Whittier Downs Shopping Center

Whittier Downs Shopping Center was a regional open-air shopping center located at the intersection of Washington and Norwalk boulevards in Santa Fe Springs, California, within Los Angeles County. Although its name referenced the adjacent city of Whittier, the center itself sat inside Santa Fe Springs city limits and primarily served the unincorporated community of West Whittier-Los Nietos. It opened in 1955 with parking for 740 cars and was anchored by a JCPenney department store. The center was designed by the noted Los Angeles architectural firm Pereira & Luckman, whose mid-century commercial work helped define the postwar Southern California retail landscape. At roughly 200,000 square feet, Whittier Downs was smaller than the era's grand regional malls but substantial enough to function as a community shopping hub. Its layout was unusual for the period: shops faced both an interior pedestrian mall and the surrounding parking lot, giving retailers dual frontage and shoppers the choice of strolling a covered walkway or parking directly at a store entrance. This hybrid design reflected the transitional retail thinking of the 1950s, when developers were experimenting with pedestrian-oriented planning while still accommodating the automobile. Whittier Downs served the West Whittier-Los Nietos area from the 1950s through the 1980s. By the late 1980s, changing retail patterns and competition from newer centers had taken a toll, and the mall was demolished. The site was redeveloped into the Santa Fe Springs Marketplace, a neighborhood shopping center that remains in operation. The Marketplace is anchored by a Food 4 Less supermarket, an O'Reilly Auto Parts store, and a Pic 'N' Save Bargains store. That Pic 'N' Save location is notable as a revival of the original Pic 'N' Save closeout chain, which had eventually converted to the Big Lots banner; the space had previously operated as a Rite Aid and, before that, a Thrifty Drugs pharmacy. Whittier Downs is remembered as one of three retail centers that defined Santa Fe Springs' mid-century shopping landscape, alongside the Santa Fe Springs Mall (later Gateway Plaza) and the Santa Fe Springs Shopping Center (later the Santa Fe Springs Promenade). Today all three sites operate as conventional open-air shopping centers, but Whittier Downs itself no longer exists under its original name or configuration.

Whittier Downs Shopping Center opened in 1955 at the intersection of Washington and Norwalk boulevards in Santa Fe Springs, California. The center was designed by Pereira & Luckman, a prominent Los Angeles architectural firm known for its mid-century commercial and civic work. It was anchored by a JCPenney department store and offered approximately 200,000 square feet of retail space, with parking for 740 cars. The center's design was notable for its dual-frontage layout: shops faced both an interior pedestrian mall and the surrounding parking lot. This was an unusual configuration for the 1950s, when most centers chose either a pedestrian-oriented plan or a purely auto-oriented strip layout. Whittier Downs attempted to combine both, giving shoppers the option of walking through a landscaped pedestrian way or parking directly in front of a store. Although named for the adjacent city of Whittier, the center was located within Santa Fe Springs city limits and primarily served the unincorporated community of West Whittier-Los Nietos. It operated successfully through the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s as a community shopping destination. By the 1980s, the retail environment in the region had changed significantly. Newer, larger centers and shifting shopping patterns drew customers away from older open-air centers like Whittier Downs. In the late 1980s, the mall was demolished and the site was redeveloped into the Santa Fe Springs Marketplace, a neighborhood shopping center. The new Marketplace was anchored by a Food 4 Less supermarket, an O'Reilly Auto Parts store, and a Pic 'N' Save Bargains store. The Pic 'N' Save location represented a revival of the original Pic 'N' Save closeout chain, which had eventually converted to the Big Lots banner; the space had previously been a Rite Aid pharmacy and, before that, a Thrifty Drugs store. Whittier Downs was one of three shopping centers that defined Santa Fe Springs' retail landscape in the mid-20th century, along with the Santa Fe Springs Mall (later Gateway Plaza) and the Santa Fe Springs Shopping Center (later the Santa Fe Springs Promenade). Today, all three sites operate as conventional open-air shopping centers, but Whittier Downs no longer exists under its original name or configuration.

• 1989

  The mall is demolished in the late 1980s and the site is redeveloped into the Santa Fe Springs Marketplace.

• 1980

  The center continues to serve West Whittier-Los Nietos through the 1980s before retail patterns shift.

• 1955

  Whittier Downs Shopping Center opens with parking for 740 cars, anchored by JCPenney, designed by Pereira & Luckman.

Mid-century community shopping center serving West Whittier-Los Nietos, anchored by JCPenney, with an innovative dual-frontage design by Pereira & Luckman.

• JCPenney department store (anchor)

• Specialty retail shops facing pedestrian mall and parking lot

• 740-car parking lot

1. 1Whittier Downs Shopping Center - Wikidatawikidata.org
2. 2Shopping centers in Santa Fe Springs, California - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org