After sitting empty for decades, Hawthorne Plaza is finally coming down. Demolition crews began work this month at the sprawling 35-acre shopping center, closing a long chapter of blight, legal battles, and failed redevelopment attempts for one of the South Bay’s most infamous abandoned properties.
How it got here
Hawthorne Plaza opened in 1977, once anchored by major retailers including J.C. Penney, The Broadway, and Montgomery Ward. However, by 1994, occupancy had dropped from around 130 stores to fewer than 90. J.C. Penney, its last remaining anchor, closed in 1998, and the mall shut its doors entirely by 1999. According to The Daily Breeze, the mall struggled to compete with its competitors. In the years since, the property became something of a local landmark for the wrong reasons — plagued by trespassing, vandalism, illegal dumping, and repeated safety concerns. It also gained a niche following as a filming location, appearing in productions including The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift and Gone Girl.
In September 2025, the city secured a permanent court injunction requiring the owners to either redevelop or demolish the site by August 31, 2026. A follow-up court order in July 2026 set a firmer deadline, requiring demolition to begin no later than August 14, 2026.
What’s next for the site
Based on the Hawthorne Mall Work Plan, the site wille be demolished in different phases, beginning at the south end of the site and progressing north. According to KTLA, city officials have described redevelopment of the property as essential to revitalizing downtown Hawthorne and easing longstanding concerns in surrounding neighborhoods.
For now, no formal redevelopment plan has been finalized, though earlier proposals have floated ideas ranging from residential housing to a modern retail center. For a site that’s sat empty for nearly 30 years, the demolition alone marks a major turning point for the neighborhood.
