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Black Friday shoppers wait for stores in Jersey Gardens to open in this 2013 file photo. Simon, which already operates 15 other malls and shopping centers in New Jersey, finalized its purchase of Jersey Gardens on Thursday.

(Aris Economopoulos/NJ Advance Media for NJ.com)

Simon added another mall to its New Jersey collection on Thursday when it finalized the purchase of Jersey Gardens.

The Elizabeth property will now be known as "The Mills at Jersey Gardens," Simon said in a news release.

The retail real estate giant acquired the mall as part of $1.09 billion deal in which Simon also bought University Park Village in Fort Worth, Texas.

The two properties were purchased in connection with the closing of Washington Prime Group's acquisition of Glimcher Realty Trust, the mall's previous owner.

The 1.3 million-square foot Jersey Gardens, which opened in 1999, completed $30 million in renovations in 2013.

Forty percent of the 18 million people who shop there every year board an international flight at nearby Newark Liberty International Airport to return home, and they spend, on average, four times as much as domestic customers, according to a 2013 Star-Ledger story.

Simon owns 14 other properties across northern and central Jersey.

Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JGoldmanNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook.