Ali Mall is a shopping mall at the Araneta City in Cubao, Quezon City beside SM Cubao, and is owned by The Araneta City Inc. (ACI, Inc.), a subsidiary of the Araneta Group. Known as the first major shopping mall with integrated shopping in the Philippines, the mall was named in honor of American boxer Muhammad Ali, and was built in 1976, making it one of the oldest malls in the country.[1][2][3][4]
History
Ali Mall at nightAli Mall in 2020
Construction for the mall began in 1975 after Muhammad Ali's boxing victory against Joe Frazier in Araneta Coliseum, dubbed "Thrilla in Manila".[4][5] As the country has limited malls and department stores during the 1970s, wherein most malls were once only scattered throughout Metro Manila and selected provinces, primarily in Binondo, which served as the country's main business district before the arrival of bigger business districts such as Makati Central Business District and the Ortigas Center. Due to the success of the malls in Binondo and amidst the rising competition to cater potential customers, this influenced J. Amado Araneta's son, Jorge Araneta, a member of the Araneta family laid plans to build a mall and name it after Ali in honor of his victory.[2][6] As an announcement came in regarding the plans to a mall under his name, Ali was overjoyed with the proposal and did not charge any royalty fees for the project. The mall was completed within the year and was inaugurated on June 30, 1976, and with Ali himself attending the ceremony. During the mall's opening, the mall has a floor area of 62,000 square meters (670,000 sq ft).[7]
The mall was designed by the architectural firm Sindiong-Ocampo, where Antonio S. Sindiong serves as the main architect and Lamberto Un Ocampo as the main engineer of the project, whom was also hired by Jorge L. Araneta to design the Farmers Plaza.[8] Ali Mall featured many firsts for the country, such as the first fully-enclosed integrated mall with multi-level covered parking garage, featuring a spiral driveway accessing all floors; the Alimall Cineplex 4, first cineplex with two cinemas, which was upgraded to four theatres; the largest indoor skating rink, known as Skate Town; and the first food court, presently known as the Food Plaza,[9] with its first tenants being Papemelroti, Blue Magic, and Rusty Lopez.[10] During its opening, the mall also hosted a ringside lobby bar, a first class ballroom, and snack bars, while the mall's interiors presents a mixture of greenery .[11]
During the 1980s, the mall underwent expansions and renovations, however, due to the political uncertainties due to the coup attempts against Corazon Aquino from the late 1980s, as well as market driven factors due to the fierce competition from constant rise of other large shopping malls within Metro Manila within the 1990s to the early 2000s. In October 2009, a new expansion to Ali Mall was opened and the renovation was completed in 2010. The ₱200 million renovation project consisted of a fully enclosed footbridge named the Ali Mall Skywalk that connected Ali Mall to nearby SM Cubao, to commemorate the friendship and history between the two malls.[12] The renovation also featured new modernized interiors, expanded sidewalks, and a modernization of the Ali Mall Cineplex 4. The mall also featured new revamped sections to cater market demands, such as the former Shoe Center, which opened its doors within the late 2000s, before closing its doors in 2017 to be converted into the Food Lane, completed in early 2018.
In March 2019, a portion of the mall's upper ground floor was remodeled to cater novelty items, antiques, art, music, and memorabilia. This section was inaugurated as ALI X (Arts, Lifestyle, and Interests Experience), and "aims to be a haven for casual goers and hobbyists alike". Inaugural tenants included Happy Music, Remnant's Thrift Shop, and Erin's Artist's Lounge and Cafe, among others.[13][14][15][16]
The mall also features an events hall atrium at the lower ground floor, and a glass painting of Muhammad Ali named "Alive" by Monica Jane Valerio, which commemorates Ali's victory in Thrilla in Manila, located within the atrium at the mall's ground floor.[20]
Redevelopment Plans
Plans for the redevelopment of the Ali Mall were laid out as early as 2019, which aims to gentrify the mall and serves as a part of the Araneta City Master Plan, for the complex's Vision 2030 plan.[21] The planned redevelopment project includes the demolition of the northern section of Ali Mall to give way for the expansion and modernization of the mall and for the construction of a 4-tower mixed-use development on the mall's northern area, located along General McArthur Avenue. At present, the proposal is still on the planning stages, as the company prioritizes the development of other properties along the area.[22]
^Antonio, Hidalgo (2008). "Renewing Old Ties". The Araneta Center : the big dome and beyond. By Alcazaren, Alfred; Yuson, Paulo. p. 27. ISBN9789719398103.
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