AZRE
The Park Central Mall revitalization project has proved a goldmine for local history buffs, and now the buildings in the newly updated mixed-use development are receiving new names in another nod to the property’s rich heritage.
Microfilm reels, news clippings, antique signage and old photos from the 1950s are among the many relics found in a treasure trove discovered underneath the Park Central property in the renovation’s early days, and now the buildings at the property with an extensive and colorful history in the region will bear the same names as some of the original buildings and families involved.
The Burgbacher, Straus, Graham, Lieb, Goldwater and Diamond families have all granted Plaza Companies and Holualoa Companies, the teams behind the massive redevelopment project, permission to use their family names on the property’s refurbished buildings.
Each family was involved in Park Central’s origins in some way — the Goldwater and Diamond families owned the original department stores or buildings at the site, the Lieb and Strauss families had stores at Park Central, the Burgbacher family was the project’s original developer and the Graham family was involved with leasing for Park Central.