Opening: 1960s On June 27, 1962, developed by IBEC Realty Company, Centro del Sur inaugurated with anchors
Kresge’s,
Barker’s, and
Grand Union. At the time it consisted of 120,000 square feet of retail space with 18 establishments such as
Farmacias Moscoso,
Thom McAn,
Banco de Ponce, Elegance, Mayfair, and One-Hour Martinizing. The $2,500,000 shopping center which took two years to be built, being in plans since 1960, it was considered at the time the most modern shopping center in the Caribbean. It was constructed by engineer Santiago Castrodad, and featured a 436 foot long shopping corridor with benches, gardens, and a central fountain with colored lighting that served as main attractions at the mall. The shopping corridor was about 40 feet wide and over 21 feet high, with its drastically angled accordion-type roof. Barker’s made its debut on the island with this new store at the shopping center.
1980s-1990s In June 1987, the
Kresge’s store at the shopping center would close, leaving employees who had worked at the store for over 20 years without jobs. In 1994, a space previously occupied by
New York Department Stores became an extension of the main mall which then accommodated
Marshalls, Tiendas Ferco, Me Salvé,
Postnet, and six other local tenants. This also triggered a complete reconstruction of the mall's entrance and facade. The combination of the re-tenanting and remodeling the center proved to be very successful as sales figures increased consistently. In 1995, the Malecón Ave. overpass was completed providing new and better access to the shopping center and approximately 150 additional parking spaces for a total of 1,350 parking spaces.
2000s In 2005, a 20,000 square foot expansion for the
Marshalls Megastore was to be completed by July of that year. In the late 2000s, the mall was anchored by a
Marshalls Megastore,
Farmacias El Amal, and a
Pitusa. Rincón del Sabor the food court at the mall had food options for all tastes, such as
Subway, AKA Los Tacos, Mr. Pretzels, Crave, Goodies, Charlie’s Pizza, Country Deli, and Villa China’s chinese exquisite food. Tenants at the time were establishments such as Me Salvé,
Almacenes Kress, Marianne, Rave, Madison, Jeans.com,
Payless ShoeSource,
RadioShack,
Foot Locker, La Defensa,
Kay-Bee Toys,
Rent-A-Center, and
Western Auto.
2010s, and on On June 24, 2010, it was reported that a new 69,595 square foot
Burlington Coat Factory store would be located in the section of the mall that formerly housed
Western Auto,
Pitusa,
Farmacias El Amal, Madison and
Rent-A-Center, with the latter two stores being relocated to another section of the mall. Located in
Ponce, the 220,304 square foot Centro del Sur Mall had enjoyed additional exposure and traffic as the result of renewal efforts in the southern city's historic section at the time. On March 27, 2011, the
Burlington Coat Factory store at the mall finally inaugurated. In October 2012, a
Burlington Baby Depot store opened at the mall. ==Notability==