Macy’s came to Santa Rosa at the height of 1980s mall culture

The two Macy’s department stores in Santa Rosa came during the height of 1980s mall culture, a decade when consumerism and materialism were celebrated.

The construction and opening of both Macy’s stores were widely covered by local media — especially the Plaza location, which dramatically transformed downtown.

Jim Burns, Community Development Director, said in 1981 that Macy’s was “one of the hottest merchants in Northern California,” while acknowledging to The Press Democrat that Fourth Street would look entirely different.

Macy’s sells everything from houseware to electronics to clothing, jewelry and accessories. Its first Santa Rosa location opened downtown at the Santa Rosa Plaza in 1981. A second location opened in 1984 at Coddingtown Mall. Both stores are still in operation.

When the downtown location opened in 1981, there were seating areas for customers to take breaks from shopping and terra cotta tile was laid in the jewelry department as a relaxing aesthetic. The company had a fashion office that noted suede and leather were in style that year, along with “metallic shoes, belts and handbags.”

It was a 190,000-square-foot store with three levels, and it was on the same block where the old California Theatre stood before it was demolished in the late 1970s.

Fourth Street before Macy’s was described in the paper as “a meandering, two-lane boulevard oriented toward the pedestrian.”

Macy’s at Santa Rosa Plaza generated about $30 million annually in sales by 1984, developer Hugh Codding told The Press Democrat that year.

“With a second Macy’s here, it’ll be a healthy situation,” Codding said.

The Coddingtown Mall location opened in 1984, initially selling only clothes. It took over Liberty House, a former Hawaii-based chain of department stores. In 1996 Macy’s moved into the former Emporium building at the mall.

Macy’s was established in 1858 and, despite the decline of American malls, currently operates 740 stores across the country, according to its website. It planned to close 45 stores this year.

See the gallery above for photos of Macy’s store openings in Santa Rosa in the 1980s.