Empty shopping malls (was Re: [UA] west)

[Steve Dustin]

>Topic jump: Near my home is a shopping mall that has clearly passed its
>prime.

We have something quite similar in Portland (actually 2, I think), although 
not in such desperate shapes.  One is Mall 205 (which is getting a facelift) 
and the other was Eastport Plaza (which got somewhat rejuvenated by a nearby 
WalMart).  Whole sections of the mall are empty of life, and both tended to 
have primarily poor clientele.  No high fashion clothing stores, but one has 
something called Payless Emporium.  I always tend to hit these places around 
holidays, since many of the empty stores become these fly-by-night holiday 
cheapo fests (especially around Halloween), with really bad decoration made 
from used cardboard boxes and such.  Its fun to see who does stick around.  
DMV's got a residence and so does the Marine Corp Recruiting Office.

>some fast food places (Pretzel Time, Bagel world, Orange Julius,

Orange Julius is never leaving.  They'll hang on until the bitter end.

One last note: I just saw *Dawn of the Dead* for the first time on 
Halloween.  I'll tell you, the concept of the empty mall takes on a whole 
new dimension with that one, although I wasn't as impressed with the movie 
itself as much as I thought I would be.

Steve Dustin
yetiseti at hotmail.com

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