The Market Place (Orange County, California)

The Market Place (also known as the Tustin Market Place or the Tustin/Irvine Market Place) is an outdoor shopping center located in Orange County, California that straddles the borders of Tustin and Irvine. Opened in 1988, the center is located along Jamboree Road,[1] just northeast of Interstate 5. Anchor tenants include Best Buy, Barnes & Noble, Dick's Sporting Goods, T.J. Maxx, The Home Depot, Target, and Edwards Theaters. The property is owned and managed by The Irvine Company.[2]

The Market Place
LocationTustin and Irvine, California, USA
Coordinates33.7238°N 117.7945°W / 33.7238; -117.7945
AddressThe Market Place, 2961 El Camino Real, Tustin, CA 92782
Opening date1988
DeveloperThe Irvine Company
OwnerIrvine Company
ArchitectRicardo Legorreta
Leason/Pomeroy Associates
No. of stores and services122
No. of anchor tenants9
Websitehttp://www.shopthemarketplace.com.

Design

The Market Place covers an area of 165 acres (670,000 m2) [3] and has more than 120 stores, restaurants, cafes and theaters. Designed by Mexican architect Ricardo Legorreta, it consists of monumental but extremely simplified cubic forms, with anchor stores marked by massive towers roughly 70 feet (21 m) high displaying the store name. The center is also unique in that all the store signs are displayed in neon. The overall design operates on the idea that center's tenants add most of the color and character to the otherwise plain center, a concept that had previously (though unsuccessfully) been attempted with Britain's Tricorn Centre. The buildings are arranged in a ring around a large central series of parking lots and fast-food restaurants. The center on the whole has a "desert" look to it, with parking lots shaded under groves of date palms, and extensive rock landscaping around the perimeter of the center. The parking lots are illuminated by arrays of xenon floodlights set inside the peaks of 100-foot (30 m) high towers. The buildings themselves are uniformly surfaced in bright orange, purple, and pink stucco.

History

Phase 1

Construction of Phase I began in 1988 on the Tustin (northwest) side of Jamboree Road, and this phase was opened in three distinct sections. The first section opened in 1988, with 400,000 square feet (40,000 m2) of space allotted for home improvement (The Home Depot), furnishings/decor retail stores including the second STØR location (became IKEA in 1992 which relocated to Costa Mesa in 2003, now Best Buy and REI), and a Toys R Us store (now Nordstrom Rack). The second section of Phase I opened in 1989, with 240,000 square feet (22,000 m2) of soft goods and apparel stores like Ross Dress for Less, Kids R Us (now Sprouts Farmers Market), and T.J. Maxx and electronics stores like The Good Guys! (now PetSmart). The third and final section of Phase I opened in 1990, with 120,000 square feet (11,000 m2) of restaurants, services and a six-screen Edwards Theater.

Phase 2

In 1996, Phase II of the Tustin Market Place opened on the Irvine (southeast) side of Jamboree Road. This phase expanded the Market Place by 420,000 square feet (39,000 m2), adding stores like Sports Authority (closed 2016), OfficeMax (relocated to another space in 2012, later became Stein Mart), Bed Bath & Beyond, Circuit City (now 24 Hour Fitness), and Babies R Us (now Amazon Fresh), restaurants and a 10-screen Edwards Stadium Theater.

Phase 3

With the initiation of Construction of Phase III, also on the Irvine (South East) side of Jamboree Road, opening in 1999. Another 420,000 square feet (39,000 m2) of retail space were added to the Market Place in this phase, which included a new Lowe's store (closed 2019, now Mathis Brothers Furniture), a large food court, and a Target store.

Later Additions

The newer 10-screen Edwards Theater, which opened opened as part of Phase 2, operated alongside the original 6-screen theater built in Phase 1, which was also operated by Edwards, until 2012 when the older six-screen theater closed, due to more people going to the newer theater across the street as well as the new AMC Tustin 14 with opened as part of the District at Tustin Legacy, causing lower attendance. A community center operated by the City of Tustin opened in 2014 in the space originally occupied by the six-screen theater.

In Spring 2014, three new restaurants were added in close proximity to the existing Best Buy store. A Chase Bank branch and a Food Court were also added close to the existing Lowe's store.[4]

The Market Place added a Starbucks, with a drive through, and an Urban Plates restaurant near the former Lowe's building in late 2015. A new building was added close to the theater to accommodate the two new restaurants.[5]

The former Babies R Us space was renovated to hold one of the first Amazon Fresh stores, opening in October 2020. It's a new grocery store concept by Amazon which holds a combination of items found in Whole Foods Market as well as national brand items. It uses Amazon's Dash Cart where customers purchase items online and pick them up in the store without having to checkout, however registers to purchase items in-store will still be available.[6]

References
  1. "The Market Place". Retrieved 7 August 2016.
  2. "Nordstrom Rack To Open At The Market Place In Tustin, Calif". PR Newswire. February 1, 2016. Retrieved 7 August 2016.
  3. DiMartino, Mediha (January 6, 2016). "7 New Restaurants at Market Place". Orange County Business Journal. Retrieved 7 August 2016.
  4. "THE MARKET PLACE SET TO WELCOME SEVERAL NEW RESTAURANTS FOR 2014". Shop the Market Place. The Irvine Company LLC. February 12, 2014. Retrieved October 5, 2016.
  5. "FOUR ADDITIONAL RESTAURANTS TO OPEN AT THE MARKET PLACE THIS YEAR". The Market Place - News & Press. The Irvine Company LLC. June 16, 2015. Retrieved October 5, 2016.
  6. "Second Amazon Fresh supermarket opens its doors". Supermarket News. 2020-10-23. Retrieved 2020-11-08.
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