El Cantón Mall

El Cantón Mall is an enclosed shopping mall in Bayamón, Puerto Rico. It houses stores such as Rent-A-Center, Rainbow, Grand Way, Donato, All Ways 99, Claro, T-Mobile, La Gloría, Me Salvé, and many others. It was formerly anchored by a Tiendas Capri which left the mall in 2017, later being replaced with government offices.

Origins
Back toward the end of the 1970s, a group of business people in the Bayamón town center district approached don Antonio V. Reyes looking for financing assistance to develop a shopping center. This was the beginning of what became El Cantón Mall. By the 1980s, under the presidency of Reyes, an expansion was added to El Cantón Mall, and 70 additional cuerdas of land next to the mall were acquired. One cuerda is 0.97 of an acre. And under the leadership of a new generation, not only did the growth of the mall move forward as its founders had wanted but the shopping mall became a landmark in Bayamón.

Opening and success: 1980s
On October 26, 1980, it was reported that a group of merchants from Old Bayamón seemed to have hit the nail on the head with a response to the competition from the large shopping centers that had proliferated on the outskirts of the city in those years. And the response was a "commercial condominium” as it was called. An indoor shopping center, approximately 170,000 square feet, with large interior walkways and air conditioning. It was to be built on Betances Street, in the Cantón sector, next to the traditional commercial area of the city center. It also resided close to public transport stations that maintained a vigorous daily movement of people from different points that converged in the town. The concept of "commercial condominium" applied to the center occurred because the project had been developed by a group of 20 merchants who, after the completion of the building, would individually purchase the spaces in the center for the location of businesses. These merchants, after acquiring the premises, had rented, in some cases, part of them to other people, which was why the number of different businesses that would occupy the center had already increased to about thirty percent at the time. "The idea of developing a joint project like this, between merchants in the area, arose about ten years ago," said Perfecto Massó, a businessman who presided over the corporation Comerciantes de Bayamón, Inc., created for the construction of the El Cantón Mall. "It was during meetings we held, at the local Chamber of Commerce, where we discussed alternatives to strengthen the historic commercial center of Bayamón," he added. The property of around 12 acres where the El Cantón Mall is located was acquired by the merchants for around $1.7 million, from the Garcia Comercial firm. The company originally had plans to develop the commercial complex and then lease it. The construction of the El Cantón Mall, together with the acquisition of the land, represented an investment of almost $10 million, according to reports. The First Federal Savings & Loan Association had provided most of the interim financing for the center's construction, about $7 million, and woukd also finance about $4.5 million in long-term capital for about 20 merchants in the commercial condominium. Once the construction of the center was completed, the Comerciantes de Bayamón, Inc. corporation would disappear, and the merchants would operate as condominium owners, although with a new firm hired to manage the center. The inauguration of El Cantón Mall had been tentatively scheduled for November 15 of that year, reported José Ramón Ramirez, merchant consultant for the project that was being built by the firm Rexach Construction Company. Ramirez described the work and its concept as an example for other towns on the Island where the historic commercial area had lost impact due to the development of modern shopping centers in its surroundings. He reported that El Cantón Mall would have parking in its surroundings for about 1,000 vehicles. The "condominium owners" properties were between 900 and 2,000 square feet, although some had already subdivided to rent or sell part of it to other merchants. Among the businesses that would operate at El Cantón Mall were Bayamón Federal Savings, a banking institution; B&B, department store: Jorge Pica, clothing and fabric store: Mary Ann Shop, women's clothing; La Gloría, shoes: a pharmacy owned by José Pérez Fonseca and Madison Department Store, men's clothing. Additionally, Almacenes González, shoes: La Gloria, men's clothing; Lerner Shops, women's clothing and Garcia Comercial, a hardware store. The use of an area for a combination of small light food businesses was also contemplated, in the style of the one established in Plaza Las Américas, which had the name of La Terraza. The El Cantón Mall would go on to officially inaugurate on November 29, 1980.

On December 11, 1980, B&B (Bonito y Barato) would officially inaugurate at the shopping mall.

On May 5, 1985, Tiendas Kress would be reported to inaugurate at the shopping mall.

On November 22, 1989, it was reported that preparations for the Christmas season had begun and El Cantón Mall was getting ready to celebrate in a big way. The shopping center offered its customers economy, variety and enjoyment. El Cantón Mall was designed to satisfy the tastes and needs of the Puerto Rican people. Its location, its wide variety of stores and its low prices made it the ideal shopping place. Among its many attractions were the convenience of ample parking and the constant surveillance of security guards. On the first level, the visitor could enjoy countless of specialized shops, as well as a terrace with eight fast food establishments. Thus you could find discount stores, items for babies and infants, clothing and footwear for him and her, jewelry, perfumery and cosmetics. Musical instruments, pharmacy, opticians, hairdresser, records, photographic equipment and development, furniture stores, banking services, were some of the products and services that El Cantón Mall also had for its public. On the second level, several government offices were located at the service of clients. Among them were: ARPE, Telefónica, and the Sewer Authority and Social Services. And since El Cantón Mall wanted to celebrate Christmas in a big way, it had extended its regular hours during the month of December of that year.

Success: 2010s
On May 27, 2010, it was reported that for decades El Cantón Mall had maintained one of the highest traffic [rates] per square foot among all the shopping centers in Puerto Rico, at the time average weekday traffic for the mall was 25,000 per day. Sally E. Ortíz, mall administrator for El Cantón Mall, when asked what the mall had done to attract such a significant crowd of shoppers, she said that the facility's mix of retailers had played a large role. This included a wide range of well-known department, clothing and accessory stores, beauty and jewelry boutiques, perfume shops, communications retailers, eateries, pet shops, furniture and electronics stores, pharmacies and stores selling health products, music stores, and a number of miscellaneous service and educational centers. She said the main target being the middle and low-middle economic class, most of the stores offered basic goods at low prices, thus minimizing the effect of the economic recession on the mall's performance. She also said that shoppers were attracted to the facility's safe and pleasant shopping environment as well. And while other shopping establishments that housed higher-priced merchants were feeling the pinch of the economic recession with the number of shoppers visiting those stores in decline, El Cantón Mall, had in fact seen an increase in visitors. With a gross leasable area of 206,335 square feet and more than 1,100 parking spaces, Ortiz noted that another one of her administration's top priorities was keeping the mall and its surroundings secure and making it a safe place to shop.

On January 31, 2013, it was reported that ever since El Cantón Mall had opened its doors, it had become a fixture, if not a landmark, of life in Bayamón and the surrounding region, maintaining one of the highest visitor traffic per square foot of all shopping centers in Puerto Rico. With the inauguration of the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority's commercial offices (Prepa) in the mall that year, the shopping center had expected a substantial increase in daily visitors. Prepa's commercial offices would occupy some 13,000 square feet, and its opening date was set for March 2013. Located on Betances Street in Bayamón's commercial and historic center, El Cantón Mall had a gross leasable area of about 207,000 square feet, more than 1,200 parking spaces and averaged weekday traffic of 27,000 visitors. The mall had a vacancy rate of less than 2%. With an impressive roster at the time of more than 80 stores, including Rent-A-Center, Rainbow, 5-7-9, Foot Locker, Payless Shoe Source, Jeans.com, Capri, Kress, RadioShack, Me Salvé, Tiendas La Gloría, Always 99, as well as government service offices such as the U.S. Post Office, Demographic Registry, Puerto Rico Aqueduct & Sewer Authority, and Prepa. This tenant mix was one example of the reason the mall had enjoyed such longevity and growth, offering a variety of experiences, products and brands for consumers at very affordable prices, targeting mainly the middle and low income segments. El Cantón Mall was managed during this time by Herederos Vidal Nadal Inc. (HVN Inc.), a commercial real-estate management company.

Renovations and success: 2020s, and on
On February 29, 2024, it was reported that having completed the remodeling of the interior and exterior of the shopping center at a cost of $8 million recently, El Cantón Mall would then be renovating its parking area, adding landscaping to the exterior of the property, and attracting new tenants in those coming months. This would be carried on by Herederos Vidal Nadal Inc., corporation that owns the mall.