Anything worthwhile is worth waiting for and the newly renovated La Palmera is a shining example of the old saying. After $50 million in renovations, the nearly 40-year-old Corpus Christi mall is set to debut as the new premiere shopping and dining destination for South Texas.
“With the renovations now nearly complete, La Palmera has evolved into a first-class regional shopping destination,” said La Palmera General Manager Fred Walters. “Additions such as P.F. Chang’s, Grimaldi’s, VANS and Charming Charlie are examples of the strong response to the new La Palmera as a desired location.”
MAJOR MAKEOVER
The $50 million renovation is currently one of only a handful of major mall redevelopments in the country.
The journey began in the summer 2008 when Trademark Property purchased the former Padre Staples Mall and began work almost immediately to transform it into a state-of-the-art shopping mall, updating existing areas, as well as expanding with new additions.
Newly renovated areas and features include:
- The one-of-a-kind ocean-themed Undersea Adventure children’s play area (upper level)
- A 4,500-gallon feature aquarium located in the 600-seat La Palmera Cafes food court (lower level)
- 800-square-foot community room and new mall offices (upper level)
- Coffee Beanery coffee bar and 20-foot-diameter fountain in Center Court
- Expanded Concierge located in the new West Court (near Forever XXI)
- New restrooms, including family restrooms, in the food court (lower level) and near the children’s play area and management office (upper level)
- Free Wi-Fi available in the food court and Center Court
- Dozens of new skylights and clerestory windows throughout, allowing more natural light
- New landscaping and soft seating furniture
La Palmera has also added new kiosk retail locations and updated the retail merchandise carts throughout the mall. The mall also brought in a merchandise stylist to work with the individual cart retail locations, providing helpful tips, direction and decorative items to enhance the displays and to better coordinate with the mall’s new, contemporary style.
In addition to new furnishings in the common areas, shoppers will also notice new stone tile on floors, columns and walls throughout the mall.
“We are very happy to have so many new amenities available to our customers as promised,” said Walters. “With the entire mall receiving a major makeover and adding entirely new areas such as the La Palmera Cafes food court, children’s play area, expanded retail space, and numerous upgrades, customers are experiencing a whole new La Palmera.”
Since acquiring the 1,017,704-million-square-foot mall in July 2008, 14 new deals have been signed, with the popular Dallas Cowboys Pro Shop being the first to open in June 2009. An additional 20 existing stores have relocated or remodeled, including Spencer’s, Footaction USA, Sunglass Hut, MasterCuts, EyeMasters, Kay Jewelers and Gordon’s Jewelers. AT&T, Buckle, Regis, Sunglass Hut, Zales and Claire’s, which have all opened in new locations. Dillard’s and Macy’s both renovated in 2009 and JCPenney is currently doing the same.
“We are extremely proud of the work we’re doing,” said Walters. “Despite a down economy, we are fulfilling the promise we made to city of Corpus Christi and its residents. Our vision is coming to life and La Palmera is well on its way to become a shopping destination unparalleled in the region.”
EVEN MORE NEW RETAIL AND RESTAURANT OFFERINGS
The retail and restaurant offerings at La Palmera continue to expand with the recent opening of several other new tenants.
March saw the opening of the wildly popular Charming Charlie, a unique fashion accessories house specializing in a fast-changing selection of fun and affordable fashion accessories including jewelry, handbags, shoes, sunglasses, apparel and more at incredible values.
The Houston-based retailer features approximately 7,000 pairs of earrings and a similar size assortment of necklaces, bracelets and more all organized by color. The store, one of 11 new tenants announced in August 2009, was the first store to open in the new Outdoor Lifestyle Court.
Subway and MTV Nails both opened in February with VANS in March, bringing its world famous canvas footwear made popular by the West Coast skate and surf scene. Grimaldi’s Coal Brick-Oven Pizzeria, a New York institution known for their coal-fired brick oven pizza since 1905 is opening in the Lifestyle Court in April, with P.F. Chang’s China Bistro, featuring a blend of traditional Chinese cuisine and American hospitality in a contemporary bistro setting, set to open in that same area in June. All were also among 11 new tenants announced last August.
A special celebration to commemorate the completion of the renovations is planned for this summer.
“We couldn’t be happier with the caliber tenants we continue to bring to Corpus Christi and the Coastal Bend market,” said Walters. “Over the past year, we have brought in some great new retailers and restaurants with even more on the way; I expect we will continue to announce new retail tenants in the near future.”
