Without too much of a fanfare, the new Central at Garden City outdoor shopping mall had a soft opening Thursday morning.
As dawn broke, Walmart was the first to open its doors to customers at 7 a.m., closely followed by TD Canada Trust, Marshalls, Bed Bath & Beyond and DSW (Designer Shoe Warehouse).
Unlike the mayhem that surrounded the launch of Tsawwassen Mills shopping centre earlier this month, Richmond’s latest offering to the retail world – a 372,000-square-feet outdoor mall on Garden City Road and Alderbridge Way – opened with little or no fuss.
Walmart is planning a grand opening party on Saturday, Oct. 29 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., with family activities, live music and samples.
The rest of the centre’s 53 tenants are expected to open for business gradually as the weeks and months roll on, with an official mall grand opening not anticipated until next year, when all the tenants are open.
An estimated 975 jobs — about 240 at Walmart alone, which accounts for half the centre’s retail space — will be created as a result of the development.
In the lead up to the mall’s opening, the intersection of Alderbridge Way and Garden City Road has been upgraded to include larger, designated left-turn lanes to help move traffic in and around the area more efficiently.
