Do you know the way to Americana Way?

(CORRECTION: An earlier version of this post said the Americana's chandelier was made in the Czech Republic. In fact, it was made in California from crystals made in the Czech Republic.)

If a $400-million mall doesn’t show up on Google Maps, does it exist?

The Americana at Brand, the swanky new Glendale development from builder Rick Caruso, features cinemas, restaurants and condos stretched out over four city blocks. You would think it would be pretty easy to find.

But if you're one of the millions of people who gets directions from the Internet, you’ll just have to find the mall by listening for its special musical fountains. The Americana lists its address as 889 Americana Way in Glendale. But according to Google Maps and Mapquest, there is no such thing as Americana Way. Type the address into Google, and it spits out the maddening line: "We were not able to locate the address." If you're looking for Pacific Theatres and its 18 screens, you're heading for 322 Americana Way. Feed that address into Mapquest, and it sends you generically to the city of Glendale.

Caruso, the developer behind the Grove in L.A., made sure everything was just right at the Americana. It has a chandelier with 1,200 crystals that were made in the Czech Republic, a piano player in the parking garage, 500 trees and even a trolley.

But what did he do to really put it on the map? Nothing. It turns out it's not his responsibility. A Caruso spokesperson said that street names are approved by the city, which then initiates a process to get them into the county mapping system.

It can take up to three months for a new street to get in its system, according to a spokesman for AOL's Mapquest. In the case of one street in Illinois, it took seven years. The spokesman recommended that Caruso e-mail Mapquest to let it know his street is missing. Navteq, which provides the mapping data to Mapquest, will verify that it exists and, whammo!, he'll be on the map.

You might say that it doesn't matter. Just type in a nearby street and you can find the mall easy enough. But what if you don't know the area or any of its streets? What if you were, say, a Czech crystal-maker coming to L.A. to check out your artistry?

For now, you'll just have to follow the crowds.

-- Alana Semuels

Semuels, a Times staff writer, covers marketing and the L.A. tech scene.

Google Maps image courtesy of Google.

Photo: The Americana at Brand features cinemas, restaurants and condos stretched out over four city blocks in Glendale. Credit: Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times

Comments

[Paul]

Just look for the hideous golden statue once Google Earth updates its images to include this latest escapist paradise. Or just skip the Americana and Google Sunset Junction.

[Gabriel Aleman]

I have a correction to make about the origin of the chandelier hanging at The Americana. The chandelier was not made in the Czech Republic. The piece itself was made here outside Los Angeles by my father, Ernesto Aleman, who works for ELA Lighting. The crystals that adorn the chandelier, however, were imported from the Czech Republic.

[Teresa]

Can we please shut off the water fountain at the Americana? Are we not experiencing a drought? Even if it's the same recycled water, it's obnoxious.

[Karl in Burbank]

Another fire alarm at the Americana as I speak....best to avoid the place.

[Pics from Space]

Lookup locations with nearby wiki's worldwide on satellitepictures easy by address?
http://www.picsfromspace.nl
A combination of Googlemaps mashup, Wikipedia information and thirdparty addressdata with address suggestion.

[Andrea]

I was able to find it -

http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&q=the%20americana%20at%20brand&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=wl

[vineet]

Why do we think that Google is flawless. despite all its utility and grandeur, it is still a mechanism which fails to deliver at times.