THE QUAD: WHITTIER, CA
Jeff Arellano's Commentary
Posted October 2, 2005(user submitted)
Whittier, California is the only city I know of that had two malls die in it,
and two neighboring city's malls dead (Fashion Square La Habra and Santa Fe
Springs Plaza), and one that was on life support (the famous Puente Hills Mall
in The City Of Industry)
But The Quad was opened during the 60's as an outdoor mall. It was a simple
design that had one department store (a local chain called Hinshaw's), and some
shops and restaurants in one wing. The center during the 70's later added some
outbuildings with a supermarket, drug store, and a second department store, May
Company. The May Company store was not attached to the mall, in fact, you had
to cross the parking lot to get to it from the main mall. It was around this
time the mall was enclosed.
This malls death came with a mighty rumble. January 1987, at 6:45a.m., an
earthquake hit causing massive damage to the mall, and severely damaging the
May Company store. It was deemed unsafe. The mall reopened but lost several
businesses. Hinshaws closed around 1988.
The mall was torn down except for the market, drug store, and Hinshaws, and
rebuilt as a strip mall. Today, the always empty parking structure behind the
old Hinshaws store is a suttle reminder how a bustiling mall can die suddenly.
Hinshaws became a Golds Gym on one level and a Burlington Coat Factory on
another, and a Staples.
Steve Carras' Commentary
Posted December 5, 2006 (user submitted)
The mall was built not in 1960s, but in 1953 with "Hinshaws"
(which still stands now housing a Burlington Coat factory and a Staples).
Happily, as with the Whittwood as Jeff wrote, elsewhere business is MAJORLY
booming and in fact, since the NINETIES, has had several successful
family chain restaurants -- "Red Lobster" and "Olive Garden". "Lobster"
was replaced in 2000 by, in my opinion, the BEST Chinese
(and some other Oriental) food resturant, "The Grand Buffet". Excellent,
largely to due their specialty: seafood. Also, a new Chili's opened in
October '06.
As for May Company, that HAD to have opened at LEAST 1965 (NOT
seventies as this and Wikipedia claims to the contrary). A Heck's,
Nash, and WT Grant used to be at the mall proper. It was in 1974 that
the center was enclosed, and on 10/1/1987 when the infamous Narrows
Quake destroyed the garage. May Co. was intact but since 1984 already
closed. Many stores were destroyed.
Ross, Marshalls, Ralphs, Rite Aid, and very RECENTLY a Starbucks occupy
Whittier Quad.
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