Washington Street Mall stretches ahead of you, three pedestrian blocks in downtown Cape May. It makes up the southernmost three blocks of Washington Street, a major east-west street that runs from Lafayette Street (New Jersey Route 109) to Perry Street; the mall portion runs from Ocean Street to Perry Street. The street is filled with restaurants and stores and, beside Cape May's beaches and Victorian houses, is one of the city's most noticeable features.
In 1970 the City of Cape May closed Washington Street to traffic from Ocean Street to Perry Street to allow commercial development. Trees, flowers, and shrubs were planted, and the street was filled in. The Washington Street Mall was officially opened on June 24, 1971.
In December 1976, during the Christmas shopping season, the block between Jackson Street and Perry Street was consumed by a fire, but it was rebuilt. Stand here and look at the three blocks, the planted trees and the restaurants and stores the city created when it closed the street. Notice the trees and flowers planted when the mall opened in 1971, and picture the fire that swept this block in 1976, since rebuilt.