An extant asset
Whenever I go to a new city and visit its retail offerings, there’s usually some sort of headliner that I have to see even if I don’t make it to any others. In Edmonton, it was the West Edmonton Mall while I had to see the Monroeville Mall when visiting Pittsburgh. However, Vancouver didn’t really have one. That is until I visited Metropolis at Metrotown.
1- Metropolis at Metrotown from the adjoining Metrotown Station. 2 to 4- The main front facing entrance to the center. 5 & 6- The transit center in the mall’s front car park.
I stepped off of the Expo Line’s Metrotown Station relatively early on a cold Sunday morning. I usually choose earlier start times when documenting malls as there are fewer people out and about. But Metrotown was fairly significantly attended although most shops didn’t open for another hour.
Metrotown Centre lease plan ca. 1986. View the full PDF version here.
Though the full scope of Metropolis at Metrotown wasn’t apparent from the rail station, it soon became clear that the double tiered complex was absolutely huge. It was as if different concourses were built separately and later joined, resulting in a franken-mall of enormous proportions.
1- A disused skywalk at the mall’s front. 2 to 6- The exterior to the Metropolis section of the center in the rear of the complex. 7- The façade of the Indigo theater. 8- The former Sears from the Metropolis exterior.
I would find out later that this was actually the case, though today all of the now seamlessly connected original centers act as one. I entered through what was opened as the Eaton Centre just beyond the connected transit center.
1 to 5- The former Sears store at the northern end of the original Metrotown Centre. 6- The towers overlooking Metrotown. 7 to 10- The exterior and main mall entrance to the Metrotown expansion capped by Hudson’s Bay.
This section of the greater Metropolis at Metrotown was a full two tiers throughout with a small basement area in the middle. Barrel vaulted skylights hung over floors of, you guessed it, gray and white tile. It was attractive enough but presented nothing memorable.
Trees and a water feature, viewed both from above and below, in the connector between what were once the Eaton Centre and Metrotown.
On the northern section of this phase stood anchor Real Canadian Superstore though it only occupied a single level. It was joined by an Indigo Cineplex as well as junior anchors SportChek, Zara and Home Sense.
1 & 2- The Hudson’s Bay store. 3 to 6- The south facing exterior and mall entrance for the Hudson’s Bay expansion wing.
Just east of the glass dome topped center court of the former Eaton Centre section, I traversed the mezzanine-less corridor leading to the original Metrotown Centre. Past towering bamboo plants and an interesting water feature shared between both levels, I arrived at the Grand court.
The main concourse of what was once the Eaton Centre with Old Navy anchoring the eastern end.
Adorned with a loftily magnificent display for the Lunar New Year, the oval shaped court was definitely the focal point of the entire facility. It was surrounded by three tiers. Two belonged to the above ground levels while the third was beneath us in the basement.
The Eaton Centre lease plan ca. 1989. View the full PDF version here.
Running mainly north to south, the section was bookended by anchors Walmart and T&T Supermarket on the bottom and top respectively while the former Sears Canada space sat to the north, today only housing offices for Concord Pacific.
1 to 4- Center court at the former Eaton Centre. 5 & 6- Zara’s mall entrance, the western anchor in the former Eaton wing. 7 to 10- The corridors and inline shops located in what was once Eaton’s department store.
The newest corridor splits off of the Grand Court to the northeast. A full two tiers itself, this section houses the mall’s food court as well as the anchor spot for venerable Canadian retailer Hudson’s Bay.
The corridors and shops of what was originally the Metropolis addition to Eaton Centre including anchors Great Canadian Superstore and Winners.
It took quite a while for me to fully explore all of the nooks and crannies that Metropolis at Metrotown had to offer, but it was well worth it. By the time I departed, retailers had raised their gates as I was on my way to Central City in Surrey.
Inside one of the newer portions of Metropolis at Metrotown, the two level connector corridor between the former Eaton Centre and the original Metrotown.
What is today known as Metropolis at Metrotown owes its beginnings from a single, stand-alone Sears Canada outlet that had opened at the site in the mid-twentieth century. The original Metrotown Centre debuted to the south of Sears in 1986 with Woodward’s laying claim to the southern anchor spot.
In the ensuing years, Metrotown was joined by two other centers located to its west. Next door was the 1989 built Eaton Centre boasting anchor Eaton’s while the open-air Station Square made its home just to the new facility’s west.
The original, three level straight line mallway of the Metrotown Centre with Walmart and T&T Supermarket as anchors on the southern end where Woodword’s was located upon the mall’s opening. The northern anchor, once Sears, is now occupied by offices for Concord Pacific.
Expansion came to the still separate centers in 1992 as the northeast running wing and its Hudson’s Bay store were added to the Metrotown Centre. Sears Canada would remain in their longtime digs until departing for good in 2018.
The magnificent triple tiered center court of Metrotown Centre decked out in stunning décor in anticipation of the Lunar New Year.
In 1998, Eaton Centre grew with the addition of what was called Metropolis. Entertainment focused and geared toward a younger crowd, Metropolis contained a Silver City cineplex as well as theme restaurants such as Rainforest Café.
1 to 8- The two level expansion leading from Metrotown’s center court to the Hudson’s Bay store. 9 & 10- The Bay’s mall entrance.
Just the following year, however, major changes came as Eaton’s shuttered their outlet. With the loss of the anchor, the eponymous center became known as simply Metropolis. Then in 2005, the once separate complexes were fully integrated and given the moniker Metropolis at Metrotown.
Metropolis at Metrotown Mallmanac ca. 2024. View the full PDF here.
Today at nearly 1.8 million square feet, Metropolis at Metrotown is the largest enclosed shopping mall in greater Vancouver and the third largest in all of Canada. Among its 450 stores are popular names such as Coach, Uniqlo, Club Monaco and MUJI.
The food court, located on the second floor of the Hudson’s Bay wing.
While growth continues outside of the facility’s many walls, unlike neighbors Lougheed Mall and Brentwood Town Centre, Metropolis at Metrotown doesn’t seem to be going anywhere. I’m glad its developers have decided to keep it, seeing it as an integral part of the overall complex rather than just an outdated concept to be dismantled.
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