About three weeks after a Chino Hills mall opened, Orange County residents get another shopping option.
Anaheim GardenWalk will hold its grand opening this Saturday. Nineteen shops and eateries are planning to open that day at about 10 a.m. Another 19 are expected to open this summer. Currently, six restaurants and four shops are open at the outdoor center with fountains and lush landscaping.
The center, a project that started nearly a decade ago, will also have two resort hotels offering a total of 866 rooms and a resort time-share complex with 400 units.
At 440,000 square feet, the retail, dining and entertainment part of the center is similar in size to The Shoppes at Chino Hills and about half of the size of The District at Tustin Legacy, which opened last year. GardenWalk is bigger than Downtown Disney, which sits just a few minutes away.
Bill Stone, principal in Excel Realty Holdings, the retail developer for GardenWalk, thinks customers will be a mix of locals, leisure tourists and conventioneers.
Waits at the restaurants have been as long as 90 minutes, said Kelly Weesner, director of marketing for the center.
However, retail analyst Greg Stoffel previously said that after the initial curiosity for the center wanes, it will draw more tourists.
John Nguyen and Steve Kim, owners of Runway 5 and Gstage, respectively, are worried about opening their shops during a tough economy. Nguyen and Kim couldn't foresee the future when they signed their leases with GardenWalk 18 months ago and in 2006, respectively. But both are hopeful they will benefit from the tourist crowds expected to shop at the center.
For a list of tenants currently open at the center, coming this Saturday and summer as well as freebies, deals and events this weekend, CLICK HERE.
