It has now been 10 years since Amarillo’s Western Plaza was demolished, and The Amarillo Globe-News has published a brief remembrance of what was for many years Amarillo’s largest shopping mall.
In fact, upon its construction in 1968, Western Plaza was said to be the biggest mall between Denver and Dallas. The 400,000 square foot shopping mall’s first tenant was Montgomery Ward.
In the ensuing decades, Western Plaza would be home to many businesses, including Furr’s Cafeteria, Furr’s Supermarket, Toys by Roy, Russell Stover and Orange Julius. The mall held a 1,000-seat cinema that occasionally hosted performances of The Rocky Horror Picture Show, and there was even a short-lived comedy club.
In 1982, Westgate Mall opened on the western edge of the city; the newer, bigger mall eventually spelled doom for Western Plaza. But the older mall, with its atrium fountains, remained standing for another 25 years.