A brand new Target with a Chick-fil-a is replacing the mall in Tamarac Square.
Photo by Ed Gloor
The construction began in August 1975; a mall with 90 shops and a six-screen movie theater was a relatively new concept.
Despite being only partially leased, the mall opened in 1976 in Tamarac Square on Hampden. After years of renovations, new shops, and thriving businesses, one would think the mall was doing great, with places like the Regency Tamarac Square Cinemas, Rodney’s, Barbara & Company, Starbucks, and Rosey’s Women’s Botique. However, time passed, and the Tamarac Square Mall began to slowly deteriorate until only the movie theater remained in its gloomy, empty hallways. It was open for 36 years, and for people who lived near it all their lives, like Aviva Getschel, it is a sad thing to see the mall go.
The mall may be leaving, but what lies ahead in its future? While the mall hasn’t made much money for years, the small stores around the location are fairing just fine. Ace Hardware will stay in Tamarac Square, as well as Benihana (a well known Asian restaurant). According to the Denver Post website, the mall itself has already been leased to Target, which will replace the mall sometime in 2012, and it won’t be the only new attraction. A Chick-fil-a (a fast food restaurant specializing in chicken) will arrive with the Target, as well. Property owners are hopeful that these two new attractions will bring new life to the location, and make it a more popular destination.
A few years prior to this shutdown, the mall’s business was anything but thriving with estimated revenues of $500,000 to $1 million dollars per year, according to http://www.manta.com (an economic growth website). Now, this may seem like a lot to some, but for a mall in business, this is hardly enough to scrape by. The mall was so empty, that patrons could hear their own footsteps echo. This echo represents the great thriving business of the mall, now lost in the distance.
Photo by Ed Gloor
A Target and a Chick-fil-a will be helpful additions to the Tamarac Square location. It will attract people like a magnet, and give Tamarac Square some new life. Tamarac Square Mall has had an interesting legacy, but its long life has come to an end. From the opening in 1976, to the renovations in 1992, Tamarac Square Mall has had a long life, but its inevitable demise from stores moving to Cherry Creek Shopping Center, closing, and being bought out has finally taken place. Denver says goodbye to one of its longest lasting shopping centers, and says hello to a new Target and a new Chick-fil-a.
