After a two-year wait, shoppers at Tutu Park Mall will now be able to enter Kmart from a new entryway dedicated Saturday afternoon.
Amid prizes, live music and giveaways, hundreds of residents watched as Debs Crowley of Tutu Park Mall and George Newman of Kmart snipped the ribbon marking the official opening of the entryway. The mall and Kmart stayed packed with people long into the evening.
In the past, shoppers were required to exit the mall altogether to get from Kmart to the shopping mall and from the mall to Kmart. The construction of the access also provides the opportunity for two more shops to open their doors. A computer store and a children's clothing store will line either side of the entryway in the future, Mall officials said.
Newman said Saturday that during his two months on the island, he been asked many times about the opening of the entryway, which was timed to coincide with the start of the holiday shopping season. "The only people that are more excited today about this are the hundreds of shoppers ready to stroll on through from the mall to Kmart," he said. "It's a two-way street and everyone is happy."
Before snipping the ribbon, Crowley said the mall's management had worked diligently to bring the project to completion before the holidays.