Freehold Raceway Mall A lot of challenges but still thriving

 My old hometown of Freehold. Home of Springsteen, the county seat of Monmouth and also the now closed Freehold Raceway  and the mall that bears its name Freehold Raceway Mall, Monmouth County’s third major shopping center which I believe put both Monmouth mall and Seaview square mall at the time out to pasture.

History of the mall 

In the late 1980’s, Wilmorite was in charge of developing the Freehold Raceway Mall after they rebuilt the Raceway after a fire burned the old one down in 1984 set to open in 1990 with Lord and Taylor, Sears and a chain called Nordstrom never heard of them never had the internet but heard they were a upscale chain from Seattle and a Hahne’s which never happened due to its parent company May department stores phasing the chain out of business. On August 1,1990, Raceway Mall opened for business and I was there opening day with Lord and Taylor and Sears as opening day anchors. Another unique feature of this mall is a double decker carousel which you can see from the parking lot that sits near the food court. In 1991, JC Penny replaced Hahne’s as a third anchor and the in 1992 Nordstrom opened its third Nj store at the Mall after Paramus and Menlo Park opened theirs. A 5th anchor was proposed in the mid 1990’s first Stern’s was projected to be built then it changed in favor  for Abraham and Straus which would have had their 5th Nj store by 1995 that branding was phased out by Federated’s merger with Macy’s. Macy’s did open as the malls 5th anchor in 1998. 

Going into the new century. The mall had its first renovation in 2007 in which fixtures inside the mall were changed and a outside promenade brought shops and restaurants to the mall including the Cheesecake Factory, Borders books which turned into a LL Bean store and a PF Changs. Brio Tuscan grille Along with Kirklands and Bobby Flay’s Burgers. First anchor change was minor as the Sears downsized to the lower floor while Primark a British clothing chain I’d say is similar to H&M took the whole upper level. In 2020 the world was in a time out due to the covid pandemic in which three anchors shuttered for good Sears, Nordstrom and Lord and Taylor. In 2023 Bobs stores came back to the mall but in the Sears location till they went out of business in 2024. 

Since the pandemic came and went,  the mall is still thriving strong to this day despite losing three anchors. But new stuff is coming to the mall in the future. A Dicks sporting good house of sports will be opening in the fall of this year in the Lord and Taylor site and the lower level of Sears will be split with Dave and Busters the 4th in NJ and the Freehold Sports club. The mall also has a lifestyle center with Home Depot, Huffman Koos, Bobs Furniture and ocean state job lot and the existing Dicks which will close when the new one opens. 












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