Rockaway Townsquare

Rockaway Townsquare, also known as the Rockaway Mall, is a two-level super regional shopping mall, located in Rockaway Township, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The mall features a gross leasable area of , placing it among the top ten largest shopping malls in New Jersey. 

Rockaway Townsquare is owned by the Simon Property Group. The mall features the traditional retailers Macy's, JCPenney, and Raymour & Flanigan, as well as featuring over 140 other stores. 

Located in Morris County along Interstate 80, the mall also attracts customers from Sussex and Warren counties and is under an hour away from New York City.

Mall history 
The mall first opened on Labor Day Weekend of 1977. It was built on top of a wetland, which was not protected in New Jersey until 1988 with the passage of the New Jersey Freshwater Wetlands Protection Act, and the former Dover town landfill. A time capsule was enclosed in the interior of the mall, marked with a plaque. The contents were unveiled on August 22, 2000.

Upon opening, the mall contained five large sculptures by Rita Blitt. Most were located on the first floor and reached up through openings to the second; a  long stainless steel and brass American flag hung from the ceiling. The silhouette of one of these sculptures, the yellow Stablitt 55, became the mall's original logo. Although the other sculptures have been removed, Stablitt 55 still stands outside the mall, on the corner near the three-store strip at the entrance off the main road.

Major stores that have since closed include: Bamberger's which was in the location currently occupied by Macy's (it was converted along with the other Bamberger's stores to the Macy's nameplate in 1986), Hahne's which was in the location most recently occupied by Lord & Taylor (converted to the L&T nameplate in 1988), Child World, which was occupied by Kids "R" Us after Child World went out of business in 1992, though was occupied by Office Depot after the majority of standalone KRU locations closed in 2003. (Office Depot has since closed as well; this space has since been converted to DSW, relocated from the existing Marketplace at Rockaway location; after Toys R Us closed in 2018, Toys R Us/Kids R Us is currently occupied by Party City), Acme, which is currently occupied by Nordstrom Rack, and Party Fair, which is currently occupied by Five Below, moving it from the shopping plaza where Target is. The old location is currently occupied by Orangetheory Fitness.

AMC Theatres had screens 1–6 in the location currently occupied by Forever 21 (previously FYE and Record Town) located inside the mall, as well as screens 7–12 in the location currently occupied by Best Buy in one of the strip malls located on the perimeter road. The 1–6 screens closed in 1998 and the 7–12 screens in 2002. When the theaters originally expanded from six screens to 12 in February 1981, it was claimed to be the first 12-screen multiplex in America. A successor 16-screen theater, also operated by AMC, opened on the perimeter road in 2006.

On August 25, 2009, a small plane crash-landed in the parking lot. The only injury was the pilot, who walked away and was treated.

In 2016, Raymour & Flanigan opened after reconstructing an area of the Sears. In 2020 it was announced Sears would shutter as part of an ongoing decision to eliminate its traditional brick-and-mortar format.

The Cheesecake Factory opened in December 2017. P. F. Chang's opened at the mall in February 2022.

Between January 2019 and Fall 2019, the food court was renovated.

In August 2020,  Lord & Taylor announced that it would close its brick-and-mortar format as a direct result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Expansion
The mall has undergone several expansions since it opened. These include Rockaway Commons, a strip mall in the southeast corner of the property featuring anchors Best Buy, Nordstrom Rack and DSW, as well as a Hilton Garden Inn. The Shops at Rockaway Mall, a strip mall, opened in the corner near Interstate 80. Rockaway Town Court is a strip mall at the East side of the mall.  Rockaway Town Plaza is a strip mall at the west side of the mall featuring Target and many other stores. There is also a health pavilion for the Morristown Medical Center in the complex.

Anchors

Current anchors
JCPenney (original anchor)
Macy's (formerly Bamberger’s)
Raymour & Flanigan (opened as part of Sears)

Former anchors
Bamberger's (closed in 1986, replaced by Macy’s)
Hahne's (closed in 1988, replaced by Lord & Taylor)
Lord & Taylor (closed in 2020)
Sears (closed in 2020)

In popular culture
A scene from the 1984 film Firstborn starring Sarah Jessica Parker shows Parker's character Lisa shopping at Rockaway Townsquare.

References

External links

Official website

Buildings and structures in Morris County, New Jersey
Rockaway Township, New Jersey
Shopping malls in New Jersey
Shopping malls established in 1977
Simon Property Group
Tourist attractions in Morris County, New Jersey
Shopping malls in the New York metropolitan area
Interstate 80
1977 establishments in New Jersey