Colonial Plaza is a shopping mall in Orlando, Florida, United States. Opened in 1956, it was the largest retail development in the state of Florida at the time of its construction. The original complex included two supermarkets and two variety stores, plus a Belk department store. It underwent multiple expansions in its history, the first of which added a Jordan Marsh department store and an enclosed mall concourse. Further expansion in 1973 added a second enclosed wing and a relocation of Belk, while Ivey's was added in 1983 and sold to Dillard's in 1990.
The center's vacancy increased in the early 1990s due to competition from Orlando Fashion Square and complexities with the property's layout, with Jordan Marsh, Dillard's, and Belk all closing between 1991 and 1995. A renovation between 1995 and 1996 restructured the complex into an open-air power center. Since 2001, it has been owned and managed by Weingarten Realty. Major tenants include Total Wine & More, Hobby Lobby, Ross Dress for Less, Staples, Bealls Outlet, Marshalls, Old Navy, Big Lots, Barnes & Noble, and Petco.
History
Groundbreaking for Colonial Plaza began in mid-1954. The site chosen for the center was the corner of Colonial Drive (Florida State Road 50) and Bumby Avenue, on land previously used as a cow pasture. Overall construction costs were estimated at $3,000,000 (). Morris Lapidus served as architect, while development, construction, contracting, and engineering were handled by the R. M. Thompson Co. of Clearwater. The firm of Michael R. Sudakow financed the project and Howard D. Spencer handled leasing. At the time, it was the largest retail development in the state of Florida. Representatives of the Sudakow firm said that the site for the center was chosen because they felt that Orlando, being in the center of the state, was poised for significant growth in population and retail development. The specific location was chosen because of its proximity to the Orlando market's center of population at the time.
Colonial Plaza opened for business on January 31, 1956. The center included two supermarkets: a Publix, described by The Orlando Sentinel as the "largest supermarket in central Florida", and A&P, whose store was described by that chain's vice-president of operations for the Southeastern United States area as "large enough to serve the needs of residents in the east area of Orlando." Two variety store chains also had locations in the center: W. T. Grant, whose location was their second in the Orlando area, and a smaller McCrory, which was the forty-first in the state of Florida. Other notable tenants upon opening included a dry cleaner, a shoe repair shop, a television and appliance store, a camera shop, several local clothing stores, a Walgreens pharmacy which had relocated from downtown Orlando, and two national shoe stores: Kinney Shoes and Thom McAn. All of the stores opened to a specially designed sidewalk, which was tinted green to reduce glare, and protected by overhangs from each store. The center's parking lot had over 2,000 spaces, and was illuminated by mercury-vapor lamps. Overall, the center had a total of of shop space at the time, with over 24 shops in total. Opening ceremonies included presentations from city dignitaries and a United States Marine Corps color guard, performances by a local band, free candy for all patrons, and a prize drawing with a grand prize of a Plymouth Plaza. More than 50,000 shoppers were predicted to visit on opening day, with an estimated average of 10 cars using each parking spot daily. Two months after the rest of the center opened, a Belk department store opened as well. It was the largest department store in Orlando at the time, including departments for men's, women's, and children's clothing and footwear, along with jewelry, gardening, sporting goods, patio furniture, a key and lock shop, and a sandwich shop.