The Estevan Market Mall celebrated its 50th anniversary last night, which coincided with the unveiling of its long-worked-on food court.
The event saw mall merchants and city representatives come out to take a look at the new addition and celebrate Estevan's long-standing mall.
Martin Blair, managing director of the Estevan Market Mall, says that the road to upgrading the mall had been full of work.
"It's a 50 year anniversary for the mall, but it's also a five-year anniversary for our ownership of the mall. We started our due diligence in 2019 and purchased it in the fall of 2019, the same time as when we immediately commenced our renovations. We knew we had to do some things to get ready for the next 50 years."
"So it's been a challenge, but it's in the right place and it's the right shape and we have a lot to work with and we got a good start for the next 50 and we got a bit more we're going to do yet."
With the new food court, Blair says that it'll be a great place for the community.
"We were fortunate in the configuration of the mall that we were able to take some spaces and move some tenants around and open up the north side, so it has an outside beautiful glass exposure. Means the north side, we don't get the sun just sort of radiating in there. You can sit, you can talk with your friends, you can see people come and go. I think it's going to be a brilliant opportunity just to add another relaxing moment in your day."
Blair says that his existing experience with retail caused him to think that the Estevan Market Mall could be a great fixture for the community.
"We came in and took a look at it and we saw it, we thought, hey, you know what, it has a great tenant base, even though you could clearly see not a lot of money had been spent on it for some time and then needed some desperately needed some care and attention, it was still functionally amazingly well."
"But when we looked at it, we felt it was functioning as a utility, in other words, someone comes in, they buy their jeans and they leave. What we wanted to do is convert it back to more of a community use where someone comes in, you know, they maybe go shopping for some jeans. Maybe they stop and have a coffee. Maybe they pick up a gift for a friend or their wife."
Blair says that while doing that work on the Estevan Market Mall has been exhausting, it's ultimately been worth it.
No date for the food court mall to be opened has been given.