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| 2023 |
Fort Lauderdale announced its first shopping center in 1949. The Fort Lauderdale News reported that a “syndicate” of
businessmen from Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, joined by a local group headed by
Richard Combes, purchased 20 acres at 10th Street (today Sunrise Boulevard)
and Federal Highway. It was the site of the closed Clyde Beatty Jungle Zoo, where
lions had been raised in a pit.* After closing in 1945, the site had become an
eyesore at the “very entrance to Fort Lauderdale.”
Gateway Shopping Center would not only replace the eyesore but was also expected to relieve traffic downtown (hard to believe given today’s downtown development and gridlock). A self-contained community was envisioned for the property, with shopping, hotel, apartments and private homes—similar to today’s pedestrian-friendly plans.
The forward-thinking architect was Clinton Gamble and Associates, a big name in Fort Lauderdale’s mid-century development projects. An idea for basement parking in the old lion pit was mentioned in news accounts but the finished center came with surface parking for 350 cars.
- Carrie Cain Young fashions
- Gateway Dress Shop
- Gateway Natural Foods
- Gateway Toy and Hobby
- Gateway Men’s Wear
- Gateway Marine and Tackle
- Georgette Vermont Dressmaking Salon
- Kingham’s Perfumes
- O'Brien Hardware
- Shoe Box
- Smith’s Drugstores (formerly on Las Olas)
Food Fair eventually replaced Carl’s Market and left before 1980. Shopping centers in Fort Lauderdale (and across the nation) sprang up during the l950s and especially the 1960s. The Sunrise Shopping Center (later the Galleria) opened in 1954, a few blocks from Gateway. As the city grew so did problems for the Gateway Shopping Center. It never seemed to lose customers, just its luster. Headlines turned negative in 1979 and 1980.
Two firebombs were thrown at Top Banana, a headshop, in 1979—allegedly by a competitor. In 1980, 18-year-old Texas native Jeanette Rogers was found strangled in a Gateway Shopping Center utility room. In 1982, a “gushing gas leak” near Gateway prompted the evacuation of 1,500 people in the center and throughout its surrounds. A paving company working on the Middle River Bridge hit an unmarked pipe below Gateway. A cloud of gas could be seen rising above the center. No one was injured in the hours-long incident.
Also affecting the center was traffic, the very thing it was once lauded for alleviating. Additionally, Gateway was owned by six to 11 absentee landlords over the years. The center needed a facelift, and it was difficult to get approvals and payment for renovations. One solution was the formation of the Victoria Park Merchants Association who assumed management of the Gateway Shopping Center during the late 1990s or early in 2000 (a current merchant said it’s now the Gateway Merchants Association).
Over the decades, merchants have come and gone such as Nathan’s Game Room, Clothes Encounters, Animal House Pet Supplies, Sukhothai (closed in 2015), and Tipico CafĂ©, which closed during the fall of 2022 because of a steep rent increase. Some have left because of personal circumstances, or failing business, but in most cases tenants left when faced with extreme rent increases. A whopping rent increase also prompted Monster Subs’ exit after a nearly 20-year run. Popular vintage shop Jezebel left early 2023.
Native Realty, a new owner of part or all of the center (status unclear by request) came in during the fall of 2022 and raised rents. Some merchants remain in limbo because not much has been shared with them about ownership changes..
One merchant in limbo is Joseph Aminov, owner of the Shoe Doctor & Leather Spa at Gateway (BestShoeDoctor.com). Aminov came to New York City in 1989 from the Soviet Union (now Russia) with two suitcases and a family trade he elevated to artisan’s craft with what he learned in Italy—custom leatherworks and shoe repair.
He and family moved to South Florida in 2011 where he’s grown his business—and reputation—at Gateway Shopping Center with his craftsmanship (I‘m one of his many happy customers). Aminov is enterprising. He'd like to buy commercial property. The Shoe Doctor space is currently on a month-to-month lease because of potential landlord changes. Aminov recently tried to buy the section of Gateway his store operates in but the landlord backed out of the deal. The leather craftsman leases two other spaces, one with a 15-year term...but no storefront.
Uncertainty and rents increased during the summer of 2022 when Native Realty arrived. They reportedly represent a new buyer or are possibly the new owner of a section of Gateway. The realty company opened an office in the southwest corner of the center and claims to be owner of some of the space, including that of the Jezebel shop.
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| Shoe Doctor interior and collection of leather |
“Rents in the center have gone up about 40 percent,” said Aminov and “people are mad.”
As of April 24, 2023, one space left for lease by Native Realty: “2,400 sq. ft for $45/per SF/YR.”***
Meanwhile, let’s hope Gateway Shopping Center doesn’t
fall to developers. That doesn’t seem imminent, but if it does, they may have to get
approval from residents of Victoria Park first. Stop by, parking is free and easy ... and merchants are there to please.
Additional photos below.
Below: some sections getting flashy new paint and murals; others remain the same. The Tipico sign remains but a new restaurant will soon open at the site.
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Copyright © 2023. All rights reserved. Jane Feehan.
Sources:
Fort Lauderdale News, Oct. 30, 1948
Fort Lauderdale News, Oct. 29, 1949
Fort Lauderdale News, Nov. 26, 1949
Fort Lauderdale News, Nov. 15, 1951
Fort Lauderdale News, June 24, 1959
Fort Lauderdale News, Feb. 3,
1980
Fort Lauderdale News, March 7, 1980
Fort Lauderdale News and Sun-Sentinel, Jan. 9, 1982
Fort Lauderdale News, Jan. 31, 1980
Fort Lauderdale News, May 22, 1980
Fort Lauderdale News, July 13, 1980
Fort Lauderdale News, Feb. 26, 1982
Fort Lauderdale News, July 29, 2000
South Florida Sun-Sentinel, Jan. 16, 2022
South Florida Sun-Sentinel, Oct. 26, 2022
