Cottonwood Mall is a shopping mall located in
Albuquerque
Albuquerque ( ; ), ; kee, Arawageeki; tow, Vakêêke; zun, Alo:ke:k'ya; apj, Gołgéeki'yé. abbreviated ABQ, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico. Its nicknames, The Duke City and Burque, both reference its founding in ...
, New Mexico, United States. The mall's anchor stores are
Hobby Lobby
Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc., formerly Hobby Lobby Creative Centers, is an American retail company. It owns a chain of arts and crafts stores with a volume of over $5 billion in 2018. The chain has 969 stores in 47 US states. Hobby Lobby is owned by ...
,
Mor Furniture
Mor Furniture is an American furniture retailer, based in San Diego, California. ''Mor Furniture for Less'' is currently one of the largest furniture retailers in the United States . The company owns and operates 29 stores and 10 warehouses in 7 ...
,
JCPenney
Penney OpCo LLC, doing business as JCPenney and often abbreviated JCP, is a midscale American department store chain operating 667 stores across 49 U.S. states and Puerto Rico. Departments inside JCPenney stores include Mens, Womens, Boys, Gir ...
,
Ulta Beauty
Ulta Beauty, Inc., formerly known as Ulta Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance Inc. and before 2000 as Ulta3, is an American chain of beauty stores headquartered in Bolingbrook, Illinois. Ulta Beauty carries both high-end and low-end cosmetics, fragran ...
,
Dillard's
Dillard's, Inc. is an upscale American department store chain with approximately 282 stores in 29 states and headquartered in Little Rock, Arkansas. Currently, the largest number of stores are located in Texas with 57 and Florida with 42. The ...
,
Regal Cinemas
Regal Cinemas (also Regal Entertainment Group) is an American movie theater chain headquartered in Knoxville, Tennessee. A division of Cineworld, Regal operates the second-largest theater circuit in the United States, with over 7,200 screens i ...
, Fallout Trampoline Arena,
Conn's, and HomeLife Furniture. There is 1 vacant anchor store that was once
Sears
Sears, Roebuck and Co. ( ), commonly known as Sears, is an American chain of department stores founded in 1892 by Richard Warren Sears and Alvah Curtis Roebuck and reincorporated in 1906 by Richard Sears and Julius Rosenwald, with what began a ...
. The mall is the second largest mall in the state of New Mexico, after
Coronado Center
Coronado Center is a shopping mall in Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States. Built in 1965 by the Homart Development Company, a defunct real-estate division of the department store Sears, the mall has undergone several renovations and expansions ...
, with a
gross leasable area
In architecture, construction, and real estate, floor area, floor space, or floorspace is the area (measured as square feet or square metres) taken up by a building or part of it. The ways of defining "floor area" depend on what factors of the buil ...
of ;
the mall's food court features a diorama ceiling depicting the city of Albuquerque. The mall is also a regular filming location on several productions, including
Better Call Saul
''Better Call Saul'' is an American crime and legal drama television series created by Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould. Part of the ''Breaking Bad'' franchise, it is a spin-off of Gilligan's previous series, ''Breaking Bad'', and serves as a ...
and
Daybreak. It features over 100 stores and restaurants, as well as a
Regal Cinemas
Regal Cinemas (also Regal Entertainment Group) is an American movie theater chain headquartered in Knoxville, Tennessee. A division of Cineworld, Regal operates the second-largest theater circuit in the United States, with over 7,200 screens i ...
(formerly United Artists) Theater. Cottonwood Mall was managed by
Washington Prime Group
Washington Prime Group Inc. is an American real estate investment trust that invests in shopping centers. The company is organized in Indiana with its headquarters in Columbus, Ohio. From January 2015 to September 2016, the company had the name WP ...
. As of March 2022, cottonwood mall is leased and managed by court-appointed receiver “Spinoso Real Estate Group”. The mall's parking area has several dining establishments, including
BJ's Restaurant & Brewery,
Buffalo Wild Wings
Buffalo Wild Wings (originally Buffalo Wild Wings & Weck, hence the nickname BDubs, or BW3) is an American casual dining restaurant and sports bar franchise in the United States, Canada, India, Mexico, Panama, Philippines, Saudi Arabia, and Unit ...
,
Red Robin
Red Robin Gourmet Burgers, Inc., more commonly known as Red Robin Gourmet Burgers and Brews or simply Red Robin, is an American chain of casual dining restaurants founded in September 1969 in Seattle, Washington. In 1979, the first franchised ...
,
Texas Roadhouse
Texas Roadhouse is an American steakhouse chain that specializes in steaks in a Texan and Southwestern cuisine style. It is a subsidiary of Texas Roadhouse Inc, which has two other concepts (Bubba's 33 and Jaggers) and is headquartered in Louisv ...
, and
New Mexican cuisine
New Mexican cuisine is the cuisine of the Southwestern US state of New Mexico. The region is primarily known for its fusion of Pueblo Native American cuisine with Hispano Spanish and Mexican cuisine originating in Nuevo México.
This cuisi ...
restaurants like
Garduños, Los Cuates, and Range Cafe.
In May 2014, as part of
Simon Property Group
Simon Property Group, Inc. is an American real estate investment trust that invests in shopping malls, outlet centers, and community/lifestyle centers. It is the largest owner of shopping malls in the United States and is headquartered in Indian ...
's spinoff of smaller malls, ownership of the mall was transferred to Simon spinoff
Washington Prime Group
Washington Prime Group Inc. is an American real estate investment trust that invests in shopping centers. The company is organized in Indiana with its headquarters in Columbus, Ohio. From January 2015 to September 2016, the company had the name WP ...
, although Simon was retained as the mall's manager until early 2016. Washington Prime would later become WP Glimcher, and take over management of the mall. However in that same year WP Glimcher was renamed back to Washington Prime Group. In June 2021, Washington Prime Group filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. At the time, the real estate company owned 100 malls — including Cottonwood Mall. According to loan-servicer notes, Washington Prime at that point deemed Cottonwood Mall a "non- core" asset and requested the court appoint a receiver. In August 2021, Washington Prime Group indicated it would not seek to retain ownership of Cottonwood Mall, according to financial filings.
Former tenants include
Sega City amusement arcade
An amusement arcade (often referred to as a video arcade, amusements or simply arcade) is a venue where people play arcade games, including arcade video games, pinball machines, electro-mechanical games, redemption games, merchandisers (such as cl ...
,
Sears
Sears, Roebuck and Co. ( ), commonly known as Sears, is an American chain of department stores founded in 1892 by Richard Warren Sears and Alvah Curtis Roebuck and reincorporated in 1906 by Richard Sears and Julius Rosenwald, with what began a ...
which was prior a
Montgomery Ward
Montgomery Ward is the name of two successive U.S. retail corporations. The original Montgomery Ward & Co. was a world-pioneering mail-order business and later also a leading department store chain that operated between 1872 and 2001. The curren ...
, and
Macy's
Macy's (originally R. H. Macy & Co.) is an American chain of high-end department stores founded in 1858 by Rowland Hussey Macy. It became a division of the Cincinnati-based Federated Department Stores in 1994, through which it is affiliated wi ...
which was once a
Foley's
Foley's was a chain of department stores owned by May Department Stores and headquartered in Downtown Houston, Texas. On August 30, 2005, the division was dissolved and operation of the stores was assumed by Federated's Macy's West and Macy's Sout ...
, and a
Mervyn's
Mervyn's was an American middle-scale department store chain based in Hayward, California, and founded by Mervin G. Morris (1920–2021). It carried national brands of clothing, footwear, bedding, furniture, jewelry, beauty products, electronics, ...
. Hobby Lobby, Conn's, and Mor Furniture have since replaced Macy's and Mervyns. Sega City was converted into a second story for Regal Cinemas.
History
Cottonwood Mall was built on part of an parcel of land
given by King
Philip IV of Spain
Philip IV ( es, Felipe, pt, Filipe; 8 April 160517 September 1665), also called the Planet King (Spanish: ''Rey Planeta''), was King of Spain from 1621 to his death and (as Philip III) King of Portugal from 1621 to 1640. Philip is remembered f ...
in 1710 to Francisco Montes Vigil, who later sold the land, which included only some farmland along the
Rio Grande
The Rio Grande ( and ), known in Mexico as the Río Bravo del Norte or simply the Río Bravo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the southwestern United States and in northern Mexico.
The length of the Rio G ...
, to Captain Juan Gonzales of the Spanish Army. The land grant is known as the "Alameda Land Grant" (''alameda'' means "
cottonwood grove" in Spanish). In 1929, 20,500 acres were purchased by Albert F. Black who established the Seven Bar Ranch.
The Black family built an
adobe
Adobe ( ; ) is a building material made from earth and organic materials. is Spanish for ''mudbrick''. In some English-speaking regions of Spanish heritage, such as the Southwestern United States, the term is used to refer to any kind of e ...
home and in 1947 a small airport which was known as the Seven Bar Airport, and later the Alameda Airport.
Surrounded by growing urban areas, the Black family sold off much of the remaining
ranch
A ranch (from es, rancho/Mexican Spanish) is an area of land, including various structures, given primarily to ranching, the practice of raising grazing livestock such as cattle and sheep. It is a subtype of a farm. These terms are most often ...
for the development of new
residential subdivisions. The Alameda Airport remained in operation until 1986, when it was closed to make way for 1983 plans for the 95 acre mall project.
When Cottonwood Mall opened in July 1996, it was the first regional mall to open in Albuquerque in thirty years.
To this day, and with the exception of a new mall under construction in the
South Valley, it is the newest completed enclosed shopping mall in New Mexico. Original anchors included
Dillard's
Dillard's, Inc. is an upscale American department store chain with approximately 282 stores in 29 states and headquartered in Little Rock, Arkansas. Currently, the largest number of stores are located in Texas with 57 and Florida with 42. The ...
,
Foley's
Foley's was a chain of department stores owned by May Department Stores and headquartered in Downtown Houston, Texas. On August 30, 2005, the division was dissolved and operation of the stores was assumed by Federated's Macy's West and Macy's Sout ...
,
JCPenney
Penney OpCo LLC, doing business as JCPenney and often abbreviated JCP, is a midscale American department store chain operating 667 stores across 49 U.S. states and Puerto Rico. Departments inside JCPenney stores include Mens, Womens, Boys, Gir ...
,
Mervyn's
Mervyn's was an American middle-scale department store chain based in Hayward, California, and founded by Mervin G. Morris (1920–2021). It carried national brands of clothing, footwear, bedding, furniture, jewelry, beauty products, electronics, ...
, and
Montgomery Ward
Montgomery Ward is the name of two successive U.S. retail corporations. The original Montgomery Ward & Co. was a world-pioneering mail-order business and later also a leading department store chain that operated between 1872 and 2001. The curren ...
. The Montgomery Ward store closed due to bankruptcy, and it was replaced by
Sears
Sears, Roebuck and Co. ( ), commonly known as Sears, is an American chain of department stores founded in 1892 by Richard Warren Sears and Alvah Curtis Roebuck and reincorporated in 1906 by Richard Sears and Julius Rosenwald, with what began a ...
, and following the closure of Mervyns in 2008 due to liquidation, its lower level became
Conn's in 2013. Foley's became
Macy's
Macy's (originally R. H. Macy & Co.) is an American chain of high-end department stores founded in 1858 by Rowland Hussey Macy. It became a division of the Cincinnati-based Federated Department Stores in 1994, through which it is affiliated wi ...
in 2006 as part of
Federated Department Stores
Macy's, Inc. (originally Federated Department Stores, Inc.) is an American conglomerate holding company. Upon its establishment, Federated held ownership of the regional department store chains Abraham & Straus, Lazarus, Filene's, and Shillito ...
(now Macy's inc) consolidating
May's Department Stores brands which also includes Foley's, However, Macy's closed in 2017.
In 1999, Cottonwood Mall was one of three New Mexico malls (with the two others being
Winrock Center and
Coronado Center
Coronado Center is a shopping mall in Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States. Built in 1965 by the Homart Development Company, a defunct real-estate division of the department store Sears, the mall has undergone several renovations and expansions ...
) involved in a federal lawsuit regarding
free speech
Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The rights, right to freedom of expression has been ...
. The malls had their rights of activity regulation challenged after protesters attempted to hand out leaflets at the malls. The case was dismissed. The 1972 case ''Lloyd Corp. v. Tanner'' states that shopping malls may limit speech activities (such as distribution of pamphlets) on premises.
On May 31, 2018, it was announced that Sears would be closing as part of a plan to close 72 stores nationwide. The store closed in September 2018. The former Macy's was partially converted to
Hobby Lobby
Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc., formerly Hobby Lobby Creative Centers, is an American retail company. It owns a chain of arts and crafts stores with a volume of over $5 billion in 2018. The chain has 969 stores in 47 US states. Hobby Lobby is owned by ...
in 2018. HomeLife Furniture and
Mor Furniture
Mor Furniture is an American furniture retailer, based in San Diego, California. ''Mor Furniture for Less'' is currently one of the largest furniture retailers in the United States . The company owns and operates 29 stores and 10 warehouses in 7 ...
took the rest of the space in 2019.
Food court
The mall's food court features a diorama of Albuquerque, the
Rio Grande
The Rio Grande ( and ), known in Mexico as the Río Bravo del Norte or simply the Río Bravo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the southwestern United States and in northern Mexico.
The length of the Rio G ...
,
Sandia Mountains
The Sandia Mountains (Southern Tiwa: ''Posu gai hoo-oo'', Keres: ''Tsepe,'' Navajo: ''Dził Nááyisí''; Tewa: ''O:ku:p’į'', Northern Tiwa: ''Kep’íanenemą''; Towa: ''Kiutawe'', Zuni: ''Chibiya Yalanne'') are a mountain range located in ...
,
West Mesa
300px, View of downtown Albuquerque and the Manzano Mountains from the West Mesa
The West Mesa is an elevated landmass lying west of the Rio Grande stretching from south of Albuquerque northward to Bernalillo in the U.S. state of New Mexico.
...
, and the mall itself. The chain restaurants in the food court include a
Burger King
Burger King (BK) is an American-based multinational chain store, chain of hamburger fast food restaurants. Headquartered in Miami-Dade County, Florida, the company was founded in 1953 as Insta-Burger King, a Jacksonville, Florida–based res ...
,
Charleys Philly Steaks
Charleys Philly Steaks is an American restaurant chain of Philly cheesesteak stores headquartered in Columbus, Ohio. Formerly known as Charley's Steakery and Charley's Grilled Subs, the franchise was established in 1986 on the campus of Ohio ...
, Kiva Juice, and
Potato Corner
Potato Corner is a global Philippine food franchise known for its flavored French fries. Potato Corner's first stall opened up in SM Megamall in October 1992 in the Philippines under Cinco Corporation. As of 2022, Potato Corner is present in 18 ...
. Other restaurants include Fuji Japan (formerly
Edo Japan
The or is the period between 1603 and 1867 in the history of Japan, when Japan was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional '' daimyo''. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengoku period, the Edo period was characteri ...
),
Paleta Bar, and
Sushi
is a Japanese cuisine, Japanese dish of prepared , usually with some sugar and salt, accompanied by a variety of , such as seafood, often raw, and vegetables. Styles of sushi and its presentation vary widely, but the one key ingredient is " ...
Roller.
Book Co-Op
From
Thanksgiving Day
Thanksgiving is a national holiday celebrated on various dates in the United States, Canada, Grenada, Saint Lucia, Liberia, and unofficially in countries like Brazil and Philippines. It is also observed in the Netherlander town of Leiden a ...
to New Year's Day every year, Cottonwood Mall is also home to New Mexico Book Co-Op, a locally owned bookstore which sells only local books and products; such books and products are ordinarily not found in traditional bookstores.
References
External links
Cottonwood Mall Official Site
{{coord, 35.198, N, 106.658, W, display=title
Buildings and structures in Albuquerque, New Mexico
Shopping malls in New Mexico
Shopping malls established in 1996
Economy of Albuquerque, New Mexico
Tourist attractions in Albuquerque, New Mexico