- published: 20 Aug 2014
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The Aventura Mall is an upscale super-regional shopping mall in Aventura, Florida, a northern suburb of Miami. It is the largest conventional shopping mall in Florida, having a gross leasable area of 2,700,000 square feet (250,000 m2), and is the fifth largest shopping center in the United States. The mall has three floors of retail space, comprising 299 stores. In addition there is a food court with eighteen fast food eateries, as well as several chains and other restaurants at the mall's entrance.
The mall is currently anchored by Nordstrom, Bloomingdale's, J.C. Penney, Macy's (in two separate locations), Sears, and AMC Aventura 24 Theatres. The mall also serves as a transit hub between Miami-Dade Transit and Broward County Transit, as each has several routes that meet there.
In April 1985, the Oxford Development Company, led by partners Donny Soffer, Edward J. Lewis and Ray Parello officially dedicated Aventura Mall. There would be four anchors in the original, 1,200,000-square-foot (110,000 m2), complex: Lord and Taylor (the first operational store, which had opened January 31, 1985), J.C. Penney (opened April 28, 1985), Sears (opened July 6, 1985) and Macy's (the first in Florida, in a three story structure with Spanish architecture which became the template for future Macy's in South Florida, dedicated October 1, 1985).