Macdonald 80 Shopping Center
Encyclopedia
North & East (Central Richmond), Richmond, California
North & East as it is officially designated, but better known as Central Richmond is a neighborhood on the eastern side of Richmond, California.-Geography:...
neighborhood in Richmond, California
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...
anchored by a Target store. The center was largely demolished and rebuilt after suffering from urban decay and blight. It is the only entirely LEED
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design consists of a suite of rating systems for the design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings, homes and neighborhoods....
certified mall.
History
The mall was built in the 1950s and was originally anchored by a Montgomery Wards department store and a ToysЯus toy store. At the time it was the only modern shopping center in the general area as Hilltop MallHilltop 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:...
, Pinole Visa, and Bay Street
Bay Street
Bay Street, originally known as Bear Street, is a major thoroughfare in Downtown Toronto. It is the centre of Toronto's Financial District and is often used by metonymy to refer to Canada's financial industry since succeeding Montreal's St. James Street in that role in the 1970s...
had not yet been built. The toy store relocated to Pinole Vista Shopping Center in the 1990s while the department store went bankrupt company-wide and closed its location. The site fell into disuse and only supported a Mechanics Bank
Mechanics Bank
Mechanics Bank is a community banking financial institution headquartered in Richmond, California. It was founded in 1905 and currently serves markets in Northern California. It operates in the San Francisco Bay and Sacramento areas. The bank has over 2.7 billion dollars in assets and over 700...
and some small ma 'n pa local businesses.
Redevelopment
In 2004 as part of redevelopment efforts to revitalize the city's "Main Street" - Macdonald AvenueMacDonald Avenue
Macdonald Avenue is the main east-to-west artery in the Oakland suburb of Richmond.-Overview:Macdonald Avenue runs in a straight line from the Richmond Parkway through downtown to San Pablo Avenue, after which it continues as a minor street for a few blocks, ending at Ludwig Avenue in El...
the city began to contemplate the revival of the center.
This was envisioned as a way to ameliorate the budget deficit by acquiring additional sales tax revenues. controversially used eminent domain to demolish the entire mall, except the former toy store Mechanics Bank sites.
A new shopping center with modern central parking surrounded by shopping; as opposed to the classical retail architectural model of a centrally located retail structure building. The site is located between Macdonald Avenue, Interstate 80, Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART)
Bay Area Rapid Transit
Bay Area Rapid Transit is a rapid transit system serving the San Francisco Bay Area. The heavy-rail public transit and subway system connects San Francisco with cities in the East Bay and suburbs in northern San Mateo County. BART operates five lines on of track with 44 stations in four counties...
tracks and a county health center.
The city plans to expand the center by demolishing the health center and former toy store building and constructing a Lowe's
Lowe's
Lowe's Companies, Inc. is a U.S.-based chain of retail home improvement and appliance stores. Founded in 1946 in North Wilkesboro, North Carolina, the chain now serves more than 14 million customers a week in its 1,710 stores in the United States and 20 in Canada. Expansion into Canada began in...
home improvement store and garden center. The county health center would be relocated to Doctor's Hospital in San Pablo
San Pablo, California
San Pablo is a city in Contra Costa County, California, United States. The city of Richmond surrounds nearly the whole city. The population was 29,139 at the 2010 census. The current Mayor is Paul V. Morris, and the current Vice Mayor is Cecilia Valdez. Current Councilmembers include Arturo M....
.
A Target Greatlands was originally envisioned however it was scaled down to a regular Target. Therefore a nearby Target in El Cerrito
El Cerrito, 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...
that had decayed over the years was relocated to this site. It is both the only LEED
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design consists of a suite of rating systems for the design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings, homes and neighborhoods....
certified and only Target with its own built-in police substation.
Transportation
A fork was added to the Richmond GreenwayRichmond Greenway
-History:It runs along what was formerly the right-of way of the Santa Fe Railroad parallel to Ohio Street, between the end of the Ohlone Greenway adjacent to the intersection of Macdonald and San Pablo Avenues, and Point Richmond. There is a connector from the trail to the Macdonald 80 Shopping...
trail to connect with the mall. The mall is accessible by Macdonald Avenue, Interstate 80 and AC Transit bus lines 72M and 800 directly, while routes 7, 72 the 72R BRT
Bus rapid transit
Bus rapid transit is a term applied to a variety of public transportation systems using buses to provide faster, more efficient service than an ordinary bus line. Often this is achieved by making improvements to existing infrastructure, vehicles and scheduling...
line stop within one block. It is also within walking and biking distance from the del Norte BART station
El Cerrito del Norte (BART station)
El Cerrito del Norte, frequenly shorterned to del Norte, is one of two BART stations in El Cerrito, California, just east of the Cutting Boulevard interchange of Interstate 80 parallel to San Pablo Avenue and the Ohlone Greenway straddling the Richmond border. Del Norte opened to revenue service on...
through the Ohlone and Richmond Greenway
Richmond Greenway
-History:It runs along what was formerly the right-of way of the Santa Fe Railroad parallel to Ohio Street, between the end of the Ohlone Greenway adjacent to the intersection of Macdonald and San Pablo Avenues, and Point Richmond. There is a connector from the trail to the Macdonald 80 Shopping...
trails.