Houston’s Galleria Mall Reopens With a Very Different Look — Inside a Socially Distanced Shopping Center

One way traffic, hand sanitizer dispensers on walls, signs advising keeping your distance, and partial restroom closers — shopping at The Galleria took on quite a different look Friday morning as Governor Greg Abbott lifted retail closure restrictions and the 3 million square foot mega mall opened for business.

But not as usual. Certainly not as before March 19, when retail was largely shut down across the country due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Leading a tour of The Galleria in the era of COVID-19, Houston Galleria general manager Kurt Webb notes, “We are doing everything we can to keep people safe and keep the virus mitigated.”

For starters, even entering The Galleria offers a different experience with arrows and signs designating doors to the right for entry and doors to the left for exit only. Floor markers throughout The Galleria designate which direction foot traffic should flow in hopes of maintaining a clearly defined pattern of separated two-way traffic.

The play areas are closed. Seating areas are widely spaced. There is no valet parking. The food court is takeout only. Signs throughout indicate the steps that The Galleria has taken and steps that the mega shopping center expects shoppers to follow in efforts to mitigate exposure to the virus.

Webb confirms that there will be limited accessibility to The Galleria in accordance with the 25 percent occupancy restriction. Numbers will be monitored through technology as well as monitoring parking capacity.

“Myself and others will be out checking on the numbers and distance between shoppers,” he says.

As the numbers approach a critical level, security officers will be placed at entrances to greet shoppers and create queues to control the flow of mall visitors.

Webb says that shoppers are encouraged to wear masks but that is not a requirement. Those wishing to wear masks can secure one in the Galleria’s management office on the third floor next to Signature Eye Care.

While all shops did not appear to be opening Friday morning, Webb notes that each store, once open, is expected to meet the same CDC guidelines for sanitizing that The Galleria is following. Each individual store is responsible for its own mitigation.

Simon, owner of The Galleria, is opening 49 malls across the country, including Houston Premium Outlets and Katy Mills mall. The Dallas Galleria will reopen on Monday.

“The health, safety and well-being of those we serve will always be our highest priority,” Simon president John Rulli says in a statement. “And we have developed a thorough and detailed set of protocols highlighting the exceptional measures we’ve implemented to safeguard shoppers, retailers and employees as we reopen.”

The statement also notes: “The properties are important economic engines for their local communities, providing more than 9,000 jobs and contributing $160.1 million of sales tax and $34.5 million in property tax revenue to the State. These tax receipts fund essential services in communities including education, infrastructure as well as health and safety services.”