Do you or someone you know have a favorite mall? Is your favorite mall closed? Is it still open? Well, today we will learn about all the malls that used to be here and are still here. The main one I usually go to is Dimond Center Mall so we will start with that one. Dimond Center mall was established in 1977 by Joe Patty Ashlock. Its grand opening was in the year 1977 and it was a great year because now the mall has been open for 46 years and is still going. It started as a small place at 180,000 square feet but then grew to 230,000 square feet and it also grew in popularity over time. They kept taking down stores such as Pay N’ Save in 1999 to add more stores like GAP and Old Navy. It grew to a large size of 728,000 square feet. They also tore down Safeway to build Best Buy in 2002. A student in my class named Nathan Panamaroff said “My favorite mall is Dimond Center Mall.” Another student in my class named Jackson Nelson said “I also like Dimond Center Mall”

5th Avenue Mall is another one that’s been open for a while now, at 35 years! It opened on August 1st, 1987 and it was 5 floors and had 81 stores and services. A senior in my class named Ryan Coker said “I like 5th avenue because of the sunset view on the roof, it’s worth the view.”

Northway Mall was built in 1979 and opened its doors in 1980 and was originally the largest mall in Anchorage but since more malls and stores have opened, its popularity has gone down. Overall, there are a lot of malls in Anchorage and it doesn’t matter which one you go to as long as you have a good time there. Some have different stores compared to others but for the most part, they’re all the same. Happy shopping and hanging out with friends Dimond!