Rainbow Mall, 1978 and 1983

Views of the Rainbow Mall, 901 Washington Avenue. The mall was constructed on 20 acres of land from 1968-1970 (at the same time as the much larger Maine Mall, in South Portland), opening in November 1970 as the Lunt\u27s Corner Shopping Center, and later renamed the Rainbow Mall. The mall\u27s flagship tenants were the Mammoth Mart (60,000 square feet), and a Martin\u27s Shop \u27n Save supermarket (10,000 square feet), connected by a dozen smaller stores. After Mammoth Mart closed in 1974, the Rainbow Mall\u27s retail spaces struggled to compete with the prominence of the Maine Mall, as well as retail development at Northgate Shopping Center (also in North Deering), and in Freeport. In 1977, the Rainbow Mall was purchased by the J.B. Brown Company, which transformed the mall into an office park, including the Motor Vehicle Registry, and the growing Andover College which relocated to the Rainbow Mall in 1983. Shortly before closing as a shopping center, the Rainbow Mall was renamed Washington Park, in 1984. Top image: The Rainbow Mall entrance, viewed from southwest. Photo published in the Evening Express, on 10 October 1983. Bottom image: Interior view of the Rainbow Mall promenade. Photo published in the Evening Express, on 2 May 1978.https://digitalcommons.portlandlibrary.com/pphnegs_images_business/1682/thumbnail.jp