Woodbine Centre
Woodbine Centre logo
Woodbine Centre Atrium in 2023
Map
Coordinates43°43′13″N 79°36′01″W / 43.72028°N 79.60028°W / 43.72028; -79.60028
Address500 Rexdale Boulevard
Toronto, Ontario
M9W 6K5
Opening date1985
DeveloperCadillac Fairview
OwnerWoodbine Mall Holdings
ArchitectCrang and Boake Incorporated[1]
No. of stores and services107
No. of anchor tenants2
Total retail floor area750,000 sq ft (69,677 m2)[2]
No. of floors2
WebsiteWoodbine Centre
Exterior of the mall

Woodbine Centre is a shopping mall in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is located at Rexdale Boulevard and Highway 27 in the Rexdale area of Toronto, across Rexdale Boulevard from Woodbine Racetrack. The mall has over 130 stores and is home to Fantasy Fair, a year-round indoor amusement park. The fair houses a Charles I. D. Looff carousel. It is one of 13 still in operation today.[3] They also have a 50-foot ferris wheel which they say is the only one in North America.[3]

History

Woodbine Centre was opened in 1985 by developer Cadillac Fairview,[1] Its design served as inspiration for property developer Sir John Hall when planning the MetroCentre, the UK's largest shopping mall, in the 1980s.[4]

In 2008, proposed development of an entertainment centre at Woodbine Racetrack and the closure of national stores like Shoppers Drug Mart fuelled rumours that the mall was closing. Instead, then-owners Darton Property planned renovations to washrooms.[5]

As of 2016, the assessed value of the property was $96,708,000. Woodbine Mall Holdings Inc. owed over a half-million in unpaid taxes that year.[6]

On May 2, 2023, Woodbine Mall Holdings Inc. was placed in Receivership by Romspen Investment Corporation. Ernst & Young was appointed Receiver. [7]

Fantasy Fair Amusement Park

Fantasy Fair
Fantasy Fair in 2023
LocationToronto, Ontario
Opened1985
Attractions
Total9

Fantasy Fair is an indoor amusement park and the largest in Ontario featuring nine full-sized rides:[8]

In popular culture

The mall was used in the filming of 1987's "Police Academy 4: Citizens on Patrol", where David Spade is seen skateboarding through the mall.

The mall also featured in the Animorphs television adaptation's second season episode Changes, Part 2.

Various parts of the mall and Fantasy Fair also feature in 2021's 8-Bit Christmas

Various parts of the mall and Fantasy Fair are featured in Season 5, Episode 1 of television show What We Do In The Shadows (2023).

References

  1. ^ a b "Woodbine Shopping Centre Rexdale".
  2. ^ "Woodbine Centre: Project Overview". Marino. Retrieved 23 November 2014.
  3. ^ a b "Rides and attractions".
  4. ^ Jackson, Chris (13 October 2011). "A BOGOF offer from Inside Out you can't refuse". BBC News. Retrieved 2 July 2012.
  5. ^ "Woodbine Centre redevelopment in works", Toronto.com, 29 August 2008.
  6. ^ "Properties with arrears greater than $500,000, owned by a corporation", City of Toronto, 2016.
  7. ^ "Court File No. CV-23-00696329-00CL". Retrieved 2023-09-25.
  8. ^ "Fantasy Fair at Woodbine Shopping Centre". toronto4kids.com. Archived from the original on 13 October 2012.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Woodbine Centre.
List of shopping malls in Toronto and the Golden Horseshoe
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