It was originally constructed in 1954 as the open-air shopping mall the Sunrise Center.

[1] The Galleria opened in three phases: initially on November 11, 1980, with Burdines (now Macy's), Saks Fifth Avenue (now H&M and IWG) and Jordan Marsh; second in 1982 featuring Neiman Marcus (which closed in 2020 following an announcement on July 23[2][3]); and lastly in 1983 with Lord & Taylor (partially now Powerhouse Gym).

[4] The Pennsylvania Public School Employees' Retirement System pension fund bought the mall in 1993 for $125 million.

[5] From 2001 to 2003, $44 million was spent on renovations that included bringing in palm trees, opening windows and adding tri-color floor tiles.

Aquarium operator SeaQuest proposed adding 1,200 marine animals, including sharks and stingrays to the space.