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Top Ryde City

Top Ryde City Shopping Centre
TopRydeCity001.jpg
Location Ryde, New South Wales, Australia
Opening date 14 November 1957 (original)
5 November 2009 (new)
Owner Hong-Kong subsidiary of The Blackstone Group
No. of stores and services 276
Total retail floor area 78,125 m²
No. of floors 6 (Lower Ground 2, Lower Ground 1, Ground,Level 1 to 2 and Cinemas)
Parking 6,150
Website www.toprydecity.com.au

Top Ryde City is a shopping centre in Ryde, New South Wales in Sydney, Australia.

The original Top Ryde Shopping Centre opened, on the current site, 14 November 1957. It followed Brisbane's Chermside Drive-In Shopping Centre (now Westfield Chermside) as the second open-air mall-type complex in Australia. The original structure was anchored by Sydney-based A.J. Benjamin, a supermarket, a chain variety store and 45 other shops grouped around a pedestrian mall, with 400 parking spaces. Top Ryde was established with the motto “come as you are...shop in comfort” offering a new experience for the shopper who until this time would have needed to travel to Sydney or Parramatta to gain access to a major department store and such a wide range of variety shopping.

In 1962, Top Ryde was sold to Lend Lease. A.J. Benjamin store closed and was taken over by Grace Bros in 1964. Woolworths opened in 1963in addition to the expansion of the centre which also included a variety store, several speciality shops and another 200 car parking spaces. In the 1970s, a Ten Pin Bowling Alley opened.

The centre underwent refurbishment and redevelopment in 1986 and changed its name to Top Ryde Shopping Square. A new multi-storey carpark was constructed, along with new entrances, roofing of the mall area and a general upgrade. Venture then moved into the space vacated by Grace Brothers.

Venture closed in 1991 and the centre went a minor development with the opening of a Target store and the reorganisation of the shops into service areas such as banking to the south-west of the mall and the food hall on the lower concourse.

With the opening of Macquarie Centre in 1981 and the continual growth of centres such as Westfield Hornsby, Parramatta, Birkenhead Point and most recently Rhodes which has affected the retail trade of Top Ryde. Many stores closed during the decline including Target (closed 2006). Towards the end of the centre's life, it was almost a dead mall featuring Woolworths, Franklins, a bowling alley and around 90 stores which were predominantly banks and service stores. The centre was situated over 2 floors. The lower level had direct access to the bottom carpark level and featured Woolworths and a small food court. It was connected to the upper level via a travelator. The upper level contained Franklins and access to Blaxland Road and Devlin Street, as well as access to bus services. A smaller, third level which could be accessed via a staircase from the upper level and the rooftop carpark (originally the upper level of Grace Bros. and connected by elevators) featured the bowling alley.


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