The Boulevard Mall
A single-story super-regional shopping mall in Paradise, Nevada, and the oldest shopping mall in the Las Vegas Valley.
Last updated November 4, 2026
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Overview
The Boulevard Mall is a single-story super-regional shopping mall on Maryland Parkway at Desert Inn Road in Paradise, Nevada, near the Las Vegas Strip. It is one of the Las Vegas Valley’s longest-running retail destinations and is generally recognized as the valley’s oldest surviving shopping mall. The property occupies approximately 75 acres and contains about 1.18 million square feet of leasable retail space. In 2024, it had roughly 80 tenants, although its tenant mix has changed substantially over time as traditional department stores gave way to discount retail, entertainment, community organizations, specialty marketplaces, food businesses, schools, call centers, and other nontraditional mall uses. The project was announced in 1963 as Parkway Mall and was later known as Boulevard Shopping Center before opening under the name The Boulevard Mall on March 6, 1968. Its original development team included the Las Vegas-based Parkway Investment Company and prominent local real-estate figures Harry Lahr, Irwin Molasky, and Merv Adelson. Haas and Haynie Corporation subsequently became the owner and developer. The architectural concept evoked a European village, with a signature entrance designed by John Graham Jr., whose work also included Seattle’s Space Needle. Early department-store anchors included Sears, The Broadway, JCPenney, and Ronzone’s. Sears and The Broadway opened before the enclosed mall itself, helping establish the project as a major retail destination from its first years. The mall benefited during the 1970s from its proximity to the Strip and from the growth of Maryland Parkway as a retail corridor. Its position approximately a mile and a half from the Strip also made it useful to tourists as well as local residents. Competition intensified after the opening of Fashion Show Mall in 1981 and the later development of other major shopping centers, including Galleria at Sunset. The Boulevard Mall responded through a 1984 remodeling and a much larger expansion and renovation completed between 1990 and 1992. That project added retail space, a food court, parking decks, and extensive security infrastructure. For many years the mall was the largest shopping center in Las Vegas, a distinction it lost after Fashion Show Mall expanded in 2002. The property experienced further pressure during the Great Recession. Department-store closures and reduced traffic weakened portions of the center, while the closure of Dillard’s in 2008 particularly affected nearby stores. Ownership and operating control moved from General Growth Properties to its Rouse Properties spin-off in 2012. Financial distress led to foreclosure in 2013, after which Sansone Companies acquired the mall in November of that year through a newly formed ownership structure. Sansone launched a major repositioning program focused on repairing the aging property, improving security and landscaping, adding Wi-Fi and refreshed finishes, and attracting tenants that reflected the surrounding community. A central element of the repositioning was a shift toward the nearby Hispanic and Filipino populations. Community groups, a Hispanic museum, cultural organizations, Spanish-language media, Mexican-style specialty retailers, and cultural festivals helped turn vacant space into community-oriented uses. By 2016, Hispanic customers reportedly represented as much as 80 percent of the mall’s clientele. El Mercado, a Hispanic-themed marketplace and food hall completed in 2021, became a major component of this strategy and contained nearly 190 smaller businesses or vendor spaces. A Spanish-language radio studio began operating there in 2022. Traditional anchors have continued to change. Macy’s and JCPenney closed in 2017, while Sears closed in 2019. Portions of the former anchor spaces have been adapted for call centers, schools, entertainment, and other uses. Current or recent attractions include Goodwill, John’s Incredible Pizza Company, Marshalls, One World Interactive Aquarium, El Mercado, and Galaxy Theatres. The Boulevard Mall therefore operates less as a conventional department-store mall than as a hybrid retail, entertainment, food, cultural, and community destination. Its long-term identity is tied to adaptive reuse, local demographic alignment, and its historic role in the Las Vegas retail landscape.
History
The Boulevard Mall began as a proposed retail development announced in September 1963 under the name Parkway Mall. The project was planned for the southeast corner of Maryland Parkway and Desert Inn Road, an area that would later become one of the Las Vegas Valley’s principal commercial corridors. Parkway Investment Company, a subsidiary of Paradise Homes, proposed the development with participation from local real-estate figures Harry Lahr, Irwin Molasky, and Merv Adelson. Haas and Haynie Corporation took over as owner and developer in January 1965. The design was commissioned from Robert R. Weber and Associates of Texas and was conceived as an enclosed shopping environment with a European-village character. John Graham Jr. designed the prominent entrance, while Charles Luckman and Associates designed the three-story Broadway department store. Sears construction began in June 1964, and the overall mall and Broadway work followed in 1965. JCPenney construction began in June 1966 after an extended design process. A time capsule was buried near the future Broadway entrance on April 29, 1966, with Nevada officials and local media in attendance; it was intended to be opened a century later. Sears opened on November 17, 1965, and The Broadway opened on October 17, 1966. The enclosed center opened at 10 a.m. on March 6, 1968, with Nevada Governor Paul Laxalt and state senator Floyd Lamb participating in the ribbon-cutting. The original property contained approximately 750,000 square feet, 26 stores, and four department stores: The Broadway, JCPenney, Sears, and Ronzone’s. It was the second enclosed shopping mall in Las Vegas, following the smaller Charleston Plaza. During the 1970s, the mall became one of the valley’s leading shopping destinations. Its location close to the Strip attracted tourists, while local growth supported Maryland Parkway businesses. Ownership changed several times: Chrysler Realty Corporation acquired the property in 1969, Balcor Realty Investors bought it in 1974, and MEPC American Properties and Schroder Real Estate acquired it in 1978, with MEPC later becoming sole owner. The retail environment became more competitive after Fashion Show Mall opened in 1981 and after other centers opened in the Las Vegas region. The Boulevard Mall was remodeled in 1984. A major expansion and renovation began in October 1990 and was completed in August 1992. The project added approximately 150,000 square feet of retail space, a 24,000-square-foot food court, and three multilevel parking decks. It also introduced a 140-camera surveillance system and expanded parking-lot patrols. By 1998, the mall covered approximately 1.25 million square feet. General Growth Properties purchased it from MEPC that year. The property remained Las Vegas’s largest mall until Fashion Show Mall expanded in 2002. The tenant roster evolved as department-store chains changed. Ronzone’s became Diamond’s in 1974 and was later converted to Dillard’s in 1986. The Broadway became a Macy’s in 1996. A new, larger Dillard’s opened in 1991, and Marshalls joined the property as an anchor in 1983. At its late-1990s peak, the mall had more than 120 stores, restaurants, and a food court. Dillard’s closed in 2008 during the economic downturn, and the resulting loss of traffic contributed to additional closures. The Great Recession produced a sustained decline in visits and occupancy beginning in 2008. Management increasingly sought to serve the Hispanic and Filipino communities living nearby. The Mexican Patriotic Committee opened in 2011, followed by the Hispanic Museum of Nevada and Mexico Vivo Dance Studio and Cultural Arts Center in 2012. The mall also hosted Fiestas Patrias, Cinco de Mayo activities, Filipino Independence Day events, and other cultural programming. Spanish-language media operations were added, including a KMCC facility in 2013 and a radio studio associated with El Mercado in 2022. Rouse Properties assumed ownership and operations in January 2012. By late 2012, reported leased space exceeded occupied space because many tenants had closed or not yet opened. Debt problems led to foreclosure in June 2013. Sansone Companies purchased the mall in November 2013 through Boulevard Ventures LLC and a related ownership arrangement. The new owner began a renovation in December 2014, including building repairs, drought-tolerant landscaping, new paint, food-court Wi-Fi, an Art Deco exterior treatment, and enhanced security. The repositioning targeted middle-class Hispanic consumers and sought tenants beyond the conventional department-store model. Within three years, reported tenant occupancy rose from approximately 75 percent to 95 percent. Macy’s and JCPenney closed in 2017, and Sears closed in 2019. Former anchor spaces have been adapted for call centers, schools, entertainment, and other community uses. El Mercado opened in October 2021 and became a major Hispanic-oriented marketplace and food destination. As of 2024, the property continued to operate with approximately 80 tenants, including Goodwill, John’s Incredible Pizza Company, Marshalls, One World Interactive Aquarium, El Mercado, and Galaxy Theatres. Its current model reflects the mall’s transition from a department-store-led regional center to a mixed retail, cultural, entertainment, and community destination.
- 2022
Spanish-language radio studio opens
[1]A Spanish radio station begins operating from a studio at El Mercado.
- 2021
El Mercado opens
[1]A Hispanic-themed marketplace and food hall opens as a major new component of the mall’s community-based repositioning.
- 2019
Sears closes
[1]The original Sears anchor ends operations after more than five decades.
- 2017
Macy’s and JCPenney close
[1]Two major department-store anchors leave the property, accelerating the shift toward adaptive reuse.
- 2014
Sansone renovation begins
[1]A broad physical and operational revitalization program starts under Sansone Companies.
- 2013
Foreclosure and Sansone acquisition
[1]The mall enters foreclosure and is later acquired by Sansone Companies through a new ownership structure.
- 2012
Rouse Properties assumes control
[1]Rouse Properties takes over ownership and operations while continuing the Hispanic and Filipino market strategy.
- 2011
Community-oriented tenant strategy begins
[1]The mall begins adding Hispanic community organizations and cultural uses to address changing local demographics.
- 1998
General Growth Properties acquires the mall
[1]General Growth Properties purchases the property from MEPC.
- 1996
The Broadway becomes Macy’s
[1]The Broadway anchor is converted to the Macy’s banner.
Products and positioning
A community-oriented Las Vegas-area shopping and entertainment destination that combines traditional retail with Hispanic and Filipino cultural programming, specialty marketplaces, food, family attractions, and adaptive reuse of former department-store space.
Marketplace and food hall · 2021
El Mercado
A Hispanic-themed marketplace and food destination completed in 2021. El Mercado provides a large collection of smaller vendor spaces, food businesses, and culturally oriented offerings within the mall. Its presence reflects the property’s strategic shift from reliance on national department stores toward a locally relevant mix serving the surrounding Hispanic community.
Cinema and entertainment
Galaxy Theatres
A movie-theater attraction operating within the mall, contributing to the property’s role as an entertainment destination as well as a retail center.
Family entertainment
One World Interactive Aquarium
An interactive aquarium attraction occupying mall space and representing the owner’s effort to introduce experiential tenants that are not typical department-store or specialty-retail occupants. It was formerly associated with the SeaQuest chain.
Family dining and entertainment
John’s Incredible Pizza Company
A family-oriented restaurant and entertainment tenant that combines dining with attractions. Its presence fits the mall’s post-2013 strategy of adding destinations capable of generating visits beyond conventional shopping.
Off-price retail · 1983
Marshalls
An off-price department-style retailer that has operated in a separate building south of the main mall. Marshalls became an anchor-level tenant in the 1980s and remains part of the property’s active retail mix.
Value retail
Goodwill
A value-oriented retail tenant included among the mall’s active anchor or major tenants. Its presence illustrates the diversification of the property’s tenant base after the departure of several traditional department stores.
Marketing campaigns
- 2013Filipino community events
Las Vegas Valley · Filipino community
The mall hosted large events celebrating Filipino pride and Filipino Independence Day as part of its broader community-oriented programming.
Outcome. The programming broadened the mall’s cultural appeal beyond its Hispanic-focused strategy.
- 2012Fiestas Patrias and Cinco de Mayo programming
Las Vegas Valley
The mall hosted Hispanic cultural events, including Fiestas Patrias and a Cinco de Mayo festival, while also accommodating community organizations and cultural programming.
Outcome. The events reinforced the mall’s role as a community center rather than only a conventional retail property.
- 2011Hispanic community and cultural repositioning
Las Vegas Valley · Hispanic community · Filipino community
Management began filling vacant space with Hispanic community organizations, cultural groups, specialty retailers, and events. The program responded to the changing demographics within the surrounding trade area and sought to make the mall a regular community gathering place.
Outcome. Customer visits increased, and the mall developed a stronger identity among Hispanic and Filipino residents.
Brand decisions
2021
Open El MercadoProduct launchBackground
The mall’s repositioning emphasized Hispanic-oriented retail, food, culture, and community uses.
Action taken
El Mercado opened as a Hispanic-themed marketplace and food hall with a large number of vendor spaces.
Aftermath
El Mercado became a prominent component of the mall’s current tenant and community strategy.
2014
Launch a community-focused mall overhaulStrategyBackground
Sansone regarded the property as physically dated and sought to improve its appeal to middle-class Hispanic customers.
Action taken
The owner began exterior and interior repairs, new paint, drought-tolerant landscaping, improved security, food-court Wi-Fi, and an Art Deco-inspired facade treatment.
Aftermath
Reported tenant occupancy rose from approximately 75 percent to 95 percent within three years, while the tenant mix expanded beyond conventional mall retailers.
Planned overhaul cost. $25 million (2014 renovation program)
2013
Acquire the mall through Sansone CompaniesM&ABackground
The property had suffered from declining traffic, weak occupancy, anchor closures, and foreclosure proceedings.
Action taken
Sansone Companies acquired the mall through Boulevard Ventures LLC and a related ownership arrangement, retaining the property as an operating shopping center.
Aftermath
The new ownership launched a repositioning program focused on physical improvements, security, community relevance, and unconventional tenants.
Acquisition price. $54.5 million (November 2013)
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