Tanasbourne Mall Facts and History Page
The Tanasbourne Mall was the brainchild of the Standard Insurance Company. It was located on 2700 NW 185th Ave (the intersection of 185th and the Sunset Highway). Built in 1974-75, it opened to the public on April 3, 1975. The mall was a semi-underground structure and featured approximately 50 retail stores. It covered 18 acres. The main storefronts were Safeway, Pay Less Drug and Miller's Department Store. It also featured a public library, auditorium and a day care facility. The hobby shop had a large slot car race track. The mall ran out of steam and closed in 1993. It was demolished shortly afterwards. Today, Target and its massive front parking lot occupy the former site of the Tanasbourne Town Center.
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| Looking inside the mall in 1977 (Oregon Journal) |
Standard Visionaries
In the late 1960's, Standard Insurance Company began buying land near NW 185th and U.S. Highway 26. This was a change in direction for Standard, who was in the insurance business, and marked an important shift in investment strategy. Standard wanted to do something different. They were worried about inflation reducing profits for their investors. So they committed to a development of income-producing properties in the real estate market. Tanasbourne was a planned community development complete with stores, office complexes, residences and light industry. It was to take place on a 450-acre parcel of land which would accommodate 15,000 people who "worked in high tech " and "would be living in style". The centerpiece of Tanasbourne was to be a 160,000 square foot enclosed shopping mall. It featured a two-story layout with retail on the lower level and business and professional offices on the upper levels. On first appearance, the mall seemed like it was subterranean. This was due to landscaping that buried the perimeter walls with back fill. From the beginning, the mall design was unconventional and faced roadblocks for approval. Several large chain drug and variety storefronts backed out of their plans to be in the mall because Standard wouldn't change plans to suit them. Cost was estimated at $6 million. Facing a possible land-use change that would have eliminated commercial zoning, Standard decided to hastily build Tanasbourne Mall in the early 1970s to protect the regional zoning of the mall site. Building prematurely and ahead of the market contributed to the mall having a rough start with vacancy problems. The mall catered to Washington County residents from Aloha to Burlington and Cedar Mill to Banks. A long-range goal of Standard was to expand Tanasbourne Mall to one-million square feet by 1990. This expansion was to take place on 100 acres to the east of the old mall. Lack of planning and design flaws eventually sealed the coffin on the mall.
Tanasbourne
"Tenas" is a Chinook Indian word for a pretty place. "Bourne" is an Anglo Saxon word for a small stream or creek. Tanasbourne translates to "small, pretty creeks". The original 450-acre Tanasbourne site was fed by 4 different creeks: Rock Creek, Willow Creek, Bronson Creek and Waterhouse creek. It was these Tualatin River tributaries that were used in the origin of the word Tanasbourne.
Tanasbourne Town Center (TTC) was never the success that Standard Insurance envisioned. Much of the mall had empty stores throughout its life. In 1990, a new "open air" shopping center called Tanasbourne Village opened across the street. By prior agreement, mall tenants has first rights on space in the new shopping center. With this, a number of stores relocated into the new "power mall", leaving the older Tanasbourne Town Center location and further weakening the mall. Safeway and Pay Less (Rite Aid) were two of the stores that bolted at the chance. Many of the smaller shops followed. Loss of these 2 "anchor" stores spelled closure for the ailing mall. In the end, there was a dry cleaning business, a nightclub and a decent restaurant. At night, there was bingo and a choir rehearsing in the auditorium. She went slowly and peacefully into the night and then at the business end of a bulldozer on the morning of July 20, 1993.
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| 1977 photo of mall exterior. Note the lease sign advertising empty mall space. (Oregon Journal) |
Reasons the TTC failed:
1. Poor visibility. Store signs couldn't be seen from the street.
2. Even though the mall was occupied, much of it was doctors, architects, insurance and real estate tenants. There wasn't enough traffic to feed the lower level shop keepers and anchors.
3. Antiquated, bunker-like atmosphere with odd shaped windows.
4. The surrounding land areas were vulnerable to competing big box developments. As these new power malls were built, mall tenants bailed and upgraded their locations.
5. Changing attitudes towards malls, too time consuming. Trending to open air malls.
6. Expensive maintenance.
Architects purposely designed the mall to reflect the latest trends in 1970s-era architecture, emphasizing the mall’s relationship with its community and its commitment to aesthetics and the environment. Designers were careful to avoid the complaints leveled at other malls of the time that claimed malls represented rampant, careless sprawl and growth.
Inside the mall, designers kept hallways purposely narrow so that shoppers would stay close to the store’s products as they walked the mall’s interior corridor. They also staggered the storefronts so that shoppers wouldn’t see a monotonous sea of glass.
The following businesses were located in the mall at one time or another:
Safeway
Pay Less Drug
Town Center Cinemas
Equitable Savings and Loan
First National Bank
Washington County Public Library
E.A. Poe Book Merchant
The Owl Pharmacy
Sunshine Pizza Exchange
Town Center Travel
Burkhardt's (flowers)
The Cover Up (apparel)
Little Kingdom (children's apparel)
Kitchen Kaboodle
Botanical Palace
Chris' Hallmark
Design Center Interiors by Marti
Goldwork's
Miller's Dept. Store
Learning Tree Daycare Center
Love's Gifts
Upper Level Pub
The Hair Affair
Fashion Update
OLCC Liquor Store
Farmers Insurance
Pizazz
Recreation Outfitters
Jo Jo's 24 hr Restaurant
Yogurt Connection
Robert Bond Real Estate
Fletcher Skillern, DMD
A Jarring Note
Robert Goodwin, attorney
Aero Sports and Hobbies
Chang's Mongolian Grill
Town Center Tri Cinemas was a main attraction and featured three movie theaters. The top selling movie of all time was "Jaws". Seating capacities were 535, 304 and 304. 70mm in the big auditorium. It was run by Moyer Theaters and later called Tanasbourne Cinemas.
The Town Center Cinema "Grand Opening" was June 18, 1975. Screen one featured "Gone in 60 Seconds". Screen two had "Jaws" and screen 3 featured "Tidal Wave".
There was a Tri-Met transit center and Park and Ride next to the mall.
The residential development adjacent to the mall was called Tanasbrook and featured 340 homes.
When Pay Less Drug came into the mall in 1986, it took the space formerly occupied by Miller's Dept. Store and Owl pharmacy.
Miller's Dept. Store was a retailer based out of McMinnville.
Some old mall merchants still exist in Tanasbourne Village across the street. These include: Safeway, Rite Aid (Pay Less), Gold Works Jewelry and Mark's Hallmark.
Tanasbourne Town Center Time Line:
1968 Standard Insurance first conception of Tanasbourne
1969 Standard purchases 300 acres at NW 185th and Hwy 26
1971 Standard announces Tanasbourne plan
1973 Zone change approved for construction of Town Center
1973 Tanasbrook built (340 condominiums) near mall
1974 Mall construction begins
1973 Zone change approved for construction of Town Center
1973 Tanasbrook built (340 condominiums) near mall
1974 Mall construction begins
1974 Tanasbourne signs long term lease with Safeway
1975 Tanasbourne Town Center opens
1976 New Tanasbourne Library opens
1975 Tanasbourne Town Center opens
1976 New Tanasbourne Library opens
1977 2 years into operations and mall only has 55% occupancy
1978 Mall continues to fill with retailers
1982 TTC merchants voice concerns over lackluster sales and profits
1986 Pay Less Drug opens in TTC
1987 Hillsboro annexes Tanasbourne
1987 Zoning change approved for shopping centers across from mall
1988 Plans for expansion of TTC are made but never happen
1989 British company Pan Pacific buys 50% of mall from Standard Ins Co.
1990 Tanasbourne Village opens across the street
1990 Safeway and Pay Less relocate across street
1993 TTC demolished
1997 Target, Old Navy stores open
2004 The Streets of Tanasbourne opens
References:
The Oregonian (multiple articles)
The Hillsboro Argus
Art, Architecture and Engineering Library, 1979, U of Michigan Archives
1978 Mall continues to fill with retailers
1982 TTC merchants voice concerns over lackluster sales and profits
1986 Pay Less Drug opens in TTC
1987 Hillsboro annexes Tanasbourne
1987 Zoning change approved for shopping centers across from mall
1988 Plans for expansion of TTC are made but never happen
1989 British company Pan Pacific buys 50% of mall from Standard Ins Co.
1990 Tanasbourne Village opens across the street
1990 Safeway and Pay Less relocate across street
1993 TTC demolished
1997 Target, Old Navy stores open
2004 The Streets of Tanasbourne opens
References:
The Oregonian (multiple articles)
The Hillsboro Argus
Art, Architecture and Engineering Library, 1979, U of Michigan Archives
