Woodbridge Center

Woodbridge Center is a shopping mall located in Woodbridge, New Jersey. Opened in 1971, this mall has 200 stores and services and 6 anchor stores: Boscov's, Dick's Sporting Goods, JCPenney, Lord & Taylor, Macy's and Sears. The mall features a fountain, carousel, train ride, and children's play area. Although most malls have a food court, Woodbridge Center's eating establishments are spread throughout the mall with their own individual seating areas and restrooms. Before the coming of the food court, all malls had their eating establishments spread throughout the mall.
The mall's location near Staten Island and the benefit of no sales tax on clothes in New Jersey makes this mall, along with nearby Menlo Park Mall in Edison, a popular choice for New York shoppers. The mall has gross leasable area (GLA) of 1,633,000 square feet (151,700 m2), making it the third largest of all shopping malls in New Jersey, behind Westfield Garden State Plaza in Paramus, and Freehold Raceway Mall in Freehold Township. It is the 34th largest in the United States.
== Mall history ==
The mall was developed by the Rouse Company and opened in 1971 with Abraham & Straus, Ohrbach's, and Stern's. In 1981, JCPenney moved from the nearby Menlo Park Mall in Edison, New Jersey. In 1985, the mall was expanded with a new wing to include Hahne's.
By 1987, the mall got a fresh new look through renovation. The stairwell in the A&S wing next to center court was removed, new flooring was added, new lighting was added, the mall entrances were redone, and the fountains in front of A&S were either changed (the 2nd floor fountain) or removed (the first floor fountains). The Mall's current fountain is on the 1st floor outside of Sears and Red Robin. 
In 2003, the mall was expanded with a new 100,000-square-foot (9,300 m2) Galyan's, the chain's first location in New Jersey, which become Dick's Sporting Goods in 2004. Notable department stores that have closed include Hahne's (became Fortunoff, now Boscov's), Ohrbach's (which became Steinbach and now is Lord & Taylor), Stern's (now Macy's), A&S (now Sears) and Fortunoff (now Boscov's).
In October 2007, the carousel ride was relocated near the JCPenney. The train ride was also reconfigured to ensure both rides stay together at the same location. A toddler's play area, "Tiny Town", is located near the carousel and train rides.
On November 14, 2017, Dave & Buster's opened on the upper level by Sears, their first location in New Jersey.
SeaQuest Interactive Aquariums is set to open in the center in 2019, while Lord & Taylor has filed plans with the state indicating that it is set to close the store on Christmas Eve 2019.
== Incidents ==
On March 8, 2012, police shot and killed a shoplifter in the Sears wing who had held a woman hostage.
== Anchors ==
* Macy's
* Sears (closed in 2020)
* Boscov's
* Dick's Sporting Goods
* JCPenney
* Lord & Taylor (closed in 2019)
== Dining/Entertainment ==
=== Dining ===
* Amazing Spice
* Applebee's
* Auntie Anne's
* Bahama Breeze
* Burger King
* Chick-fil-A
* Cinnabon
* Cold Stone Creamery
* Crepes Celeste
* Dave & Buster's
* Doc Popcorn
* Dunkin' Donuts
* Getrude Hawk Chocolate
* Haagen Daaz
* Island of Treats
* Johnny Rockets
* Lil' Doughs of Heaven
* Niecy's Mac & Cheese
* Olive Garden
* Red Robin
* Roman Delight Pizza
* Salad Bistro
* Sbarro
* Starbucks
* TCBY Frozen Yogurt
* Wendy's
* Wetzel's Pretzels
=== Entertainment ===
* Carousel
* Animal Rides
* Kiddie Rides
* Play Area
* Train Ride
== See also ==
* Menlo Park Mall, a nearby mall
== Gallery ==
=== Videos ===
File:Woodbridge Center - Raw & Real Retail|Mall Tour
File:Preserved A&S A Full Tour of Sears at Woodbridge Center in Woodbridge, NJ|Sears Tour
File:Schindler Hydraulic Elevator-Ohrbach's Steinbach's Lord & Taylor-Woodbridge Center, Woodbridge, NJ|The Lord & Taylor Elevator
File:Schindler 330A in Dick's Sporting Goods - Woodbridge Center|The Dick's Sporting Goods Elevator
== External Links ==
* Woodbridge Center's Official Website
Category:Shopping Malls
Category:Malls in New Jersey
Category:Malls in the United States
Category:Brookfield Properties Retail Group Malls
Category:Malls that opened in 1971
Category:Multi-Level Malls
Category:JCPenney-anchored Malls
Category:Macy's-anchored Malls
Category:Former Lord & Taylor-anchored Malls
Category:Dick's-anchored Malls
Category:Dave & Buster's-anchored Properties
Category:Former Galyan's-anchored Properties
Category:Former Stern's-anchored Malls
Category:Former A&S-anchored Malls
Category:Boscov's-anchored Malls
Category:TCBY Locations
Category:Former Sears-anchored Malls
Category:Olive Garden Locations
Category:Bahama Breeze Locations
Category:North America