El Cantón Mall

Back toward the end of the 1970s, a group of business people in the Bayamón town center district approached don Antonio V. Reyes looking for financing assistance to develop a shopping center. This was the beginning of what became El Cantón Mall. By the 1980s, under the presidency of Reyes, an expansion was added to El Cantón Mall, and 70 additional cuerdas of land next to the mall were acquired. One cuerda is 0.97 of an acre. And under the leadership of a new generation, not only did the growth of the mall move forward as its founders had wanted but the shopping mall became a landmark in Bayamón.[2]

On October 26, 1980, it was reported that a group of merchants from Old Bayamón seemed to have hit the nail on the head with a response to the competition from the large shopping centers that had proliferated on the outskirts of the city in those years. And the response was impressive. A "commercial condominium” as it was called. An indoor shopping center, approximately 170,000 square feet, with large interior walkways and air conditioning. It had been built on Betances Street, in the Cantón sector, next to the traditional commercial area of the city center. It was also close to public transport stations that maintained a vigorous daily movement of people from different points that converged in the town. The concept of "commercial condominium" applied to the center occurred because the project had been developed by a group of 20 merchants who, after completing the building, had individually purchased the spaces in the center for the location of businesses. These merchants, after acquiring the premises, have rented, in some cases, part of them to other people, which was why the number of different businesses that would occupy the center that already had a name “El Cantón Mall” which had already increased to about thirty percent. "The idea of developing a joint project like this, between merchants in the area, arose about ten years ago," said Perfecto Massó, a businessman who presided over the corporation Comerciantes de Bayamón, Inc., created for the construction of the El Cantón Mall. "It was during meetings we held, at the local Chamber of Commerce, where we discussed alternatives to strengthen the historic commercial center of Bayamón," he added. The property of around 12 acres where the El Cantón Mall is located was acquired by the merchants for around $1.7 million, from the Garcia Comercial firm. The company originally had plans to develop the commercial complex and then lease it. The construction of the El Cantón Mall, together with the acquisition of the land, represented an investment of almost $10 million, according to reports. The First Federal Savings & Loan Association had provided most of the interim financing for the center's construction, about $7 million, and woukd also finance about $4.5 million in long-term capital for about 20 merchants in the commercial condominium. Once the construction of the center was completed, the Comerciantes de Bayamón, Inc. corporation would disappear, and the merchants would operate as condominium owners, although with a new firm hired to manage the center. The inauguration of El Cantón Mall had been tentatively scheduled for November 15 of that year, reported José Ramón Ramirez, merchant consultant for the project that was being built by the firm Rexach Construction Company. Ramirez described the work and its concept as an example for other towns on the Island where the historic commercial area had lost impact due to the development of modern shopping centers in its surroundings. He reported that El Cantón Mall would have parking in its surroundings for about 1,000 vehicles. The "condominium owners" properties were between 900 and 2,000 square feet, although some had already subdivided to rent or sell part of it to other merchants. Among the businesses that would operate at El Cantón Mall were Bayamón Federal Savings, a banking institution; B&B, department store: Jorge Pica, clothing and fabric store: Mary Ann Shop, women's clothing; La Gloría, shoes: a pharmacy owned by José Pérez Fonseca and Madison Department Store, men's clothing. Additionally, Almacenes González, shoes: La Gloria, men's clothing; Lerner Shops, women's clothing and Garcia Comercial, a hardware store. The use of an area for a combination of small light food businesses was also contemplated, in the style of the one established in Plaza Las Américas, which had the name of La Terraza. The El Cantón Mall would go on to officially inaugurate on November 29, 1980.[3][4][5]

On December 11, 1980, B&B (Bonito y Barato) would officially inaugurate at the shopping mall.[6]

On May 5, 1985, Tiendas Kress would be reported to inaugurate at the shopping mall.[7]

On November 22, 1989, it was reported that preparations for the Christmas season had begun and El Cantón Mall was getting ready to celebrate in a big way. The shopping center offered its customers economy, variety and enjoyment. The idea of El Cantón Mall had started at the request of a group of merchants. It started with approximately 35 stores and later on had 69, thanks to the support of its regular clientele. El Cantón Mall was designed to satisfy the tastes and needs of the Puerto Rican people. Its location, its wide variety of stores and its low prices made it the ideal shopping place. Among its many attractions were the convenience of ample parking and the constant surveillance of security guards. On the first level, the visitor could enjoy countless of specialized shops, as well as a terrace with eight fast food establishments. Thus you could find discount stores, items for babies and infants, clothing and footwear for him and her, jewelry, perfumery and cosmetics. Musical instruments, pharmacy, opticians, hairdresser, records, photographic equipment and development, furniture stores, banking services, were some of the products and services that El Cantón Mall had for its public. And for a greater variety of selection, the modules or commercial units in the hallways had specialized items to satisfy Christmas cravings. On the second level, several government offices were located at the service of clients. Among them were: ARPE, Telefónica, Aqueduct and Sewer Authority and Social Services. And since El Cantón Mall wanted to celebrate Christmas in a big way, it had extended its regular hours during the month of December of that year.[8]

On May 27, 2010, it was reported that with a wide range of malls and shopping centers located throughout Puerto Rico, the key was getting people to come to yours. Making that happen required to know how and the ability to understand consumer trends. "For decades we have maintained one of the highest traffic [rates] per square foot among all the shopping centers in Puerto Rico," said Sally E. Ortíz, mall administrator for El Cantón Mall in Bayamón. "Nowadays, average weekday traffic is 25,000 per day." When asked what the mall had done to attract such a significant crowd of shoppers, she said that the facility's mix of retailers had played a large role. This included a wide range of well-known department, clothing and accessory stores, beauty and jewelry boutiques, perfume shops, communications retailers, eateries, pet shops, furniture and electronics stores, pharmacies and stores selling health products, music stores, and a number of miscellaneous service and educational centers. "Our winning strategy has been to maintain a tenant mix that offers a variety of products and services to our customers at very affordable prices," Ortiz said. "With our main target being the middle and low-middle economic class, most of our stores offer basic goods at low prices, thus minimizing the effect of the economic recession on the mall's performance." She also said that shoppers were attracted to the facility's safe and pleasant shopping environment as well. "We motivate our staff to provide our customers with a highly pleasant shopping experience," Ortiz said. "This in turn helps our tenants increase sales.” And while other shopping establishments that housed higher-priced merchants were feeling the pinch of the economic recession with the number of shoppers visiting those stores in decline, El Cantón Mall, which was opened in 1980, had in fact seen an increase in visitors. "Our recent traffic estimates suggest that the economic recession has caused an increase in our daily traffic, since more and more people are looking for low prices and better bargains," she said. Another way that Ortiz and her staff were keeping the mall's tenants profitable was through efficiency. "We are continuously investing in improving efficiency, which is one of the reasons why we have one of the lowest common-area maintenance (CAM) charges of all the shopping malls in Puerto Rico," she said. "Over the last couple of years, we have managed to reduce water consumption by 60% and electricity consumption by 20%." Ortiz added that, not only had this made the mall more environmentally friendly; it had also allowed the facility to maintain low CAM (common area maintenance) charges, which in turn allowed tenants to offer their products to customers at lower prices as well. With a gross leasable area of 206,335 square feet and more than 1,100 parking spaces, Ortiz noted that another one of her administration's top priorities was keeping the mall and its surroundings secure and making it a safe place to shop. "In an effort to keep offering a safe shopping environment, we are installing a state-of-the-art surveillance system," she said. "These efforts in safety and efficiency will not only keep our tenants and shoppers happy, but will also help us maintain our status as one of the best performing malls on the island."[9]

On January 31, 2013, it was reported that ever since El Cantón Mall opened its doors, it had become a fixture, if not a landmark, of life in Bayamón and the surrounding region, maintaining one of the highest visitor traffic per square foot of all shopping centers in Puerto Rico. With the inauguration of the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority's commercial offices (Prepa) in the mall that year, the shopping center expected a substantial increase in daily visitors. Prepa's commercial offices could occupy some 13,000 square feet, and its opening date was set for March 2013. "The opening of the Prepa office in El Cantón Mall reflects our constant commitment to develop and grow in such ways that the mall is in tune with Bayamón's development plans, and in turn helping keep the municipality's urban center alive while tending to its needs," said Alberto Corretjer Reyes, executive vice president of El Cantón Mall. Located on Betances Street in Bayamón's commercial and historic center, El Cantón Mall had a gross leasable area of about 207,000 square feet, more than 1,200 parking spaces and averaged weekday traffic of 27,000 visitors. The mall had a vacancy rate of less than 2%. With an impressive roster at the time of more than 80 stores, including Rent-A-Center, Rainbow, 5-7-9, Foot Locker, Payless Shoe Source, Jeans.com, Capri, Kress, RadioShack, Me Salvé, Tiendas La Gloría, Always 99, as well as government service offices such as the U.S. Post Office, Demographic Registry, Puerto Rico Aqueduct & Sewer Authority, and Prepa. This tenant mix was one example of the reason the mall has enjoyed such longevity and growth, offering a variety of experiences, products and brands for consumers at very affordable prices, targeting mainly the middle and low income segments. El Cantón Mall was managed by Herederos Vidal Nadal Inc. (HVN Inc.), a commercial real-estate management company.[10][11]