Houston Galleria
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The Galleria is an upscale mixed-use urban development centrally located in the Uptown District of Houston, Texas, one of the largest business districts in the country, just outside the city's I-610 inner beltway. The shopping complex sits at one of the busiest road intersections in the country, Post Oak Boulevard at Westheimer Road. The Galleria consists of three office towers, two Westin hotels, and a private health club. Houston's Galleria was the original, in the sense that it was the first mall to combine an indoor shopping center with hotels and/or office towers.
The idea of an indoor shopping center with a hotel was envisioned in the 1950s by oilman Glenn H. McCarthy where a second phase was to include a shopping center with the Shamrock Hotel; this concept was scrapped right after the Hilton Hotel franchise took over the Shamrock in 1955. Glenn H. McCarthy's abandoned concept would influence Gerald Hines in the late 1960s.
The complex is located at 5085 Westheimer Rd, Houston, TX 77056, Template:Coor d.
History
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The Galleria was developed by Gerald Hines in 1970. The new shopping center, anchored by Neiman Marcus, was modeled after the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II in Milan. When it opened the mall had 600,000 ft² (56,000 m²) of retail space. The original skylights had three hanging chandeliers, along with the incorporation of the Houston Oaks (now Westin Oaks) Hotel.
The first expansion, Galleria II was completed in 1976 and added 360,000 ft² (33,000 m²) of retail space on two levels as well as Lord & Taylor and Frost Bros. The Marshall Field's store, which was designed by noted architect Philip Johnson, openend in 1979. Galleria II includes office space (known as the Galleria Financial Center since the early 1990s) and a second hotel - the Galleria Plaza (now Westin Galleria) Hotel.
In 1986 Galleria III opened with Macy's followed by Galleria IV, a major expansion completed in March 2003 that added Nordstom and Foley's as well as an additional 70 stores. Upon completion of Galleria IV the shopping center totaled 2.4 million ft² (220,000 m²) of retail space. Another 100,000 ft² (9,300 m²) of retail space will be added once the vacated Lord & Taylor store, which closed in 2005, is renovated and incorporated into the mall sometime in the spring of 2006. The former Lord & Taylor space will include a Borders Books and Music, Kona Grill, Oceanaire Seafood Room, Del Frisco's Steakhouse, and nine other retail spaces.
Over the years, it became evident that there was no master plan for expansion of the mall due to the lack of space. The planning requires shoppers to walk through the Saks Fifth Avenue (formerly Marshall Field's) store (or through a promenade on the street level) either on the street and second levels to access Galleria III and Macy's. As a result the foot traffic in Galleria III is drastically less than other parts of the mall and it has struggled to maintain tenants.
Federated Department Stores plans to close the current Macy's store once its takeover of May Department Stores becomes final in 2006 and Foley's is renamed to Macy's. [1] A plan is being considered to convert the Macy's space into luxury apartments.[2]
The Galleria is now the fourth-largest shopping complex in the United States.
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A recent boom of retail influx in the Galleria has sparked even greater tourism and a much greater interest of retailers and designers to purchase space in the shopping complex. Due to rising rental costs in the Galleria, the number and locations of stores is always changing. Currently, there are about 375.
The only store in the Houston Galleria which has remained in its original location is the Houston Trunk Factory, located in the Galleria II complex adjacent to the Galleria Financial Center (in the Galleria II, there is a central column with six elevator cars which feed into the office suites above).
Stores
Among the 375 stores in the Galleria are five anchor/department stores. These stores are: a flagship Foley's (to be renamed Macy's), Macy's (store closing), Neiman Marcus, Nordstrom, and Saks Fifth Avenue.
Other stores in the Galleria include:
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The Galleria is home to many local upscale designers and boutiques, including Ala Moda, Brass Boot, Carroll Paris, De Gala, Grazia, Obecca, Sara Lasier, Velleriano Italy and many others. Surrounding the Galleria are other upscale shopping centers feauturing similar stores and local fashion houses: Fashion Centre, Uptown Collection, Uptown Park and Highland Village. Collectively, these shopping centers make up what is known nationally and internationally as the Galleria Shopping District; officially, this area is known as the Uptown District.
The multi-faceted jewel of west Houston serves as the retail flagship for many retailers, and is the backbone for thousands of jobs and support services. For example, a small window cleaning company that calls itself GreenLight Services has staff in the mall each week, and cleans close to 100 stores.
The Galleria also features a full-sized ice rink below a glass atrium. About 50 restaurants and specialty food stores at all prices and service points are located throughout the Galleria complex. Two Westin hotels are also located directly inside the Galleria, the Westin Galleria and the Westin Oaks (prior to 1984, both hotels were known as the Galleria Plaza and Houston Oaks Hotel when Westin Hotels and Resorts was known as Western International Hotels).
The Galleria hosts over 24 million visitors a year.