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Throwback: New shopping malls for Delta

Let’s head back to 1971 and check out the Tsawwassen Town Centre mall, scheduled to open later that year.
delta optimist throwback
The new Tsawwassen Town Centre shopping mall celebrated its grand opening in the fall of 1971. The Century Group last year unveiled a major redevelopment proposal for the site but an application has yet to be submitted to the city.

Let’s head back to 1971 and check out the Tsawwassen Town Centre mall, scheduled to open later that year.

Described as “Tsawwassen’s newest and finest prestige shopping centre” at the time with over 40 stores, the $2 million mall at the corner of 12th Avenue and 56th Street was headed by Tsawwassen Realty Ltd, a subsidiary of George Hodgins Reality.

Incorporating a Safeway and B.C. Government Liquor Store, the new mall would feature a Royal Bank, Venus Pizza House of Tsawwassen, Lloyd’s World Travel Services, The Leather Pouch, Yarn Barn, Mr. Secretary, The Butcher Shoppe, Tsawwassen Small Appliance Repairs, Femina Limited, Mod Shop, Dean’s Chocolates and others. 

It was the first two sections of mall with the rest of the complex to be completed the following summer.

The finished mall with its covered walkways would encompass over 100,000 square feet.

It would be landscaped to appear “outdoorsy” and would have enough parking for 600 cars.

Meanwhile, groundbreaking for another new shopping mall took place in March of 1971.

Acting Delta mayor Doug Watkins turned the sod at a ceremony to begin construction of the new Scottsdale Shopping Centre at 72nd Avenue and Scott Road.

Surrey Mayor Bill Vander Zalm and others took part in the festivities.

The $5 million covered mall, forming part of a planned $18 million Scottsdale Town Centre development, would have a 90,000-square foot Zellers and a 25,000-square foot Super-Valu as its main tenants.

There would be approximately 36 other stores at that mall that which was as to open in September of that year.