Regional Shopping Center | Centro Comercial Regional
Since the early sixties, Maracay's population growth was sustained. The city was growing in all four cardinal points. However, it was the northern zone that had the best urban planning criteria, especially in the areas destined for the growing middle class that settled in the city.
The commerce that was traditionally concentrated in the center of the city began to look for new spaces, closer to the new urban developments that were being built, most of them consisting of multi-story houses. All this volume of population demanded new commercial spaces.
In this context, the "Centro Comercial Regional" was built, which according to the information given by an older friend of mine, was built in the mid-sixties.
The shopping center was placed next to Avenida de las Delicias, the main road connecting the south with the north of the city.
From the architectural point of view, "El Regional" incorporated a number of novelties. One of them was a parking area around the perimeter. Unlike the downtown stores that were designed for pedestrians, here the presence of parking lots indicates that the main target audience is people of a different economic level, car owners.
Another novelty is that it was the first shopping center to break away from the one-story format. Here the structure is composed of a small corridor in a semi-basement located on one side of the structure, a first floor with a kind of covered inner courtyard where the stores have a second floor to be used as an office or warehouse for merchandise, and a second level located on the same side where the semi-basement is.
This difference in environments makes it very pleasant to the eye to be in "El Regional", because the space always feels very spacious, and it also has large entrances that allow good natural lighting during daylight hours.
The mall was not designed for a massive clientele, even though it has a supermarket area that attracts people from all sectors of the city.
From the beginning, the businesses were aimed at an upper-middle class clientele, in which the loyalty of users was encouraged; they were stores with exclusive products and aimed at providing quality services.
Even with the economic crisis that our country is going through, some exclusive businesses are still maintained for a loyal and consistent clientele, such as hairdressing, dry cleaning, massage centers, the assembly of paintings and a fashionable costume designer. Some of these businesses are over forty years old, have passed from father to son, and continue to serve many of the first families who settled in the area.
In the same area of the "Regional" several stores were built for recreational purposes, these shared a common parking lot and communicated with the rest of the mall by a small sidewalk.
When I arrived in Maracay in 1975, my first contact with "El Regional" was not with the commercial premises nor with the supermarket, but with that recreational area.
There is still a restaurant there that has been an icon in the city "Las Terrazas del Broaster", a large restaurant, open as a roofed terrace, which has been very famous for the broaster chicken they prepare. I have been there many times to enjoy a good meal.
At that time there was also the discotheque "La Hipotenusa", one of the most famous of those times. It was normal to spend some time dancing in the disco and then finish off in "La Broaster".
A very nice memory I have of this mall is of a toy store that did not manage to survive the times of hyperinflation and the exchange rate policy of the last years. That toy store was very peculiar because it had toys that could not be found anywhere else, most of them were imported from the United States, remember that thirty years ago you could not buy on the internet.
/Every Christmas I would go to the "Regional" to buy toys for my children. I could get almost life-size stuffed animals, once I brought them a very big bear, but what I bought the most were puzzles of different types and board games.
For the visit I made on the occasion of the publication I realized that the range of businesses had changed, now there is also a physiatry and rehabilitation center and a speech therapy center. Among the usual businesses, there is still a supermarket, a small soda fountain, and a bridal store
.
The Regional Shopping Center is an icon of our city, if you come here try to stop by.
Thanks for your time.
Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)
Español
Desde comienzos de los sesenta el crecimiento poblacional de Maracay era sostenido. La ciudad crecía por los cuatro puntos cardinales. Sin embargo, fue la zona Norte la que contó con mayores criterios de planificación urbana, sobre todo en las áreas destinadas a la creciente clase media que se instalaba en la urbe.
El comercio que tradicionalmente se concentraba en el centro de la ciudad comenzó a buscar nuevos espacios, más cerca de los nuevos urbanismos que se construían, la mayoría de ellos constituidos por viviendas de varios pisos de altura. Todo este volumen de población demandaba nuevos espacios comerciales.
En este contexto se construye el “Centro Comercial Regional”, que según las informaciones dadas por un amigo mayor que yo, se hizo desde mediados de los sesenta.
El Centro comercial se colocó a un lado de la Avenida de las Delicias, la principal vía de comunicación para conectar el Sur con el Norte de la Ciudad.
Desde el punto de vista arquitectónico “El Regional” incorporó un conjunto de novedades. Una de ellas fue un área de estacionamiento en todo el perímetro. A diferencia de los comercios del centro que estaban pensados para los peatones, acá la presencia de los estacionamientos ya nos indica que los principales destinatarios son gente de otro nivel económico, propietarios de automóviles.
Otra de las novedades es que fue el primer centro comercial que rompió el formato de una sola planta. Acá la estructura está compuesta por un pequeño pasillo en semisótano situado en un lateral de la estructura, una planta baja con una especie de patio interior cubierto en la que los locales tienen un segundo piso para ser utilizado como oficina o depósito de mercancía, y un segundo nivel ubicado en el mismo lateral donde está el semisótano.
Esta diferencia de ambientes hace que sea muy agradable a la vista el estar en “El Regional”, porque el espacio siempre se siente como muy amplio, además que cuenta con amplias entradas que permiten una buena iluminación natural durante las horas del día.
El centro comercial no fue pensado para una clientela masiva, aún cuando cuenta con un área de supermercado que atrae gente de todos los sectores de la ciudad.
Desde el principio los negocios estaban dirigidos hacia una clientela de clase media alta, en la que se estimulaba la fidelidad de los usuarios, eran tiendas con productos exclusivos y destinados a la prestación de servicios de calidad.
Aún con la crisis económica que vive nuestro país todavía se mantienen algunos negocios exclusivos para una clientela fiel y consecuente, tales como peluquería, tintorería, centros de masaje, el montaje de cuadros y una diseñadora de trajes de moda. Algunos de estos negocios tienen más de cuarenta años, han pasado de manos de padres a hijos y siguen atendiendo a muchas de las primeras familias que se establecieron en la zona.
En la misma zona del “Regional” se hicieron varios locales con fines recreativos, estos compartían estacionamiento común y se comunicaban con el resto del centro comercial por una pequeña acera.
Cuando llegué a Maracay en el año setenta y cinco mi primer contacto con “El Regional” no fue propiamente con los locales comerciales ni con el supermercado, sino con esa área recreativa.
Allí todavía se conserva un restaurant que ha sido ícono en la ciudad “Las Terrazas del Broaster”, un amplio restaurante, abierto como una terraza techada y que ha sido muy famoso por el pollo a la broaster que preparan. Son muchas las veces que he pasado por allí a disfrutar de una buena comida.
También estaba por aquella época la discoteca “La Hipotenusa”, una de las más famosas de aquellos tiempos. Lo normal era pasar un rato bailando en la discoteca y luego rematar en “La Broaster”.
Un recuerdo muy bonito que conservo de este centro comercial es de una juguetería que no logró sobrevivir a los tiempos de la hiperinflación y la política cambiaria de los últimos años. Esa juguetería era muy peculiar porque tenía los juguetes que no se conseguían en ningún otro lado, la mayoría los importaban de los Estados Unidos, recuerden que treinta años atrás no se compraba por internet.
En cada navidad yo me iba al “Regional” a comprarles los juguetes a mis hijos. Podía conseguir muñecos de peluches de tamaño casi natural, una vez les llevé un oso grandísimo, pero lo que más les compraba eran rompecabezas de diferentes tipos y juegos de mesa.
Para la visita que hice con motivo de la publicación me di cuenta que había variado la oferta de los negocios, ahora también está un centro de fisiatría y rehabilitación y otro de terapia del lenguaje. Entre los de siempre se mantiene el supermercardo, la pequeña fuente de soda, y la tienda de ropa de novias.
El Centro Comercial Regional es un ícono de nuestra ciudad, si vienen por acá traten de pasar por ese sitio.
Gracias por tu tiempo.
Logo creado por @themanualbot
It is indeed a very nice shopping center of great value since in fact in the past structures were made thinking of the normal-poor class, but now more and more parking spaces are being made for the middle class population. It is interesting how a structure can satisfy the needs of a certain population at different times.
Yes, this was one of the first shopping centers in the city that was aimed at the population with higher purchasing power. Thank you very much for stopping by and commenting dear @ginethchira2301. A big hug from Maracay.
Wuao,esta solo el centro comercial. Saludos amigo @irvinc
The site has never had many people, most of the stores are expensive and exclusive products. Thank you very much for stopping by and commenting my dear @mafalda2018 . A big hug from Maracay.
Hi @irvinc, very interesting history of the mall, its owners have managed to handle the situation and keep it current in time, I liked the super market and the candy area, it's hard to resist a dessert after a walk in the mall; despite the years the structure looks very good and the floors very clean, thanks for sharing your visit to this landmark of Maracay.
Greetings and blessings!
It is a very nice structure to look at, they have always maintained it very well, at present almost all the premises are occupied. Thank you very much for stopping by and commenting dear @belkyscabrera . A big hug from Maracay.
interesting history, I imagine that the restaurant did not close when the disco was active, it still has a beautiful interior, greetings and blessings
The restaurant has been maintained even in the most difficult times, only closing in the early days of the pandemic when restrictions were very strong. Thank you very much for stopping by and commenting, dear @armasdiaze . A big hug from Maracay.
It is good that it has been maintained. I have heard of several places that could not be maintained due to the pandemic, fortunately it was not the case with this restaurant, we are practically neighbors, greetings from San Juan de los Morros
The building looks like it has a large space, but it looks empty of visitors. The building looks very dreary without the lighting, but it's a big step towards saving energy from lightening.
I remember this place perfectly, next to it there is a famous restaurant where I loved to eat, in fact I dream of going back there. I see that it has not changed much, it is small but cozy.
Thanks for this post, it brought back nice memories. Greetings!
I'm glad you liked the post. Hopefully you can enjoy all these sites again. Be well dear @dinaaczib. A big hug from Maracay.
Congratulations @irvinc! We are delighted to inform you that your outstanding publication was specially selected to be part of our Curated Content Catalog and was awarded RUNNER-UP in Architecture Anthology™ 35. More power!
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Thank you so much.
Always our pleasure to serve you dear @irvinc. Cheers! 😀
The building looks pretty square and boxed though it definitely feels spacious.
Yes, it is a box type model, it is spacious in the central part and on one side it has the detail of several levels including a semi-basement. Thank you very much for stopping by and commenting dear @macchiata . A big hug from Maracay.