Town and Country Shopping Center — Attraction in Phoenix

Very weird situation with Town & Country security guard. Tonight Sept 27, 2023 at about 9pm after I was done shopping for 2 bags of lemons and Tj's small size half&half purchases at Trader Joe's, I decided to sit down at the bench right in front of the store. (I go to Frys across the street to get dinner & Wholefoods & Trader Joe's in this plaza almost 4-5 nights a week after work by the way) As I was looking through my uber & lyft apps to get some prices to go home I decided to call my buddy that I didn't get a chance to call back earlier... In about 2 minutes on the phone with my buddy, a security guy with a golf cart showed up close to the front of the store, he stopped and started staring at me. He kept staring so long that made me ask him what he is looking for, I asked him: "do you know me ? Do I know you ? " etc... He replied "Do I need to know you ?" ... He said he observes all activity that is suspicious...he turned around and came back closer to the bench side of the sidewalk and started talking to me. He said: "sitting on that bench is suspicious activity because most people don't use it after shopping and they leave right away ". I knew he thought I was a transient or a homeless or something...etc. So I showed him and said: " look I have a Trader joe's bag...I'm a customer..." etc...In the meantime I decided to hang up the phone with my buddy as the security guy also said: " people come here with that bag & still shoplift ". I said "excuse me ?? " He repeated the same sentence...At that point I had to engage more conversation to make him aware that his approach is very offensive...it took about 15mins of talking... We argued about how & why he is wrong about what he said...etc. At some point I showed him my 2 bags of lemons & the half and half..he still did not believe that I purchased them...He asked for receipt...& I showed him I even turned my cell phone flash light to help him read. He was an older man with glasses...Only then his argument showed some signs of remorse...but he still insisted He has to do a job he does not like...I asked him if he had encounters with other customers where he stared at them & they reacted...etc...He said yes. Then I told him I need to talk to his boss about how he approaches customers this way and carries out his "job"...He asked me to contact town & country but did not give any phone number...He refused to give me his name...Once he left, I decided call on the phone to talk to the manager at Trader Joe's, He came out since the store was already closed. I told him what happened & he offered me the contact numbers without me asking....He was very surprised & disappointed how the security guard handled the situation. I will contact the Town & Country Management tomorrow day time. I hope they can find a better sub contractor security company that knows how to communicate with public & customers on the property...

One-stop shop! This place is our go-to shopping center, with both Trader Joe's and Whole Foods, it's easy to grab cheap 365 staples and quality produce at Whole Foods and hit up TJ's for all their premade foods and snackable goodies, not to mention the cheap wine and cases of water! The parking lot tends to fill up on the regular, so getting in/out and finding a good parking spot can be tricky during peak hours (we like to go early Sunday mornings to beat the crowds, shh, it's a secret!) Many of the restaurants in the shopping center are decent, but overpriced, looking at you Snooze Eatery.... But! There's plenty of fast food in the area as well (not really my scene); we usually just grab a fresh bite from the Whole Foods food bar if we're too hungry (read: hangry) to shop/function! Camelback Colonnade is right across the street as well, with more options. The Michaels there has an awesome selection and always has sales... and on the other side of the freeway, TARGET!!!! Which I shop at less and less these days. But, nevertheless, there...

This was once a great place to shop. Small privately owned stores, good places to eat, but like all too many things in Phoenix, Big Money from outside SAve me in and destroyed this once iconic shopping center. Now expensive stores with chic merchandise catering to a select few dot the once tree lined, grass covered campus. I went to a recreational supply store that boast having items for dogs only to be told, "We're just a small store (25.000 as feet)and we don't carry such items." I wanted to get some boots for my dog to keep his paws safe from the hot summer ground. The rest of these new stores are just the same, Big Money put into a small location with too much merchandise on shelves to try to make a select few happy. Hence my hoping I never have to go back on the Town and Country...