Grand opening ceremonies were held on February 4, 1981, with Joske's, Frost Bros. and Sears as the mall's primary anchors.

In response to a renovation and expansion of Padre Staples Mall, management began a major expansion and renovation in 1987 which was to add a new anchor store, Mervyn's, a movie theater, a nautical-themed food court, and two parking garages.

Gradually, major retailers began to migrate back to Padre Staples Mall.

After more than four years, the Frost Bros. location was taken over in 1992 by Burlington Coat Factory, a retailer not normally associated with being a major mall anchor.

The collapse of Montgomery Ward in 2000 along with the closing of Mervyn's in 2006[1] left Sunrise with two major anchor spaces vacant.

[2] Wilcox Furniture, a local chain, opened in late 2007, occupying a portion of the previous Montgomery Ward anchor store.

[3] The mall fell into serious neglect in early 2008, including an incident in which the power was cut off by Reliant Energy due to the owner failing to pay the facility's electricity bill.

In November 2018, news stations reported that more tenants were told to leave by the end of the month.

Notably, the fountains, which were prominently featured in the film The Legend of Billie Jean, had been restored to working condition after years of being inoperable.

[11] By June 2018, the mall had become nearly dead, albeit clean and well-maintained, but housing very few active businesses.