In 1950, half of Milpitas still lived on farms, with nearly 7,000 acres of farmland, 8,000 acres of orchards, and over 300 acres of dairy fields. On this site, the Ford Motor Company opened the Milpitas assembly plant on May 17, 1955. At the peak of production, the plant employed 6,000 people and produced 55 cars and 22 trucks per hour. The plant closed on May 20, 1983. Construction of The Great Mall of the Bay Area began on July 5, 1993, and it opened to the public on September 22, 1994.