Aurora Mall; Aurora, Colorado
What better activity is there on a cold January day than going to the mall? That’s just what I did on a free day I had back in January, 2005, in the Denver area. My first stop was east suburban Aurora Mall, one of Aurora, Colorado’s two enclosed centers. It’s located at the interchange between I-225 and Alameda Avenue.
Aurora itself is both typical and atypical of American suburbs today. It’s similar to most American suburbs in that it lacks a strong, historical central business district like many cities, and it’s also very large and sprawly. It’s not typical because of its sheer size: Aurora has nearly 300,000 residents, over half of the city of Denver itself. It’s actually projected that in the next 25 years that Aurora will eventually surpass the city of Denver in population, making it a massive super-suburb like Anaheim, California or Scottsdale, Arizona. Notable people from Aurora include Home Improvement child actor Zachery Ty Bryan and former presidential hopeful John Kerry (yes, he was born here). There’s an Air Force Base, but other than that, Aurora’s your standard middle-of-the-road American suburb.
Aurora Mall, now called the Town Center at Aurora, was beginning a series of renovations which updated the dated center’s appearance in 2005, giving it new life for the new millenium, or something like that. In the past few years, Aurora Mall/Town Center at Aurora has been under some scrutiny for its management policies. An investigation by a local Denver TV station has stated the Aurora Mall’s leasing agents have official policies of discrimination and that they are attempting to oust minority shoppers in favor of getting more caucasian shoppers into the mall. Purposely. A leasing agent is actually quoted on tape as saying he wants to gear the mall more toward whites. This alarming controversy certanly paints a different picture of the kinds of unscrupulous, ruthless individuals and terrible policies and a framework of careless responsibility.
Aurora Mall as of my visit in January, 2005 was still mostly outdated. The two-level, straight shot center was anchored by Foley’s (two locations), Sears, and JCPenney. The decor of Aurora Mall was decidedly 80s: a pastel pink, purple and green combination dominated, with blond wooden railings throughout the center. The floor was being replaced with the typical drab, uber-modern white tiles that are on every mall everywhere today, so you can be sure it’s different now. I’m actually curious as to what became of all the renovations. Is Aurora Mall back on its feet? Pictures taken Jan. 2005.
Mitch Glaser
July 7th, 2006 at 10:30 pm
Hey guys, just want to tell you this blog has become on my favorite places on the Web. I’m impressed by the photographs, the research, and the uncanny understanding of what makes shopping malls tick. Most of all, I’m impressed by your ability to locate obscure malls and make them interesting and relevant.
Keep up the good work. I hope your blog continues to build a following among retail buffs everywhere.
[Reply]
Prangeway
July 9th, 2006 at 4:24 pm
Thanks a lot for the support! It’s greatly appreciated. Hopefully you can chime in about southern California and other areas you’re more familiar with when they get posted on here. Our research in that area is definitely lacking.
[Reply]
Caldor
July 11th, 2006 at 12:54 pm
Thanks again Mitch–we appreciate the support! Like he said, we’d definitely love your input on the west coast since that’s really not our area of expertise (I haven’t even been out there since the ’80s–at least Prangeway does have something to tell).
[Reply]
Zac
May 21st, 2007 at 12:31 pm
man…i read about this blog in our arts weekly here in boston. although i’m from boston i spent quite a bit of time in colorado during my teenage years….guys you got to do some bits on Cinderella City, Southglenn Mall and Northglenn Mall….man did i spend a lot of time in those!
[Reply]
Jonah Norason
February 23rd, 2008 at 10:57 pm
Is THIS what killed Buckingham Square Mall? It’s a bit different than I thought (that’s not saying much, tho…)
[Reply]
AceJay
February 24th, 2008 at 12:31 am
Here’s what became of the mall, wow!
http://www.simon.com/mall/mall_info.aspx?ID=232
Check out the interior, nice.
[Reply]
Ed
May 12th, 2008 at 1:08 am
As far as I know, (Thanks Simon Malls!)
this mall is now called Towne Center at Aurora, also Dillard’s took over the Macy’s (Foley’s) Men’s Store and rebranded it as a Dillard’s, so Macy’s shoved all the men’s and home merchandise on the Macy’s Women’s Store, oh, and for all of you orange smoothie lovers, Orange Julius closed 
[Reply]
Jessi
May 27th, 2008 at 3:09 am
There’s still an Orange Julius, it’s just combined with a Dairy Queen now.
[Reply]
Ed Ruskin
August 18th, 2008 at 1:09 am
I love Orange Julius!
Dairy Queen…not so much, Blizzards give me brain freezes! :O
[Reply]
David Mitchell
October 1st, 2008 at 10:52 am
I went down to check out this piece of retail “heaven” about a week & half ago. It sure has changed. I sure do miss cin city. It was fun even for someone like me from the west slope of Colorado. They don’t do malls like that any more!
[Reply]
Paul
October 13th, 2008 at 9:23 pm
Hey David,
I miss Cinderella City too, it was a fun mall, especially Cinder Alley. Unfortunately it was located in a decaying area and nobody wanted to go there anymore.
[Reply]
Josh
November 23rd, 2008 at 1:23 am
Aurora’s population of 300,000 is not part of Denver’s population of 500,000, it’s its own City. The Denver Aurora Metro area has 2.3 million people.
[Reply]
Jennifer
January 7th, 2009 at 5:05 pm
I just found this website, and don’t really know what to say. My husband had heard that the Aurora Mall had closed it’s doors. So I had to try and find out. I spent four years working in the mall at on of the anchor stores, and was sad to hear that it may no long be there. After looking at the pictures posted here, I’m still a little sad to see that center court is being changed. Mrs. Field’s use to be there and the glass elevator I hope gets to stay. My daughter has so many memories riding the elevator going to the Disney store. So please, I would like for someone who lives in Aurora to fill me in on what has happened to the mall.
[Reply]
Miguel
January 22nd, 2009 at 11:21 pm
I too, worked at one of the anchors at the Aurora mall (Sears). I live about a mile away and my family sometimes go there for dinner in the food court (they built on by JC Penney’s, where the Wallgreen’s was back in the day. It’s still going strong. the center court is not the same, there’s a tiny kid’s play area and some kiosks there instead of the mrs fields. but the glass elevator is still there. the renovation updated it, but it’s still a pretty old-school mall by modern standards.
[Reply]
Jesse
March 16th, 2009 at 10:19 pm
anyone remember when Mcdonald’s,sam goody, taco bell, and subway where there? man this mall has sure changed i remember the old arcade used to be so good and now its lame they shutdown the kb store and other kool things too sad that simon accquired it
anyone know who owned it before simon
[Reply]
Mike
March 23rd, 2009 at 1:35 am
Jennifer, Aurora Mall is still there and very much a part of Aurora. With nearby Buckingham Square recently bulldozed, business has actually upticked a little at the mall. Buckingham Square was bulldozed for a mixed retail/residential units with Dicks Sporting Goods and Target being the anchors. Aurora, also recently opened a new mall in the south called Southlands Mall. Wal-Mart, Best Buy, JC Pennys and Kerasotes 16 Theathers being the anchors.
[Reply]
Rob
May 8th, 2009 at 9:49 pm
My late grandmother lived in Aurora when I used to visit her as a kid in the mid-to-late ’80s; I remember when there was a department store called “The Denver” that was probably at the Aurora Mall (I could be mistaken). This was maybe around 1986 or so. Maybe someone remembers this store.
I also wonder if anyone remembers “The Shops At Tabor Center” that was in downtown Denver in the late ’80s.
[Reply]
Cathy
June 2nd, 2009 at 11:07 pm
Tabor Center is still open in downtown Denver even though there really isn’t much retail there but Tabor is the home of Denver’s ESPN Zone and I believe some rather large heath club.
Back in 1988 when I was a student at the University of Denver I interned at then KRZN radio 760/KMJI “majic 100″ ( now KIMN Mix 100 ). One day we were told to head down to Tabor Center for a “special surprise”. The surprise? The entire cast of the then-new TV show “Roseanne” was there. I think KUSA channel 9 ( then ABC ) and Joslins were behind in bringing the cast to Denver and of course Tabor Center. Since Roseanne Barr had ties to Denver having Rosey in town was a very big deal.
I also remember seeing Roseanne Barr, John Goodman and Laurie “Jackie’ Metcalf outside the side entrance of Tabor..smoking cigarettes.
For some reason I remember NBC-TV having a “studio store” in both the Tabor Center and Aurora Mall. They didn’t last long but the downtown (Tabor ) store did move across the 16th Street Mall to the Joslins store where it stuck around for a few more months. I still remember some the items they had for sale. like T-shirts featuring David Letterman and the cast of the Cosby show and pillows and blankets…with a pic of the anchors of “News 4 Colorado” on them.
I would imagine those “channel 4″ items didn’t sell. I can’t imagine in Denver who would want to “sleep” with weatherman Ed Greene.
[Reply]
new store
July 9th, 2009 at 12:56 pm
I am interested in the econome there and the demographics of the area where the aurora mall is, I have a store that sales lowrider stuff can anyone give me there input as far as if my customer is in the mall ( chicano 13-45 ) into lowrider bikes die cast collectables, cholo clothing.
[Reply]