ABQ Uptown

The brownfield site was a vacant 20 acre lot between Coronado and Winrock Malls, originally the site of St. Pius X High School. The school was razed in the late 1980s to make room for an ambitious mixed-use development called The Commons, which would have included two 22-story office towers and a 14-story hotel. However, this project fell apart and the land remained vacant.[3] The lot was purchased and designed as a mixed-use development zone by Hunt Building Corporation, including a lifestyle center, housing, offices, and a grocery store. In November 2006, ABQ Uptown was opened, and brought more retail chains to the area, including several stores that previously did not serve Albuquerque or New Mexico, such as the state's only Apple Store. Below the infill site, a three level, 300 space parking garage was built to facilitate extra parking.[4]

ABQ Uptown opened in two phases. Phase one opened in November 2006, and included the shopping centers, parking garage, and the realignment of roads and utilities in the area. Phase two was the development and construction of multi-family housing, and opened in 2008.[5] Simon Property Group, who used to own Cottonwood Mall (the fourth mall in the metropolitan area, and the only one not in the uptown area), purchased ABQ Uptown from Hunt Building Corporation in 2012.[6] Many of the shops and eateries at ABQ Uptown are very popular. The businesses that it currently hosts are Alfred Angelo, Ann Taylor, Anthropologie, Apple, AT&T, Banana Republic, BCBGMAXAZRIA, Bravo Cucina Italiana, California Pizza Kitchen, Charming Charlie, Chico's, Eddie Bauer, Elephant Bar Restaurant, Fidelity Investments, First National Rio Grande, Francesca's, GAP, Gymboree, Jared The Galleria of Jewelry, J. Crew, J.Jill, Jos. A. Bank Clothiers, L'Occitane en Provence, Lucky Brand, Lululemon Athletica, Lush, MAC Cosmetics, McAlister's Deli, Michael Kors, Pottery Barn, Sleep Number, Soma, Starbucks, Sunglass Hut, Sushi Freak, Talbots, Teavana, Mati, The Melting Pot, The North Face, T-Mobile, Toni & Guy Hairdressing Academy, White House Black Market, and Williams Sonoma.[7] This 1,000,000 square foot shopping center is a new main attraction in Albuquerque, New Mexico.[8]

Competing Real estate owners Simon Property Group, Brookfield Properties, and Goodman Realty Group own ABQ Uptown, Coronado Center, and Winrock Center respectively, and are making efforts to revitalize the uptown area. New growth includes the removal of the old Winrock Inn and Winrock 6 theater, and the construction of a new Theater, complete with the city's first IMAX theater. New stores and restaurants such as Dave & Busters, BJ's Restaurant, California Pizza Kitchen, Pottery Barn, and H&M are some of the first-to-market offerings that have come to Albuquerque in recent years.[9] Other stores, such as Banana Republic, The Gap and local jeweler Mati have moved from other malls to ABQ Uptown in an effort to boost business and visibility.[10][11][12]

Along with creating a new shopping center with popular and brand name shops, part of the areas efforts to uplift this uptown area, apartments were added across the street from the ABQ Uptown shopping center.[13] The 198 unit building opened in 2008. These efficient apartments come with several amenities. These amenities include; Energy efficient lighting, energy efficient windows, expansive 9' to 12' ceilings, full sized washer and dryer, granite countertops, modern track lighting, personal balconies and patios, stainless steel appliances, spacious walk-in closets, stained concrete and wood style floor, and wired for technology.[14] The apartments and the area also come with community amenities that include; a fitness center, pool and wellness center, cafe and lounge, recycling program, and wifi. The pricing and availability of these apartments are subject to change depending on the sized added amenities. There are many different sizes of apartments at the ABQ Uptown Village including number of bedrooms and type of apartments such as studios. These apartments allow pets depending on their size. These apartments are a convenient distance to the ABQ uptown shopping center.[15]