Esplanade Shopping Center
Retailer / private label
UnclaimedEsplanade Shopping Center is an open-air power center in Oxnard, California, developed on the site of the former Esplanade Mall.
Last updated August 26, 2026
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Overview
Esplanade Shopping Center is a retail complex in Oxnard, California, occupying the site of the former Esplanade Mall. The original enclosed mall was Ventura County's first fully enclosed shopping center and opened in stages between 1970 and 1971. Its initial retail mix combined large department-store anchors with a single-level specialty-store wing, making it a significant regional shopping destination for Oxnard and the wider Ventura County market. Construction began on September 16, 1968, with a major Sears store. The approximately 276,595-square-foot store included two above-ground levels and a basement and began serving customers in February 1970. The mall's specialty-store wing opened on March 5, 1970, with 34 initial tenants. Early occupants included S. H. Kress & Co., Harris & Frank, and Silverwoods. The center occupied approximately 45 acres and was designed by Burke, Kober, Nicolais & Archuleta. A two-level May Company California department store, designed by Pasadena architects Ladd and Kelsey, opened on November 2, 1970. May Company later became Robinsons-May in 1993. The property also included or stood alongside several discount and mass-market retail operations. Disco Fair subsequently became Two Guys and then FedMart during the 1970s, before the site was converted to a Target store in 1983. Target later relocated to The Collection at RiverPark in 2012, and its former building was demolished for a Food 4 Less supermarket. In 1999, Robinsons-May and Sears moved from Esplanade to the Buenaventura Mall in Ventura, weakening the original enclosed mall's traditional department-store anchor structure. The enclosed mall was demolished in August 2000 and replaced with an open-air retail format. The first stores in the replacement Esplanade Shopping Center opened in September 2001, including Cost Plus World Market and Bed Bath & Beyond. A 136,000-square-foot Home Depot followed in February 2002. The redesigned property shifted from a conventional enclosed mall toward a power-center model focused on large-format home improvement, discount grocery, office-supply, sporting-goods, party-supply, and off-price retail. The current center's cited anchor and major tenants include Home Depot, Nordstrom Rack, Staples, Dick's Sporting Goods, Party City, and Food 4 Less. As a property rather than a consumer-goods brand, Esplanade's identity is based on its location, tenant mix, accessibility, and evolution from a department-store-led enclosed mall into an open-air shopping center. Its historical importance derives primarily from its early role in Ventura County retail and its redevelopment in response to changes in regional shopping patterns.
History
Esplanade's history begins with the development of an enclosed regional shopping mall in Oxnard, California. Construction started on September 16, 1968, on a 45-acre site. The first major component was a Sears department store of approximately 276,595 square feet. The store had two above-ground floors and a basement and received its first shoppers in February 1970. The mall's specialty-retail wing opened on March 5, 1970, with 34 initial stores. The single-level design contrasted with the multilevel Sears anchor and provided space for fashion, services, and smaller general-merchandise tenants. Among the original or early junior department-store tenants were S. H. Kress & Co., Harris & Frank, and Silverwoods. Burke, Kober, Nicolais & Archuleta served as architects for the Sears building and the mall's specialty wing. May Company California supplied the second principal department-store anchor. Its approximately 150,000-square-foot, two-level building opened on November 2, 1970 and was designed by Pasadena architects Ladd and Kelsey. The store was later rebranded Robinsons-May in 1993. Alongside the enclosed mall was a discount-retail site that operated successively under the Disco Fair, Two Guys, and FedMart names during the 1970s. That location became a Target store in 1983, adding a major mass-market retailer to the broader complex. For several decades, Esplanade functioned as a conventional enclosed mall anchored by department stores and supported by specialty retailers. By the late 1990s, however, the center's anchor configuration changed. Robinsons-May and Sears moved in 1999 from Esplanade to the Buenaventura Mall in Ventura. The departures reduced the role of the original mall as a department-store destination and preceded a fundamental redevelopment of the property. The enclosed mall was demolished in August 2000. Rather than rebuild it as another enclosed regional mall, the site was converted into an open-air center with a power-center format. The first replacement stores opened in September 2001, including Cost Plus World Market and Bed Bath & Beyond. Home Depot added a large-format presence when a 136,000-square-foot store opened in February 2002. The later Esplanade Shopping Center emphasized practical and value-oriented shopping rather than the traditional enclosed-mall combination of department stores, interior common areas, and small specialty boutiques. Its tenant mix has included home improvement, off-price fashion, office supplies, sporting goods, party merchandise, discount groceries, and home furnishings. The former Target store, which had been built in 1983, relocated to The Collection at RiverPark in 2012. Its former building was subsequently demolished and replaced by a Food 4 Less market. The property therefore represents two distinct retail eras. The first was Esplanade Mall, a pioneering enclosed shopping center for Ventura County that opened in the early 1970s with Sears, May Company California, and dozens of specialty stores. The second is Esplanade Shopping Center, an open-air power center created after the 2000 demolition and oriented toward large-format and everyday-needs retail. The current center continues to serve the Oxnard area, with major tenants cited in reference material including Home Depot, Nordstrom Rack, Staples, Dick's Sporting Goods, Party City, and Food 4 Less.
- 2012
Target relocates
[1]The Target store moved to The Collection at RiverPark; its former building was later demolished for a Food 4 Less market.
- 2002
Home Depot opens
[1]A 136,000-square-foot Home Depot opened at the redeveloped center in February.
- 2001
Open-air center begins opening
[1]The replacement Esplanade Shopping Center opened its first stores in September, including Cost Plus World Market and Bed Bath & Beyond.
- 2000
Enclosed mall demolished
[1]The original enclosed mall was demolished in August to make way for an open-air retail center.
- 1999
Original department-store anchors relocate
[1]Robinsons-May and Sears moved from Esplanade to the Buenaventura Mall in Ventura.
- 1993
May Company becomes Robinsons-May
[1]The May Company California anchor was rebranded Robinsons-May.
- 1983
Target opens at the former discount-retail site
[1]The location that had operated under the Disco Fair, Two Guys, and FedMart names became a Target store.
- 1970
Sears opens
[1]The approximately 276,595-square-foot Sears anchor welcomed its first customers in February.
- 1970
Specialty wing opens
[1]The mall's single-level specialty-store wing opened on March 5 with 34 initial stores.
- 1970
May Company California opens
[1]A two-level, approximately 150,000-square-foot May Company California department store opened on November 2.
Products and positioning
A local and regional open-air power center serving Oxnard and Ventura County through a concentration of large-format, value-oriented, home, grocery, sporting-goods, office-supply, and specialty retailers.
Home improvement · 2002
Home improvement retail
Home Depot is a major large-format component of the open-air center, offering building materials, tools, appliances, garden merchandise, hardware, and related project services. Its presence reflects the post-2000 shift toward practical, destination-oriented retail.
Apparel retail
Off-price fashion
Nordstrom Rack represents the center's off-price apparel and accessories offer, serving shoppers seeking discounted fashion, footwear, and related merchandise in an open-air power-center setting.
Grocery retail · 2012
Discount grocery
Food 4 Less provides value-oriented grocery shopping. The store occupies the site associated with the former Target building after Target relocated to The Collection at RiverPark.
Sporting-goods retail
Sporting goods
Dick's Sporting Goods adds sporting equipment, apparel, footwear, and recreational merchandise to the center's tenant mix.
Office-supply retail
Office supplies
Staples contributes office products, technology accessories, business supplies, printing, and related services.
Brand decisions
2012
Target relocates from the propertyOtherBackground
The Target store had operated at the center since 1983, following earlier use of the site by Disco Fair, Two Guys, and FedMart.
Action taken
Target moved to The Collection at RiverPark, and the former building was later demolished.
Aftermath
A Food 4 Less market replaced the former Target building, further changing the center's retail mix.
2000
Replace the enclosed mall with an open-air power centerStrategyBackground
The original enclosed mall had lost its two principal department-store anchors after Robinsons-May and Sears relocated in 1999.
Action taken
The enclosed mall was demolished in August 2000 and redeveloped as an open-air shopping center.
Aftermath
The replacement center began opening stores in 2001 and adopted a large-format, everyday-needs tenant strategy led by retailers such as Home Depot.
Sources1 sources
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