PROJECT PORTFOLIO

From 1979 to 1995 Williams Jackson Ewing, in partnership with Intershop Holdings, Ltd. completed a four-phase redevelopment of Suburban Square, a regional town center located in Ardmore, Pennsylvania. Built in 1928, the center is located on Philadelphia’s acclaimed Main Line, and is considered by many to be the world’s first shopping center.

Prior to its redevelopment, Suburban Square had been on a steady decline, both physically and socially. The mix of stores no longer appealed to the surrounding affluent neighborhood and the center lacked a sense of place and belonging to the local public.

Under WJE’s merchandising program, the core redevelopment effort focused on re-merchandising the center to return it to destination status, serving as a commercial and social center for the community and region as a whole.

Through innovative re-design and the use of non-conventional development formulas, Suburban Square now boasts an impressive collection of national and local retailers and reports the highest sales per square foot in the Philadelphia region. The center remains a model for the “Smart Growth” movement, with a healthy mix of uses and close proximity to mass transit and surrounding neighborhoods. In 1998, the highly successful center was sold to DRA Advisors.  

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