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, Lowe's, The Home Depot, Target, Babies R' Us, and Edwards Theatres. The property is owned and managed by The Irvine Company.^[2]

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 (North West) 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 and furnishings/decor retail stores. The second section of Phase I opened in 1989, with 240,000 square feet (22,000 m²) of soft goods, apparel and electronics stores. 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 (South East) side of Jamboree Road. This phase expanded the Market Place by 420,000 square feet (39,000 m²), adding stores, 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 home improvement and furnishings stores, a large food court, and a Target store.

Phase 4

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]

Phase 5

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

References

External links

• Official website

City of Tustin
Orange County, California, United States
Areas	Tustin Legacy Tustin Ranch
Schools	Tustin Unified School District Tustin High School
Transportation	Santa Ana Freeway Interstate 5 State Route 55 Jamboree Road Metrolink station
Landmarks	Marine Corps Air Station Tustin The Market Place Peters Canyon Peters Canyon Wash