New SuperMall is sign of changing times for town

By JACK HOPKINS
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER

There are, of course, dramatic signs of Auburn's increasing affluence.

With the possible exception of Emerald Downs -- an $82 million horse racing track that opened in June 1996 -- perhaps none is so visible as the SuperMall of the Great Northwest.

The mall, opened by California developers two years ago, caused more than a little fear and trepidation in the community before it opened. Downtown merchants were worried it would kill many of their businesses, and area residents were concerned about increased traffic.

The fears were apparently unwarranted.

Downtown businesses have thrived in the shadow of the SuperMall. And while mall executives say their business is doing well, traffic hasn't been a problem.

"Things are going great," says Ravonna Rydell, executive director of the Auburn Downtown Association, which represents about 250 downtown businesses.

City officials spruced up the downtown area, making Main Street more shopper-friendly, and merchants redoubled their efforts to provide the kind of personal service not often found in large malls.

Longtime customers kept coming to the downtown stores and some of the people who came to Auburn to shop at the mall also have taken the time to give downtown shops a try.

Norman, who owns the Country Spice gift shop on Main Street and has been in business in town for almost 17 years, says the mall hasn't taken away her customers.

"It has done nothing to hurt me and, if anything, it has helped because it spurred activism as far as getting things done downtown. We have improved the storefronts, and the city has upgraded the streets and the sidewalks," she says.

"The merchants and store owners have really been pushing to get this done and put a good face on Auburn. It is a totally different landscape in downtown than we had five years ago."

SuperMall executives say they too are satisfied with the way things have gone during the first two years of operation. That's despite the recent closure of Incredible Universe, one of the mall's anchor stores.

"It typically takes three to five years for a value-oriented mega-mall to reach its full potential," says Lynn Beck, the SuperMall's marketing director. "And we are right on track."

There are about 130 stores at the 1.2 million-square-foot mall, located at the intersection of state Routes 18 and 167. And the mall is negotiating with several other businesses to open in time for the Christmas shopping season.

The mega-mall also brought something to Auburn that it was sadly lacking: movies. A 17-screen theater opened adjacent to the mall last December and expects to have its 1 millionth customer by its first anniversary.

Continued:

• Small-town values thrive despite area's rapid growth
• Helping hands are plentiful for those in need
• Good bets for development don't always pan out
• Railroads link people's past with future