Top ten things to know about Square One

When people in the Greater Toronto Area ask me where I live, I tell them, "Just north of Square One" -- which is a shopping mall in Mississauga, the 650,000-person city adjacent to Toronto that I live in (Pearson International Airport is actually in Mississauga, not Toronto). Here are ten facts about Square One:

1. With the reclassification of the West Edmonton Mall as an entertainment complex, Square One is now the largest retail shopping centre in Canada.

2. Square One was in existence before Mississauga. With the shopping centre's grand opening in October of 1973, this makes it one year older than Mississauga, which was incorporated in 1974.

3. Square One is home to the largest Wal-Mart in the world (two floors and 220,000 square feet).

4. Square One was originally to be named "Huron Square".

5. Nance MacDonald, General Manager for Square One, was the youngest female mall manager in Canada when she was appointed to the position in 1978.

6. Square One cost $44 million to build--a bargain figure, at the time!

7. Before a big meeting to attract Bay Street "suits" to invest in the construction of Square One, one of the members of the original management team had to chase a herd of cattle out of the company's parking lot!

8. In 1978, Square One received the Energy Conservation Recognition Award for its innovative computerized temperature control system, the first in a Canadian mall.

9. Square One was the official emergency evacuation centre when a freight train carrying propane fuel derailed creating an explosion that threatened the community with its toxic fumes in 1979.

10. In 1980, at their Los Angeles convention, The International Council of Shopping Centres presented a special Maxi award to Square One for its major assistance during the Mississauga Train dereailment crisis.