Plaza Del Caribe embarks on $3.5M food court makeover
Upon completion, the food court will have some 10,500 square feet of new space, mall officials said.
Plaza Del Caribe will soon begin the $3.5 million remodeling and expansion of its Terraza Del Caribe food court and the construction of the second Zara store in Puerto Rico. The Zara store will be located in the space previously occupied by Caribbean Cinemas, and is expected to open at the end of this year.
Upon completion, the food court will have some 10,500 square feet of new space and its new design will be “modern, bright, with open spaces, and will feature spaces for larger groups of people and counter tables, in addition to the traditional food court tables,” mall officials said.
“This year, when we celebrate the 20th anniversary of Plaza Del Caribe, we begin our preparations for the next 20 years of commitment and service to the market that has welcomed and supported us,” said Arturo Valldejuly, general manager of Plaza Del Caribe, which is owned by Empresas Fonalledas, also parent of Plaza Las Américas in Hato Rey.
“We now start the complete renovation and expansion of the food court, where we will be changing the floor, acoustic ceilings, furniture, facades of the eateries and the lighting of the area,” said Valldejuly, adding that although the construction work will begin now, it will be coordinated in a way that does not disrupt the everyday operation of the shopping center.
It is expected that the project will be completed during the first half of next year. Part of the food court project includes relocating the mall’s emblematic “Venus” sculpture from the base of the central atrium stairs — where it has been located for the past two decades — to the center of the food court.
Spanish apparel chain Zara is expanding its local presence with a seconds store at Plaza Del Caribe.
Meanwhile, Rafael Ruiz-Comas, the mall’s director of corporate leasing, said construction of the new Zara store — the second location the Spanish apparel chain will open on the island — should begin next month. will occupy some 18,000 square feet and its construction
Zara, which has more than 400 stores in five continents, first opened in Plaza Las Américas in 2000. The new Ponce store will occupy some 18,000 square feet, he said.
During the construction of La Terraza and Zara, several stores — David Cookies, Soft & Creamy, Pandora, Totto, Reinhold and Exentrix — will be relocated to new spaces. In its new location, Pandora will double in size.
“Over the next months, we will have many movements of stores and construction activities and we apologize to our customers and tenants for any inconvenience they might face. This is just the beginning of many good things that will be happening in Plaza Del Caribe this year and we will continue sharing the information with our publics”, concluded Ruiz-Comas.
