The Source OC is a mixed-use development in

Buena Park, California Buena Park (''Buena'', Spanish for "Good") is a city in northern Orange County, California, United States. As of the 2020 census its population was 84,034. It is the location of several tourist attractions, including Knott's Berry Farm. It i ...

, primarily being used as an open-air shopping mall. Parts of the site are also being used as office space. The site opened in 2016 and is home to many

Korean Korean may refer to: People and culture * Koreans, people from the Korean peninsula or of Korean descent * Korean culture * Korean language **Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Korean **Korean dialects **See also: North–South differences in t ...

-owned businesses.

History

The Source began construction in August 2012 and was developed by M+D Properties. The center was previously approved by the city, which promised to pay the developer 55% of sales tax revenue made by the project for the next 30 years, in 2010. Buena Park was chosen for its lack of large retailing centers in the area, as the nearest mall at the time, the Los Cerritos Center, was away. The mall was also seen as a comeback for the city in the entertainment sector after the closing of Movieland Wax Museum. It was built on an empty field and cost about $325 million overall. In April 2014, Korean entertainment agency

YG Entertainment YG Entertainment () is a South Korean Multinational corporation, multinational entertainment agency established in 1996 by Yang Hyun-suk. The company operates as a record label, talent agency, music production company, event management and conce ...

proposed a performance venue, recording studio, and nightclub at The Source called YG Land. This plan did not come to fruition. The construction of the mall upset many residents who lived nearby. The Source opened in late 2016. Despite its high budget, this shopping mall was not able to acquire an

anchor tenant In North American, Australian and New Zealand retail, an "anchor tenant", sometimes called an "anchor store", "draw tenant", or "key tenant", is a considerably larger tenant in a shopping mall, often a department store or retail chain. They are ...

. By 2018, many stores that previously anchored had lost popularity and M+D Properties gained $140 million in loans. The hotel filed for

Chapter 11 bankruptcy Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code ( Title 11 of the United States Code) permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Such reorganization, known as Chapter 11 bankruptcy, is available to every business, w ...

in 2021. M+D Properties also announced that the mall is for sale in that same year. In 2023, some of the area surrounding The Source was designated as the

Koreatown A Koreatown (), also known as a Little Korea or Little Seoul, is a Korean-dominated ethnic enclave within a city or metropolitan area outside the Korean Peninsula. History Koreatowns as an East Asian ethnic enclave have only been in existence s ...

neighborhood of Buena Park.

Features

Notable tenants at The Source include Gong Cha, Mochinut,

Popeyes Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen, Inc. is an American multinational chain of fried chicken restaurants founded in 1972 in New Orleans and headquartered in Miami. It is currently a subsidiary of Toronto-based Restaurant Brands International. , Popey ...

, Myungrang Hot Dog, CGV Cinemas,

Covered California Covered California is the health insurance marketplace in the U.S. state of California established under the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA). The exchange enables eligible individuals and small businesses to purchase priv ...

, Coway,

Woori Bank Woori Bank () is a Korean multinational bank headquartered in Seoul. It is one of the four largest domestic banks in South Korea and has a strong presence in commercial banking and corporate finance in South Korea. Tracing its roots to the Daeh ...

, and Aritaum. It contains of office space and a four-star hotel. The food court is named ''Grub''. It features two Korean grocery stores (Hannam &

H Mart H Mart ( or ) is an American chain of Asian supermarkets operated by the Hanahreum Group, headquartered in Lyndhurst, Bergen County, New Jersey. The chain has 84 stores throughout the United States, operated variously as H Mart, H Mart Northwes ...

), bakeries, restaurants, Karaoke spots, and a boba shop. It has faced economic challenges since its opening and was also affected by the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. The buildings onsite were limited to in height to not obstruct the surrounding residential areas and planes flying to

Fullerton Municipal Airport Fullerton Municipal Airport is a regional relief airport in Orange County, California. It is owned and operated by the City of Fullerton. The airport is in the southwestern corner of Fullerton on Commonwealth Avenue, northeast of the junctio ...

. The Source was given its name for the manmade spring that is located at the center of the site. It contains the first building in the city to have a

helipad A helipad is the landing area of a heliport, in use by helicopters, powered lift, and vertical lift aircraft to land on surface. While helicopters and powered lift aircraft are able to operate on a variety of relatively flat surfaces, a fa ...

, as the seven-floor office tower reaches , exceeding the requirement for helipads.

Gallery

The Source OC Office Tower from Beach Blvd..jpg, From the road

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Source OC 2016 establishments in California Buena Park, California Shopping malls established in 2016 Shopping malls in Orange County, California Tourist attractions in Orange County, California