Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, September 27, 1995                   TAG: 9509270051
SECTION: BUSINESS                    PAGE: B-6   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

MALL WINS AWARD FOR ITS DINOSAUR CAMPAIGN

The Roanoke shopping center was one of 545 entries and 239 finalists in the national competition, said the council's Stefanie Elkins. Valley View, which is managed by Faison Associates of Charlotte, N.C., competed in the top-size category, for malls of more than 1 million square feet.

The Jurassic Mall campaign, which ran last year from May through October, centered on 14 life-size foam dinosaurs carved by sand castle artists from California, said Scott Ashcraft, the mall's marketing director. A Ferris wheel and train were included in the central display. The shopping center also ran sales and giveaway promotions in conjunction with mall merchants.

During the six-month campaign, almost half a million people rode the train and Ferris wheel, Ashcraft said, as mall traffic rose by 10 percent from a monthly average of 430,000 cars.

The council's top award, The MAXI, is given to entries that earn at least 40 points on a 50-point scale that measures effectiveness and creativity. Merit award recipients like Valley View have earned at least 35 points.

- Staff report