Stockland Glendale

Stockland Glendale is a large shopping centre in Glendale, in the City of Lake Macquarie, New South Wales, Australia. The centre is situated on Lake Road on a 19.6-hectare site and primarily serves the Lake Macquarie region southwest of Newcastle. Although it was originally developed and operated under the Stockland Glendale name, the property has also been referred to as Glendale City Centre and was previously known as Stockland Super Centre Glendale. The centre began with a 1994 concept plan for an American-style power centre. The proposed format emphasised large category-leading retailers arranged in an open-air setting rather than a conventional enclosed mall. The original tenant concept included Target, Woolworths, Franklins Big Fresh, Homeart, World 4 Kids and approximately 50 specialty stores, together with freestanding fast-food outlets. Stockland Super Centre Glendale opened in March 1996. An eight-screen cinema and entertainment complex opened later that year, on 19 December 1996, as Village Cinemas with an Intencity arcade. The cinema was subsequently rebranded as Greater Union and later as Event Cinemas. The tenant mix changed as the local retail market evolved. Franklins Big Fresh closed in 2001 and was replaced by Coles and a First Choice Liquor superstore. World 4 Kids closed in 2002, after which Aldi and JB Hi-Fi occupied replacement space. The centre expanded by 8,749 square metres in December 2005, adding Kmart and 17 specialty stores. Kmart had previously operated at Charlestown Square before relocating to Glendale. In 2010, Greater Union adopted the Event Cinemas name. Carl's Jr opened its second New South Wales outlet at a site near Kmart in December 2018. The centre provides a broad mix of grocery, discount department store, apparel, electronics, leisure, food and service offerings. Major retailers identified in reference material include Kmart, Target, Coles, Woolworths, Cotton On, TK Maxx, JB Hi-Fi, Rebel and Event Cinemas. The property has approximately 54,786 square metres of floor space and an open-air car park with 2,312 spaces. Bus services connect it with Belmont, Cardiff, Charlestown, Kotara, Newcastle, Seahampton, Swansea, Toronto, Warners Bay, Wallsend, West Wallsend and nearby suburbs, with services operated by Newcastle Transport and Hunter Valley Buses. Glendale's development has also been associated with the proposed Lake Macquarie Transport Interchange, involving a potential railway station, bus interchange and bridge across the Main Northern railway line. The wider project was first proposed in the 1990s. The first stage, involving an extension of Glendale Drive on either side of the railway line, began in July 2015 and was completed in June 2017. A later rail and bus interchange stage remained unfunded in the cited material, while the state government stated that it would not fund the proposed bridge. In 2015, a plan was proposed to roughly double the centre's retail area through a project valued at approximately A$60 million. The proposal included 50 additional specialty stores, an enlarged Coles supermarket, an enclosed mall section, and a boulevard-style restaurant precinct linking the retail and cinema areas. Lake Macquarie City Council approved the development application on 16 November 2018, although the cited material states that construction had not begun and that approval conditions had not yet been disclosed at that point. The centre's operating identity therefore reflects both its Stockland development history and its broader Glendale City Centre positioning.

Stockland released a concept plan for the Glendale Super Centre in 1994. The proposal drew on the US power-centre model, with large category-focused retailers operating in an open-air environment rather than within a traditional enclosed shopping mall. The initial concept named Target, Woolworths, Franklins Big Fresh, Homeart and World 4 Kids as prospective major tenants, alongside about 50 specialty stores and freestanding fast-food outlets. Stockland Super Centre Glendale opened in March 1996 on a 19.6-hectare site along Lake Road in Glendale, within the City of Lake Macquarie. The centre was designed to serve the Lake Macquarie region southwest of Newcastle. On 19 December 1996, an eight-screen Village Cinemas complex and Intencity arcade opened, adding a significant leisure component to the retail offer. Village Cinemas was later rebranded as Greater Union and then as Event Cinemas. The centre's name changed during the early 2000s from Stockland Super Centre Glendale to Stockland Glendale, while Glendale City Centre became another established reference for the property. The retail mix changed during the early 2000s. Franklins Big Fresh closed in 2001 and its space was replaced by Coles and First Choice Liquor. World 4 Kids closed in 2002, with Aldi and JB Hi-Fi subsequently taking replacement space. A major physical expansion was completed in December 2005. The 8,749-square-metre addition introduced Kmart and 17 specialty stores. Kmart had previously traded at Charlestown Square, where its former store closed in August 2004 before the relocation to Glendale. In 2010, the cinema operator's Greater Union branding was replaced by Event Cinemas. By the period covered in the reference material, the centre comprised about 54,786 square metres of floor space and included major retailers such as Kmart, Target, Coles, Woolworths, Cotton On, TK Maxx, JB Hi-Fi, Rebel and Event Cinemas. Its facilities included a 2,312-space open car park and bus connections to a wide range of Lake Macquarie, Newcastle and surrounding suburbs. Services were identified as being provided by Newcastle Transport and Hunter Valley Buses, with many routes stopping near the cinema entrance. The centre's later planning context was linked to the proposed Lake Macquarie Transport Interchange. The interchange concept, discussed since the mid-1990s, was intended to combine a railway station, bus interchange and road bridge across the Main Northern railway line. The first stage of the associated road works began in July 2015 and was completed in June 2017, extending Glendale Drive on both sides of the railway line. The later station and bus-interchange stage remained unfunded in the cited account, and the state government stated that it would not finance the proposed bridge. A separate retail expansion proposal announced in 2015 sought to approximately double the centre's retail area through an estimated A$60 million project. It contemplated 50 additional specialty stores, an expanded Coles, an enclosed mall section and a boulevard restaurant precinct connecting the shops with the cinema. Lake Macquarie City Council approved the development application on 16 November 2018. The cited account states that work had not begun at that stage and that the conditions of approval had not yet been released, partly in the context of uncertainty surrounding the nearby transport project. The available material does not establish whether the full expansion was subsequently completed.

• 2018

  Retail expansion application approved

  [1]Stockland Glendaleen.wikipedia.org

  Lake Macquarie City Council approved the proposed centre expansion on 16 November.

• 2017

  First stage of Glendale Drive extension completed

  [1]Stockland Glendaleen.wikipedia.org

  The first stage of the transport-related road works was completed in June after construction began in July 2015.

• 2010

  Cinema brand changes to Event Cinemas

  [1]Stockland Glendaleen.wikipedia.org

  The Greater Union cinema operation was rebranded as Event Cinemas.

• 2005

  Major expansion completed

  [1]Stockland Glendaleen.wikipedia.org

  An 8,749-square-metre expansion added Kmart and 17 specialty stores.

• 2002

  World 4 Kids replacement

  [1]Stockland Glendaleen.wikipedia.org

  World 4 Kids closed and replacement space was taken by Aldi and JB Hi-Fi.

• 2001

  Franklins replacement

  [1]Stockland Glendaleen.wikipedia.org

  Franklins Big Fresh closed and was replaced by Coles and First Choice Liquor.

• 1996

  Shopping centre opens

  [1]Stockland Glendaleen.wikipedia.org

  Stockland Super Centre Glendale opened in March.

• 1996

  Cinema complex opens

  [1]Stockland Glendaleen.wikipedia.org

  An eight-screen Village Cinemas venue and Intencity arcade opened on 19 December.

• 1994

  Glendale Super Centre concept plan released

  [1]Stockland Glendaleen.wikipedia.org

  Stockland proposed an open-air, US-style power centre with major category retailers, specialty stores and freestanding food outlets.

A large regional shopping and entertainment destination using a power-centre heritage and a broad everyday-needs tenant mix for the Lake Macquarie catchment.

• Retail property · 1996

  Shopping centre retail offer

  The centre combines supermarkets, discount department stores, specialty retail and services. Referenced major tenants include Coles, Woolworths, Kmart, Target, Aldi, Cotton On, TK Maxx, JB Hi-Fi and Rebel, giving the property an everyday-needs and general-merchandise orientation.

• Entertainment · 1996

  Event Cinemas

  The cinema component began as an eight-screen Village Cinemas venue with an Intencity arcade. It later operated under the Greater Union name before adopting the Event Cinemas brand in 2010.

• Shopping-centre format · 1996

  Open-air power-centre format

  The original Glendale concept was based on a US-style power centre: large category-focused stores and specialty retailers arranged in an open-air setting, supported by extensive surface parking and food outlets.

• 2015

  Proposal to substantially expand retail spaceStrategy

  Background

  A plan was proposed to approximately double the centre's retail space and add a more enclosed shopping and dining component.

  Action taken

  The proposal included 50 specialty stores, an expanded Coles, an enclosed mall section and a boulevard restaurant precinct.

  Aftermath

  The development application was approved by Lake Macquarie City Council in November 2018, but the cited material does not confirm completion.

  Proposed development value. A$60 million (2015 proposal)

  Source

• 2005

  Expansion adding Kmart and specialty storesGeneration change

  Background

  The centre expanded its retail capacity after changes to its early tenant mix.

  Action taken

  Stockland completed an 8,749-square-metre expansion with Kmart and 17 specialty stores.

  Aftermath

  The expanded centre broadened its department-store and specialty-retail offer.

  Source

• 1994

  Adoption of a power-centre development conceptStrategy

  Background

  Stockland's initial plan positioned Glendale as an open-air US-style power centre rather than a conventional enclosed shopping mall.

  Action taken

  The concept specified large category retailers, specialty stores and freestanding fast-food outlets.

  Aftermath

  The centre opened in 1996 with the open-air format described in the concept plan.

  Source

• 2018

  Carl's Jr opens second New South Wales outlet at Glendale[1]Stockland Glendaleen.wikipedia.org

  Product launch

  Carl's Jr opened a restaurant near Kmart on 13 December, identified as its second outlet in New South Wales.

• 2005

  Glendale centre completes major expansion[1]Stockland Glendaleen.wikipedia.org

  Product generation

  Stockland completed an 8,749-square-metre expansion that added Kmart and 17 specialty stores.

• 1996

  Stockland Super Centre Glendale opens[1]Stockland Glendaleen.wikipedia.org

  Other

  The shopping centre opened in March 1996 as an open-air power-centre development serving the Lake Macquarie area.

• 1996

  Cinema and entertainment complex opens[1]Stockland Glendaleen.wikipedia.org

  Product launch

  An eight-screen Village Cinemas complex and Intencity arcade opened at the centre on 19 December.

1. 1Stockland Glendaleen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Stockland shopping centresstockland.com.au