreThe UPS Store is a subsidiary of UPS, with locations in the United States and Canada. Each store offers shipping, postal, online printing, and other business services. In the United States, each store is independently owned and operated by a licensed franchisee of Mail Boxes Etc., Inc...
External links
- El Cerrito Plaza, Official site.