New owners of Southcenter Mall give it a new name after 34 years

Southcenter Mall shoppers, get ready for 17 more letters and four more syllables.

The state's largest shopping mall has a new official moniker: Westfield Shoppingtown Southcenter. The name change took effect last week when the mall's new owner, Australia-based Westfield America Trust, finalized its purchase of the 1.6 million-square-foot Tukwila shopping center.

Westfield, which owns 48 U.S. shopping centers and recently announced plans to buy 14 more, renames the properties it acquires as a way of spreading brand awareness. It did the same thing after buying the former Vancouver (Wash.) Mall and Olympia's Capital Mall, both of which now carry the Westfield Shoppingtown tag.

The new name has surprised many who live or work near the mall, which opened in 1968. Over the past 34 years, the Southcenter name has come to define not only the mall, but its surrounding area.

The change is a little much for some.

"Do you think anyone's going to get their way through that mouthful?" asked Gerry Crahan, co-owner of Southcenter Engraving.

Crahan, a former mall tenant who now runs his shop on Southcenter Boulevard, said that regardless of the name change, "everyone will know Southcenter as Southcenter."

"I don't think that name is going to stick — it's not like it's a stadium," he said. "I'm actually kind of amazed they would do something like that. If you've got something that's working, why mess with it?"

Tina Tufts, the mall's marketing director, conceded that the name change might be a "shock to the system" for longtime area residents, but she said it's part of a refreshing new look under new ownership.

Mall employees, newly clad in red jackets, have been handing out balloons to shoppers during the past week, and Westfield is adding customer-service amenities such as free stroller rentals.

"We know some people are going to think of it as Southcenter," Tufts said. "But we want them to know if they've been at other (Westfield) markets and are familiar with the Westfield brand, Southcenter is part of that brand — quality service, quality retailers and an overall great shopping experience."

Katherine Kertzman, program director for Seattle Southside Visitor Information Services, said neighboring merchants probably will continue to call the area Southcenter.

"Thirty-four years is pretty ingrained for the residents in the south end," Kertzman said. "If there is a change at all, it'll be very, very slow."

And don't expect established neighborhood institutions to start cramming "Westfield Shoppingtown" into their signs and stationery.

"It's hard enough getting what we have on our letterhead now," quipped Madeline Patterson, administrative assistant for the Southcenter Community Baptist Church. "We just couldn't fit it."

Jake Batsell can be reached at 206-464-2718 or jbatsell@seattletimes.com.