Warrawong Plaza
 | |
| Location | Warrawong, New South Wales, Australia |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 34°29′10″S 150°53′20″E / 34.4861°S 150.889°E |
| Opening date | 1960 |
| Management | JLL |
| Owner | Elanor Investors Group |
| No. of stores and services | 140[1] |
| No. of anchor tenants | 6 |
| Total retail floor area | 57,582 m2 (619,807 sq ft)[1] |
| No. of floors | 2 |
| Parking | 2,167 spaces[1] |
| Website | warrawongplaza |
Warrawong Plaza (formerly Westfield Warrawong) is a major shopping centre located in Warrawong, a suburb of Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia. With a retail floor area of 57,582 m2 (619,807 sq ft), it is currently the third largest shopping centre in the Illawarra region.
History and development[edit]
Warrawong Plaza originally opened in 1960 as Lake Market Shopping Centre. [citation needed]
The centre has a current catchment area of 246,680 persons, and retail spending in the catchment area estimated at $2.3 billion (2005).[1][2]
Redevelopments[edit]
Upon acquisition by the Westfield Group in 1985, the centre was extensively redeveloped and relaunched as Westfield Warrawong in 1988.[1] Further extensions were conducted in 1996, adding a 6,000 m2 (64,583 sq ft) Big W to the centre.[1][3]
Previously, a Big W department store had been an occupant of the centre from 1965, however due to a change in retailing strategy by parent company Woolworths, the then-two-level store was sold to David Jones on 19 April 1971 and converted to a David Jones store which in turn was closed in January 1986. By 2011, the centre had grown to 57,582 m2 (619,807 sq ft) with 140 retailers.[4]
Acquisition by The Blackstone Group[edit]
In August 2015, Scentre Group announced it had sold Westfield Warrawong to 151 Property, a subsidiary of the Blackstone Group along with three other centres as part of sell-off of "non-strategic" assets for a total of $783 million. At the same time it was announced that Jones Lang LaSalle would be responsible for the management of the centre.[5]
On 11 September 2015, the new management unveiled the new name, Warrawong Plaza, and branding going forward.
Target permanently closed on January 14 2023 due to poor sales.
Events[edit]
In 1999, the centre received significant global coverage of its efforts to deal with shoplifting and anti-social behaviour.[6][7] In an effort to discourage local youth using the centre as a gathering place, the management used the centre's public address system to play older style music, including Bing Crosby's 1938 song "My Heart Is Taking Lessons".[6][7]
In March 2005, local bus company Premier Illawarra gave serious consideration to suspending one of its Thursday evening services from the centre due to months of increased vandalism and anti-social behaviour in surrounding streets around the centre.[8] Despite the efforts of bus inspectors and transit police, very little had been achieved to curb the problems.[8]
Transport[edit]
The centre is serviced by a public bus service operated by Premier Illawarra.
Facilities[edit]
Major retailers of Warrawong Plaza include Coles, Aldi, Big W, Hoyts, TK Maxx, JB Hi-Fi, Rebel and Lincraft.
References[edit]
- ^ a b c d e f Property Portfolio – Westfield Warrawong
- ^ "Warrawong – history". City of Wollongong. Archived from the original on 10 March 2007. Retrieved 17 July 2007.
- ^ Craig, Eric (2 September 1996). "Retales". Inside Retailing.
- ^ Jobson's Year Book. Dun & Bradstreet Marketing Pty Ltd. OCLC 37164161.
- ^ "Warrawong, Figtree shopping centres sold to global firm". 2 September 2015.
- ^ a b "Bing keeps troublemakers at bay". BBC News. 8 July 1999.
- ^ a b "Crosby drives teens from Aussie mall". CNN News. 8 July 1999. Archived from the original on 17 September 2006.
- ^ a b "Vandalism may end night bus service". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 29 March 2005.