Located along Greater Vancouver's scenic North Shore, PARK ROYAL CENTRE opened for business in September 1950. It was Canada's first post-war, regional-class shopping complex. In its original state, the open-air strip complex encompassed approximately 130,000 leasable square feet and contained twenty-four stores and services.
Drawing from British Properties, Limited
PARK ROYAL CENTRE encompassed
approximately 130,000 leasable square feet and contained twenty-four
stores and services. An F.W. Woolworth 5 & 10, seen on the left, was the only 2-level store.
Photo from West Vancouver Memorial Library Digital Collections / Williams Brothers Photographers
Van-based Woodward's anchored PARK ROYAL CENTRE with a single-level store (seen on the right).
Photo from West Vancouver Memorial Library Digital Collections / Williams Brothers Photographers
Our first PARK ROYAL plan dates to 1955, when the shopping hub housed thirty-eight stores and services (with two outparcel tenants). A second floor had been added to Woodward's in 1953, along with a small extension of the northwest store block (in dark gray). With these improvements, the complex spanned approximately 186,000 leasable square feet. There was free parking for 700 autos.
A second shopping centre was built across the road from the original strip complex. PARK ROYAL SOUTH, completed in October 1962, was an enclosed facility with fifty-eight tenants. Among these were an Eaton's department store and Super Valu grocery.
Photo from Malls of America Blogspot
Using a process of elimination (and a great deal of vintage newspaper searching), we have assembled a list of what -apparently- were the first ten regional-class enclosed shopping malls in Canada. This list will be corrected if any errors are revealed.
1. WELLINGTON SQUARE, London ON [August 1960]
2. THORNCLIFFE MARKET PLACE, Toronto, ON [November 1960]
3. FAIRVIEW MALL, St. Catherines, ON [April 1961]
4. THOMPSON PLAZA, Thompson, MB [November 1961]
5. PLACE LAURIER, Quebec City, QU [November 1961]
6. SHOPPERS' WORLD (Danforth), Toronto, ON [May 1962]
7. HALIFAX CENTRE, Halifax, NS [September 1962]
8. SHOPPING PROMENADE-PLACE VILLE MARIE, Montreal, QU [September 1962]
9. PARK ROYAL SOUTH, West Vancouver, BC [October 1962]
10. MEADOWLARK PARK CENTRE, Edmonton, AB [September 1963]
The new PARK ROYAL SOUTH mall is shown in medium gray on this circa-'63 plan. This 5 million dollar facility spanned approximately 340,000 leasable square feet. A 1961 expansion of PARK ROYAL NORTH (in darker gray) added a larger Woodward's Food Floor store, which increased the size of that complex to approximately 210,000 leasable square feet. Expanded parking areas at both centres now accommodated 3,000 autos.
PARK ROYAL CENTRE TENANTS 1963:
-Park Royal North & Park Royal South-
WOODWARD'S (with Lunch Counter, Public Auditorium, Garden Shop and hardware department) / WOODWARD'S FOOD FLOOR (with lunch counter and bakery) / F.W. WOOLWORTH 5 & 10 / EATON'S (with Coffee Shop, Outdoor & Garden Shop and Budget Store) / SUPER VALU supermarket / Alderson's picture framing / Aluminum Shop / Bank of Montreal / Bata Shoes / Birks Jewelers / Capilano Hobbies / Carlton's Cleaning Carousel / Coach House Gifts / Colonial Color Shop / Charmante Gowns / Dairy Queen (outparcel) / Docksteader Drugs (with luncheonette) / Docy's Accessories / Donut House / Eilers Jewelers / Eleanor Mack / Ena Swires Linens / Fireplace Arts / George Sparling Sporting Goods / Hair Fashions / Jenwood Gifts / Kelly's Music / Laurentide Finance Company / Gray's Apparel / Maurice's Park Royal Restaurant / Murchie's Tea & Coffee Shop / National Trust Company / Nelsons Laundries & Dry Cleaners / Oakenfull McDonald men's wear / Parks Barber Shop / Park Florist / Park Royal Drugs / Park Royal Lanes bowling alley (outparcel) / Pederson Barbers / R.C. Purdy Chocolates / Rae-Son Ladies' & Children's Shoes / Raymond Salons / Reitman's ladies' wear / Ricky's Pancake & Chicken House / Royal Bank of Canada / Royal Seafoods / Sabrina Fashions / Shoe Clinic / Slinger Realty / Standard Oil Service Station (outparcel) / Soon's Market / Sight & Sound home electronics / Signature Cakes / The Nut House / United Cigar Stores / Van Dyke Studio / Victor's Delicatessen / Wendy's Children's Wear / White Spot Drive-In restaurant (outparcel) / Woodward's Furniture & Carpets / World Wide Travel
A PARK ROYAL logo montage features trademarks of stores and services in operation in the North and South Malls between the years 1950 and 1969.
In November 1969, an expanded and fully-enclosed PARK ROYAL NORTH mall was dedicated. Newly-built sections are shown in light gray. As part of the 7 million dollar renovation, the Woodward's department and grocery stores were enlarged. 2 levels of parking covered the centre section of the complex, with a 3-level garage added east of Woodward's. The North Mall now covered approximately 340,000 leasable square feet.
In the mid-1970s, plans were announced for an expansion of PARK ROYAL SOUTH. A partial upper level would be added, which would surround a spacious Centre Court area.
Drawing from British Pacific Properties, Limited
The SOUTH extension would also include a shiny new Hudson's Bay Company ("The Bay") department store.
Drawing from Hudson's Bay Company
A 21 million dollar remodeling was completed in August 1978. The new & improved "South Mall" encompasses around 550,000 leasable square feet. A new Super Valu store now stands on the opposite end of the mall (near Eaton's) and parking garages and rooftop decks surround the complex. There is now free parking for 6,000 autos.
The Hudson's Bay Company (The Bay) store at PARK ROYAL SOUTH covered 122,000 square feet. The store included a Hair Salon and Capilano Buffet restaurant.
Photo from West Vancouver Memorial Library Digital Collections / William McPhee
Neither PARK ROYAL malls were renovated during the 1980s. By late in the decade, they had taken on a dowdy appearance.
Photo from West Vancouver Memorial Library Digital Collections / William McPhee
Woodward's Food Floor operated in PARK ROYAL NORTH between September 1950 and June 1992.
Photo from West Vancouver Memorial Library Digital Collections / William McPhee
Canada's first lifestyle centre opened, at PARK ROYAL SOUTH, in September and October of 2004. THE VILLAGE AT PARK ROYAL cost 30 million dollars and housed thirty-four stores and services. Some of the original inline tenants were Old Navy, The Urban Tea Merchant, Oliver Barret, Urban Barn and Lululemon Athletica.
Graphic from Larco Enterprises
THE VILLAGE AT PARK ROYAL is shown in medium gray on this circa-2005 plan. The "urban village" was built on land previously occupied by a bowling alley, cinema and golf driving range. The combined gross leasable area of PARK ROYAL SOUTH and THE VILLAGE now stood at around 990,000 leasable square feet.
PARK ROYAL SOUTH was given a major makeover during the 2010s. Renovations were done inside and out, with several tony tenants joining the directory.
Photo from https://www.tourismvancouver.com
The most posh store in today's PARK ROYAL CENTRE would surely be a branch of Quebec City's La Maison Simons. The PARK ROYAL location, built onto the South Mall, opened for business in October 2015.
Photo from https://www.tourismvancouver.com
PARK ROYAL NORTH was also refurbished inside and out during the 2010s. One of its new stores, Saks Off Fifth Avenue Outlet, debuted in August 2017.
Photo from https://www.tourismvancouver.com
A 2020s addition to PARK ROYAL CENTRE is Gateway Residences Park Royal, a mixed-use residential and retail facility. Two 12 and 14-storey towers have been built over 3 levels of underground parking.
Drawing from www.gatewayresidencespr.com
Our final PARK ROYAL CENTRE plan depicts the twin-mall shopping hub in the year 2021. Over the past 70 years, it has grown from a minuscule 130,000 square feet to 1,400,000! The original thirty-four stores have grown to 280.
PARK ROYAL CENTRE
Marine Drive and Taylor Way
West Vancouver, British Columbia
Canada experienced a dramatic population shift in the years following World War II. Suburbs and large housing developments spread out from major cities. In Greater Vancouver, development of the North Shore area had been facilitated by completion of the First Narrows (later Lion's Gate) Bridge, in November 1938.
Over 4,000 acres west of the bridge had been acquired by Dublin, Ireland's Guinness family, who owned breweries in Ireland and the United Kingdom. The British Columbia property, which was in the North Shore city of West Vancouver, would be transformed into British Properties, an affluent housing plat. This was built by the Guinnesses, under the auspices of British Properties, Limited.
An 11.5-acre site, near the west end of the bridge, was reserved for a new regional shopping centre; the first such facility in The Dominion. Ground was broken in June 1949. Designed by Vancouver's C.B.K. Van Norman and J.C. Page, the open-air strip-type complex would incorporate approximately 130,000 leasable square feet and eventually contain thirty-six tenant spaces. The head of the Guinness Family, the Earl of Iveagh ["Iy-vuh"], suggested naming the shopping hub PARK ROYAL as a homage to the Guinness brewery located in the Park Royal district of West London, England.
When officially dedicated on September 1, 1950, PARK ROYAL CENTRE featured a 1-level (46,000 square foot), Vancouver-based Woodward's, (12,000 square foot) Woodward's Food Floor supermarket and 2-level (18,000 square foot) F.W. Woolworth 5 & 10. Among the twenty inaugural stores were Charmante Gowns, Eilers Jewelers, Quinnell's ladies' wear and Gordon's Drugs.
Successful from the start, the shopping hub would be expanded several times over the ensuing years. The first enlargement, which got underway in the spring of 1953, added a second floor to the existing Woodward's department store and extended the northwest store block by 10,000 square feet. The newly-extended (92,000 square foot) Woodward's was re-dedicated on October 30, 1953.
The second PARK ROYAL extension added a 1-level (24,000 square foot) Woodward's Food Floor to the west end of the complex. This store welcomed first patrons on July 25, 1961. The original Food Floor was incorporated into the adjacent Woodward's department store, which now encompassed 104,000 square feet.
In April 1959, British Properties, Limited leased 67 acres of the Capilano River Reserve from the Squamish Nation. The property was located directly south of PARK ROYAL CENTER. A major shopping centre expansion was formally announced in April 1960.
Construction commenced in August 1961. A freestanding mall, occupying 46 acres of the plot, was designed by Seattle's John Graham, Junior, with input by C.B.K. Van Norman. PARK ROYAL SOUTH was to encompass approximately 340,000 leasable square feet and feature fifty-eight stores and services. Unlike the existing north side structure, the "South Mall" would be an enclosed and climate-controlled venue.
Anchoring the South Mall were a 2-level (123,400 square foot) Eaton's department store and 1-level (30,000 square foot) Super Valu grocery. These opened for business on October 3, 1962. A mall-wide dedication was held on October 18th. Charter tenants included Sight & Sound home electronics, Bata Shoes, Colonial Color Shop, Birks Jewelers and Park Royal Drugs.
With completion of PARK ROYAL SOUTH, the original strip centre was renamed PARK ROYAL NORTH. To improve access to both facilities and reduce traffic congestion, a 550-foot-long vehicular and pedestrian overpass was built over Marine Drive. This bridge was officially dedicated on September 18, 1962.
Park Royal Lanes, a freestanding bowling alley, was built west of PARK ROYAL SOUTH and opened in September 1963. The Famous Players Park Royal Twin Theatres was built on a pad west of Park Royal Lanes. The first features were shown on January 6, 1966.
A remodeling project to extend and enclose PARK ROYAL NORTH got underway in September 1968. The Woodward's department and food stores were enlarged, to 164,000 and 33,000 square feet, respectively. The inline store section of the complex would also grow by 63,000 square feet.
Three climate-controlled shopping concourses enclosed all PARK ROYAL NORTH stores. A small section of covered parking was provided on the Main Level, with a 2-level garage built above the center section. A 3-level garage was also constructed east of Woodward's; this accessed from a bridge over Taylor Way.
A grand opening for the renewed PARK ROYAL NORTH was held on November 17, 1969. The mall now encompassed approximately 341,000 leasable square feet. New stores included Kits Cameras, Mappins Jewellers, The London Shop and Murchie's Tea & Coffee Shop. The store count of both malls had grown from seventy-eight to 114. A shopper's shuttle, known as The Carriage, was put into service between the North and South malls.
In July 1975, a plan to expand PARK ROYAL SOUTH was made public. It was opposed by the West Vancouver Council, due to potential traffic impacts. To gain approval for the expansion, a 2-lane vehicular bridge was built over the Capilano River. Ground was broken for the mall addition on January 12, 1977. As part of the project, a second level would be built over the center section of the mall. A 2-level (122,000 square foot) Hudson's Bay Company ("The Bay") department store would anchor its south end and five parking decks would surround the complex.
A 1-level (44,000 square foot) Super Valu store was built west of Eaton's. The new grocery commenced operation in September 1977. The Bay opened its doors on August 2, 1978, as part of a mall-wide dedication. New inline stores included Marks & Spencer, Swedish Jeweler Limited, Town & Country Shops ladies' wear and Tweeds & Things Imports. PARK ROYAL SOUTH now spanned approximately 600,000 leasable square feet. There were 170 stores in the North and South Malls.
As the sibling malls of PARK ROYAL CENTRE were being built and expanded, several new shopping venues were springing up throughout Metro Vancouver. The first of these was OAKRIDGE CENTRE {6.7 miles south, in Vancouver}, which was dedicated on May 6, 1959. Next came BRENTWOOD CENTRE {7.4 miles southeast, in Burnaby}. Its first stores opened on August 16, 1961. CAPILANO MALL {1.5 miles east, in North Vancouver} debuted on October 25, 1967. LOUGHEED ["Low-heed"] MALL {11.9 miles southeast, in Burnaby} welcomed first shoppers on September 24, 1969.
The 1970s brought LANSDOWNE PARK {10.3 miles south, in Richmond}, which debuted on September 13, 1977. THE COQUITLAM ["Koh-kwit-lum"] CENTRE {15.5 miles East, in Coquitlam} held its grand opening on August 15, 1979. METROTOWN CENTRE {9 miles southeast, in Burnaby} was launched on September 25, 1986.
No renovations were done at PARK ROYAL CENTRE during the 1980s. The owner, now known as British Pacific Properties, Limited, lost interest and put the North and South Malls up for sale in July 1989. They were acquired by Larco Enterprises, of Vancouver, in April 1990. At this time, the North Mall was holding its own, with a nice selection of upscale tenants. The South Mall was considered dowdy-looking with its exterior being likened to a prison.
A 20 million dollar face lift of both properties was undertaken in the summer of 1992 and completed in the summer of 1993. Shopping concourses were refurbished, exteriors revamped and street-facing retail installed in first level parking areas. New street-facing stores included Kin's Market, Cobbs Breads, Cheese The Shoppe and Talbots.
The Hudson's Bay Company bought twenty-one Woodward's stores, including those at PARK ROYAL CENTRE. On August 12, 1993, The Bay relocated to the Woodward's department store building in the North Mall. The vacant The Bay in the South Mall was divided into several tenant spaces. A 1-level (46,600 square foot) section was opened, as a Zeller's discount store, on November 8, 1993. Woodward's Food Floor, in the North Mall, had been shuttered on June 13, 1992. A 25,000 square foot section became a London Drugs store in the fall of the same year.
Eaton's shuttering, in August 1999, created spaces for new Sport Chek, The Brick, Winners and Coast Mountain Sports stores. The latter, which incorporated 26,000 square feet, opened for business in April 2001. Zellers, in PARK ROYAL SOUTH, proved to be short-lived. The store had closed by 1996. Its space was refashioned into an Eaton's Home Store, which opened in May 1997 and closed -along with the main mall store- in August 1999. Linen's 'n Things operated in the space between November 2000 and October 2008 and was followed by Winners, which moved from the Second Level of the former Eaton's.
Plans to redevelop the western portion of the PARK ROYAL SOUTH site had been announced in early 1997. These plans were cancelled, due to community opposition, in late 1998. By the early 2000s, issues with the prospective west end expansion had been worked out. A collection of open-air stores -THE VILLAGE AT PARK ROYAL- was built.
Encompassing 238,000 leasable square feet and thirty-five store spaces, THE VILLAGE was Canada's first lifestyle centre. It was anchored by a 1-level (71,800 square foot) Home Depot, (33,900 square foot) Whole Foods Market and (22,500 square foot) Michaels. A centre-wide grand opening took place on October 2, 2004.
Subsequent renovations and additions to the North and South Malls were carried out between 2012 and 2021. PARK ROYAL SOUTH was given a major overhaul, which totally revamped the interior and exterior and added several new stores. Future Shop home electronics morphed into a Best Buy in April 2015. A 2-level (100,000 square foot) La Maison Simons welcomed first shoppers on October 15th. At the same time, the existing (east end) food court was moved upstairs, to the new 15-bay Picnic. Lastly, the Cineplex Cinemas Park Royal & VIP, an 11-screen venue, showed first features on April 3, 2019.
With the face lift of PARK ROYAL SOUTH completed, attention was turned to PARK ROYAL NORTH. The exterior was refurbished, with the interior being partially demalled. Several exterior-entranced big box-type stores were installed. A (45,000 square foot) Loblaws City Market was dedicated on October 21, 2016. Saks Off Fifth Avenue Outlet (with 33,000 square feet) held its grand opening on August 23, 2017. The revitalized PARK ROYAL malls now spanned approximately 1,400,000 leasable square feet and contained 280 stores and services.
Sources:
The Vancouver Sun
The Province (Vancouver, British Columbia)
Vancouver News Herald
https://www.shopparkroyal.com
https://www.retail-insider.com
https://leevancouver.com / Lee & Associates Commercial Real Estate Services
https://www.businesswire.com
"Park Royal Shopping Centre" and "Metropolis At Midtown" articles on Wikipedia
