ABANDONED UNTOUCHED SHOPPING MALL (1990s Time Capsule)

My second part of my documentary on the most amazing abandoned mall left in the country, please subscribe and share
/ acesadventures

[@SHADOSTRYKR]

who thought "The Atheletes Foot" was a good name for a store

[@ibramblebush]

"The Athlete's Foot" used be very popular, as big as Foot Locker.

[@maxmiddelhoven1972]

@@ibramblebush In the Netherlands they are a big label

[@nomeslife]

Max Middelhoven they are in Australia too

[@02stampede]

I never thought about it back then. It is kind of funny.

[@YayAkiba]

Same guy who had an underwear store called "Jock Itch'

[@peterbelanger4094]

I grew up in Rochester NY, I remember this place well. Everyone was so excited when the Irondequoit mall opened. Many just say it was crime that brought it down, but that is only part of the picture. Rochester is a great lakes 'rust belt' town. It's survival used to be based entirely on Eastman Kodak, Xerox, and Bauch & Lomb. But economies and markets change, and without jobs, people who could, left. Mostly out into urban sprawl to the southeast (hence the rejuvenation of Eastview mall). But the city of Rochester itself imploded. Kodak became just a shadow of it's former self, digital photography had taken over by the end of the 90's and the old, toxic film photography that we all know Kodak, had suffered a declining market. Traditional printing was also another staple of Rochester, but the new computer age has eroded away at that business as well. People would like to say it's all those 'thugs', gangs and that from the inner city. but that is only a poorly informed half truth. We have to look at what created those conditions for the crime in Irondequoit mall to rise. ... Rochester fell apart. It's business leaders failed to keep up with new technology. The sad part, Kodak had it all in the palm of their hands in the 80's, they we're pioneering digital sensors, but then a series of poor decisions, and massive layoffs turned out really bad for it's home town. ....But the Great 'House of Guitars' is still quite alive and well up in Irondequoit, and Seabreeze amusement park is always fun in the summer, both just around the corner from the dead mall.

[@makeshiftlake3519]

Peter Belanger 🙏🏼❤️

[@lunkee6972]

cafemartini it’s not excuses, they literally laid out a reasonable explanation on why it turned into a place with high crime. Do you think investors build ghettos? No, ghettos all used to be nice places. They turn to be ghettos through a lot of outside reasons. Get your biases out of here. Times have changed, and if you cannot look at things objectively and with a cause-and-effect mindset, and rather push your segregating mindset, then you are just as bad as those ‘thugs.’ Btw I’m not saying crime is bad. I hate crime. Just saying it’s ignorant to ignore the reasons that neighborhoods transform into areas ripe with crime.

[@loisvreeland7623]

Lots going on at Kodak Park as it reinvents itself. The trains run regularly delivering coal. Have for the 17 years I have lived a few blocks from the tracks. Irondequoit Mall is too close to the hood. Worked at Franklin High for years. Thugs made a huge difference in it's failure. They can walk to it. Cost of living highlighted Rochester this year as a good place to live.

[@Trainselevatorsmore]

I am From the Rochester Area I feel like Ive been to the Irondequoit mall maybe one or twice when I was very little I kinda remember it but not that vividly because most of the time growing up I went to East view because I live closer to there

[@nulnoh219]

That 90s Intro tho... This mall would make a great laser tag game map. Like the whole mall is playable.

[@neru1584]

It would actually make a good splatoon2 map now that I think about it.

[@Klonoahedgehog]

Dawn Wish Of Riverclan Looks like the modding community has a new job on their hands.

[@AwesomeSaucePictures]

@@neru1584 when you're a kid but also a squid

[@felipepincelli6466]

Maybe in a Dark Souls game lol

[@dessination6665]

Compared to other abandoned Malls, it's immaculate.

[@andysrandomness]

Seeing that old Sprint Logo made me feel like it was the early 2000s again I feel bad this mall was not around for a long time

[@christopherconard2831]

It's odd that so many signs are still up. Most companies rip down their signs and logos as soon as possible.

[@Theteaspot5]

You would think people could reuse the malls like this one as high schools or colleges. Definitely have the space and would save cities and towns a lot of money and put an abandoned building to good use

[@starboushe]

April Mae highland mall in Austin, Texas was turned into an Austin Community College campus. It's a beautiful campus. Great use of the space!

[@Theteaspot5]

That's awesome !

[@mczenk5095]

April Mae Yeah they could Dan Bell did a video on a dead mall success story think it was called McAlistar square ? It's a mixed use area now, some retail and a University

[@Theteaspot5]

Cool! Great to hear Mike!

[@ogalief]

In the city that I live in (Halifax, Nova Scotia), a majority of the city's indoor malls have slowly converted into office complexes. It seems like the only two malls in the city that are still going strong opened over 50 years ago, while the dozen or so built in the 1980's ended up dying and becoming office complexes.

[@realazduffman]

I moved to Rochester in 1998. At the time this mall was still very nice. But it was weird how the tenants left. Back then people still just stopped at the mall to kill time. One day I did that and you just noticed so many stores were gone, this was around 1999 when 20% were vacant per the video. It was enough to make a person wonder what was going on. It just got worse and then you did not stop to shop. Then at 80% vacant I stopped to see what was left. Surreal.

[@brunoclaudio4647]

This mall is not abandoned but simply closed.

[@AndrewAMartin]

The owners were probably charging too high a rent, most likely because they were carrying a LOT of debt in order to build the mall in the first place. That, and the owner cannibalizing his own business by building/renovating other malls close by sure didn't help. Crime (even just one or two incidents) causes less foot traffic, which makes the mall less attractive to retailers, so they leave, causing even less traffic, until it dies like this one.

[@youtubehatesfreespeech2245]

I moved out of there in 98

[@daraka1754]

@@brunoclaudio4647 closed means abandoned. I wonder how he get in to film

[@Shinygemblue]

Grew up visiting this mall almost every weekend. I had so many memories on that carousel. And then they shut it down. There's nothing left. There used to be a Sears and Macy's. Now it's empty space. I miss it.

[@PurrZombied]

Those cellphones are from 2003 lol

[@supertuber120]

I think I saw a picture of a pager too.

[@dena81]

the pager one was around 99 i think but yeah the sprint ones are about 2003 esp. with the picture service.

[@Wild1sout]

The mall closed in 2009 i believe

[@ecoRfan]

Definitely looks mid-00s

[@kristy3539]

These old abandon malls could be turned into the most amazing housing and communities for senior citizens.

[@joshlampe3458]

For what its worth: I worked at Radio Shack during this time period, and can tell you definitively those signs are from 2003-2004. The cell phone pictured is the first real camera phone, Sanyo 5300. Since the phone only had popularity for a couple years after its release, it shows that store closed in those years.

[@ernieh4049]

dang, i was a victim of rhe 80's and the mall was a great place to meet up with friends and make new ones. if you was a teen in the 1980's the mall was the place to be. sad to them go.

[@eleanorsak5754]

I remember shopping at this mall 😂 but honestly looking back at it makes me really sad

[@citizenofcorona8783]

It's not a real retro dead mall until you see an abandoned Thom McAn.

[@MarcABrown-tt1fp]

Oof, reminds me of Dixie Square Mall lol...

[@instaglam7508]

Great video I am a product of the mall era from 1989 to early 2000s Friday nights and Saturday was our fav mall days to shop socialize and just hang out! Sad to see the demise of the American mall internet shopping killed it!

[@Xiaotian88]

Hey, I've actually never been to the US, but somehow I'm so fascinated with dead malls in America. Don't know if I'm wrong, but wouldn't you say a big part of the reason why there are so many dead malls in the US is that they are simply too big and need a lot of tenants to keep running and otherwise seem empty very easily? And as far as I can tell, most of them are on a big lot that is a little outside the city center (please correct me if I'm wrong), so people are less likely to just drop by. As a European, most of your malls seem simply huge to me. I only know one mall near me that is slightly comparable to the ones you have, but it's basically within the city and also has supermarkets, bakeries, a post office etc. in it, so you'll also come there for everyday necessities.

[@SoCalUrbex74]

Xiaotian88 The Recession of 2008 took a heavily told that caused higher taxes in many cities. Building owners would raise rent at numbers we're it was impossible to make any profits. Those Malls in America that you see here have were doomed from the beginning. Also, with in the last several years, the giants (Walmart & Target) sell almost everything, which heavily impacted Malls, the Internet also caused damage. Malls that have survived, will invited Target, 24-Fitness and other big corporations, that will help pay the high rent. I'm from Southern California, where there are roughly 128 Malls.

[@AroundIndiana]

Xiaotian88 my city has the 2nd largest mall in my state and it's always busy, but I only stop in maybe 2-3 times a year. There's really no reason to with all the other more convenient stores around.

[@morthim]

"are they too big"? no i've nto been out of the US so this is probably going to be wrong, but symbolicly right. the USA was largely developed after the invention of cars leading to extreme sprawl. this becoems more apparent if you compare our east coast with very dense city scapes, witht he rest of the country. this development pattern was continued through a period called white flight wherein the majority of the white population tried to flee the crime ridden city centeres to have middle sized plots of land for their own. this increased reliance on personal motorized vehicles, which in turn shifted toward new centers of purchasing. one of these things was the super market. a company buying a large lot of land permanently and selling lots of different staple purchases; food, laundry detergent, etc. this business strategy then split in two, one of the splits was a convience store, which was a micro version of super markets and closer to people's homes. and the other split was the mall. the mall was an attempt at an improved market with many different vendors in a superior shopping experiance, and drawing upon a larger consumer bracket to allow more specialty shops. the mall was a place of recreation and vacation. the problem of this development pattern is inconvenence. in german cities you generally can walk to a market. meaning you can buy things sparcely, and merchants can keep goods moving with each merchant having a small space requirement of space. the US due to car reliance lead to people buying things in bulk to reduce the number of trips, as well as cost savings. the problem with malls is distance. malls aren't convenient. they require you to leave your home in inconvenient manners. virtually no malls have housing, and their market positioning was optimistic about the class of patrons. basicly malls, as mentioned before, shoot for specialty experiences and draw from a much larger population surrounding the mall. they are the city center. but those experiances are often not worth the price, leading to a downward spiral. malls could work if they could aim at correct classes of people. for example a mall could work for the lower class if they provide housing and a supermarket and transportation built into it. alternatively, a mall could work for the upper class if they had experiances tailored to the upperclass. but at the moment there is a problem. if you want a tailored experiance you probably would have a better time going to a specialty shop than to the mall. the key to mall success is cross promotion. malls succeed if, but only if, you want to spend money at a bunch of different stores on your trip. a potential design for an upperclass mall would involve having a movie theater with one of the stages able to be used by acting troupes. so you go to see a play/musical, and since you are already there you get dinner, etc. you may have noticed other people giving explanations like "the internet is reducing malls" but it isn't the internet, but the lack of culture, and i mean culture in a particular way. having malls themed to time periods is a bad idea as it alienates people who don't find the period consonant. what they need instead is hooking activities which are worth the trip. akibahara which is a nerd district in japan (i believe) shows basically what needs to be done. instead of having a bunch of specialty shops appealing to an ecconomic class, they should target like a VALS profile. make a mall themed on space travel with attractions themed around space with lazer tag, glow in the dark golf, etc. make another mall themed around being pampered with a spa theme, as was done with the casino of the venecian in lasvegas. they need to choose a clientel, not simply generic bland appeals to majority purchasing demographics. . all these old failing malls are build upon stores which need allot of space to show wares, but those stores rarely carry goods competitive at price points and instead they try pushing high profit items by framing them with inferior options. and that is the key. it isn't the building design, but the marketing which is terrible. and bad marketing leads to stores making anti consumer practices which leads to institution collapse. going back to make a list: malls generally attempt to look contemporary making them look dated thereafter, the experiences are unplesant, they don't manage brand reputation effectively, they focus more on ecconomic class than on consumer archetypes, they focus more on getting women into the store than offering things appealing to the general community xor focusing on a specific type of woman. they don't keep flavorful brands in business hiring attractions like rides, specialty storefronts, and other gimiks to get people in the doors.

[@seancdaug]

That's pretty spot-on, actually. The history of malls tends to track the history of suburban America pretty closely. Historically, most of the big shopping areas in America were in the middle of the downtown districts in cities. Those were the big hubs where people generally already traveled to work if they didn't live there already, and they had decent transportation infrastructure (roads, buses, trolleys, etc.) already in place. You'd have big department stores like Macy's and Sears in large, multi-story buildings, and smaller neighboring buildings on the same block would house more specific, focused stores. But sometime after World War II, that started to change. A combination of the post-war population and economic booms had two major effects. The first was that the middle class got much larger than it had been before. People had more disposable income, and more people than ever before had cars. Suddenly, it was feasible to build in outlying regions, and suburbs grew like a particularly bad rash. At the same time, population pressures had the unfortunate effect of vastly increasing the costs (in both leases and taxes) in running a business crowded city centers, all while the areas were started to get ignored in favor of the newly-developed suburbs. Which meant that the cities started to get really ugly, in terms of both crime and just general maintenance. The big department stores could no longer afford to keep operating in their traditional downtown locations, and the smaller stores that surrounded them couldn't stay in business without the department stores to draw people in. Those department stores fled to the suburbs, and to the newly-emerging enclosed malls that were being built there. Companies like Sears and Macy's formed the backbone of these malls, the so-called anchor stores, while the same smaller establishments that had accompanied them in the cities joined them to fill out the rest of the floor space. Many early malls actually started as open-air shopping centers, but as more and more retailers showed interested, they were enclosed and turned into proper malls. By the 1970s, and through the 1980s and much of the 1990s, malls were *the* driving force of American shopping. That was changing by the late 1990s, though. Part of it was due to the Internet and online shopping, certainly, though I think much of that is overstated. The bigger issue is that the American suburban boom was winding down by the 1990s, and many of the things that made malls so attractive in earlier decades simply no longer applies. Suburbs were no longer underdeveloped free-for-alls. The best suburban real estate had been in constant development for multiple decades, and you couldn't just buy new land on the cheap and put it new commercial space there any more. If you wanted to open a new business, you needed to buy or lease existing space, and that meant you needed to compete with everyone else who wanted that same space. Which meant, in short, that the suburbs were now as expensive as the cities used to be. Sure, you could move further out from the cities than before, but those areas were out of the way and inconvenient, even for people with cars. At the same time, a good number of cities were recovering from their post-war slump. New York is arguably the most famous example, almost completely shedding its dirty/criminal images throughout the 1990s and actually becoming appealing to people again. It was still inordinately expensive to lease retails space there, but, if you could afford it you had a decent shot of turning a profit again. So while not every store could move back into the cities, enough of them could that it caused a real problem for the suburban malls. They had opened up as regional hubs, operating under the premise that people wanted to go to a single location for all of their shopping needs. Once the most expensive stores decided to leave those malls, either to head out into the cheaper exurbs or the more expensive downtown areas, or to focus more on online retail, the malls started to look awfully sparse and abandoned. And the situation snowballed from there: as more stores left the malls, the harder it got for the remaining stores to keep drawing in customers. So a lot of former malls started getting redeveloped _back_ into open-air shopping centers, where your store's retail front was more visible to people driving past. Making it at least a little easy for people to "just drop by," as you say.

[@IwantcandytooBlogspot]

I know of one that is dying but it is in the center of the business district, in Scranton, PA. On top of their need to have many tenants to be full they charged super high rents and a percentage of the sales, on top. My husband ran K-B Toys until about a year before the entire chain was gone, since we had gone through bankruptcy in 2 other retail chains he got out of there. (Ames and Hills for me and Jamesway for him.) As a retail manager if your sales bonus checks are cut it is a bad sign, and time to start looking for a new job.

[@hightower6645]

I still remember the jingle on TV commercials before it opened: "It's new, it's you, it's exciting - Irondequoit Mall!"

[@crystalscan2002]

turn the stores into apartments

[@SURENITY]

Tony Thatcher Or a community college campus

[@prismstudios001]

Requires a zoning change, which may, or may not easy to do.

[@chperezjr]

Tony T not a bad idea

[@AndrewAMartin]

That would take a large investment, both in getting re-zoned and in remodeling -- I'd bet none of those stores have plumbing, for example. A college campus, or office sharing/small office location would probably work better.

[@andrayasmith5310]

Same thing i was thinking

[@GoGreen1977]

We've had malls die here in the Denver area, but they don't tend to stay "frozen" as vacant properties for long. They often become mixed use shopping, living, working centers, redesigned into outdoor shopping/commercial centers, or other uses. But then the economy in Denver and surrounding areas has been booming for years. The recession was a relatively brief blip.

[@RyanPermaul]

Hey man, I've recently discovered your videos. Just want to let you know that I love how passionate you are about the preservation of this aspect of American culture. It really comes across in your work, and makes it that much more enjoyable. Keep it up!

[@Minlomo]

YES. THIS IS MY HOMETOWN MALL. It's mind-blowing to see it now. That Macy's was there forever. I loved that store that was like a science museum gift store, but can't remember the name for the life of me I was probably 7 last time I was there.

[@AcesAdventures1]

Melinda Walters its a beautiful mall

[@IwantcandytooBlogspot]

Malls charge the stores inside of them crazy expensive rent and a percentage of their sales which also leads to their decline as the stores can't possibly afford to pay it and the payroll, especially when times got tough with the economy. It also factors into the decline.

[@Grey-sf4zo]

that was a lot of water dripping holy cow

[@monkeywkeys3916]

Watch the language plz

[@clearthepit]

One of your best videos to date.

[@jlynn2724]

Seriously... an embarrassing amount of my formative years spent here in the mid to late Nineties! I used to work at the Burger King in the food court. Sometimes on the weekends you'd see wedding parties come in and have their photos taken on the carousel. it was THAT swanky !

[@AcesAdventures1]

J Lynn i can only imagine i woulda killed to seen it in its heyday!

[@FrederickGFX]

Just go to Eastview then! The older sections of Eastview have a very similar aesthetic to this mall. Especially in the food court area.

[@hightower6645]

+Ace's Adventures I remember those days back in the 90's at Irondequoit Mall. It was one of a kind.

[@Titanic19127]

J Lynn this is so sad… I am 20 and I used to go here as a kid

[@crystalscan2002]

that is said that mall was stilla baby :(

[@janetfoster7174]

Very good video! I remember visiting that mall in the 90s (always remembered the carousel)

[@khunopie9159]

Ill buy this and turn it in to an AirBnB

[@julosx]

But you'll have to fix the water damages going on ASAP before you start.

[@chloerayn]

YES PLEASE DO

[@joaquinhernandez6940]

Khu NoPie I would definitely pay to stay there. Right after a MAJOR renovation.

[@williamhamilton8438]

And heat it?!

[@jimsuniverse4954]

Plesse do. Id hate to see it torn down. Its beautiful.

[@justindavidson3431]

Love!!! Love!!! Love!!! Your videos bro keep up the good work and keep rocking what you do. And best luck to your travels across America to find these dead malls.

[@TexarkanaBytes]

I'm getting This is Dan Bell vibes

[@AcesAdventures1]

Lani Bonnie he inspired me so i get that alot

[@agne1211]

His voice sounds like Dan Bell's

[@jimsuniverse4954]

@@agne1211 h does indeed.

[@jimsuniverse4954]

Love Dan Bell and I agee 100%

[@monkeywkeys3916]

@@agne1211 His mom sounds like Dan Bell

[@yoursisterfromanothermiste6696]

Wow, no graffiti or vandalism. Pretty impressive.

[@Choices2aa]

If I was homeless I would have so many people live there and its seems safe

[@Technoman44]

This was beyond well produced :) Keep up the rampage ACE! You will own 2017 at this rate.

[@bryanl7346]

Love how most dead mall series on youtube make urban exploration and vaporwave music work hand in hand. Because of vaporwaves general meanings, and just the type of nostalgic sound it has, it really is fitting.

[@GreenJeep1998]

I'm amazed that this mall closed up so long ago, yet it's sister, Charlestown in St. Charles, IL is still chugging along, seemingly on life support since things seemed to go down hill at both malls around the same time.

[@pilotgrrl1]

Even when I used to go to Charlestowne Mall, it had that dead mall feel to it. No people, just a few stores open... personally, I think it was just in a bad location.

[@ilikedabeans9971]

The mall is closed down now. I think only Von Maur and the theater are still in business. I still remember when I was a young kid in the 90s and that place was hopping before business started declining. Lot of memories there.

[@Eeveethegamer26]

Here in Topeka, KS there are two malls. One called Westridge mall and Whitelakes mall.. Whitelakes shut down quite a few years ago, but inside was gorgeous and fun to be in, but now it's abandoned and decaying on the inside. Westridge mall is slowly losing more and more stores from what I've seen, and it's sad honestly. It was so much fun to hang out in, especially when they had an indoor movie theater

[@erinjk123]

Thanks for sharing. RIP 90's

[@carrienairn4711]

thank you Ace this was a ball to see . i grew up cruising malls like this .

[@amyosgood6044]

This mall was so beautiful!. So sad when it went under! It always reminded me of the mall in Tom Pettys video for Free Fallin

[@aSome1]

amy osgood or the one in the music video for You Get What You Give, by New Radicals

[@edwardtidwell2821]

The mall from the Free Fallin video is Westside Pavilion in West Los Angeles.....or should I say *was called* since it too is now abandoned. :(

[@ecoRfan]

@@edwardtidwell2821 You Get What You Give was at Staten Island Mall

[@franciscocordova5281]

@8:46 that my friend is a perfectly mint late 90's Radioshack! I worked with them for 2 years at the Fiesta Mall location in Mesa AZ (which btw is also a dying mall). This store looks exactly like the one I worked in with the exact same Sprint PCS & RCA signage! Amazing how its in fantastic shape! Bravo on this video & look forward to seeing more of your work. :) #subscribed

[@mikefitchNYC1971]

Love the original commercial. I remember this mall fondly. Awesome job on the exploration.

[@clairelfhs02]

Wow!!! I love the Lechters sign at 9:30!!! There used to be one by me, but its been gone for at least 20-25 years!

[@hulkslayer626]

I'm only 2:15 into this and I already feel nostalgic! Not because I ever shopped there, but because the original footage transported me to the 90's and then the music and graphics transported me to the 80's :D

[@papatom5161]

I remember going there all the time as a kid... it's sad passing by it almost everyday and seeing it in such a state...

[@boiledfridge6270]

This is an amazing video Well done!

[@SentaiAce]

Another amazing video!

[@chupalia]

I'm waiting for like zombies or something. I like this feeling

[@KoubuPilot]

chupalia Lucky this isn't Willamette! (Dead Rising)

[@doonsbury9656]

Congratulations Ace, on presenting an informative & entertaining look at this fascinating mall. Amazing that it is still in such (Relatively) good condition. But above all it was a pleasure to watch something intelligent, rather than the diet of "Scary" crap that a lot of the other so called "Urban explorers" are offering up on Utube. Keep your stuff like this please mate....your on a winning formula!

[@doug9066]

Amazing video, best video of a vacant mall I've seen yet

[@dougackerman4182]

Great video Ace

[@VolkswagenNut1969]

Amazing video! Love all the information and related footage you're able to obtain. What blows me away is that this mall has been abandoned for nearly as long as Rolling Acres, yet is pristine by comparison. Must be in a much better area I assume...? Either way, thank you and keep up the awesome work!

[@AcesAdventures1]

Thank you so much!

[@AcesAdventures1]

Classic Meowth and Nutty Rules 1994 the song is called Ride My Bike by Nove

[@janetreyes1077]

Great job on this, especially w the intro music part with the Irondequoit Mall logo! Gives goose bumps every time I see it! I watch this one a lot. I'll add that its nostalgic to me because I live near its twin, Charlestown Mall in St Charles, IL. So surreal that they were both opened at around the same time and now they are dead. I was at Charlestown a couple of months ago and its sad to walk the mostly empty mall remembering how I could spend hours there as a kid.

[@nancydarling4918]

Great video. I like the architecture of this mall. That is sad what's happened to it. That's too bad about the water running in your video; it was very erie. Thanks so much for creating this video.

[@rachelcody3355]

thanks for posting, I'm in the area too and I have't seen the inside of that mall since it closed.

[@EhsWorldProductions]

My favorite dead mall too! Great video, very informative. Looking forward to the Montgomery Ward video.

[@amethyststar6303]

The minute the footage started, I thought in shock "holy shit this place isn't even dead, it's GONE"

[@elevatordailies]

Love your mall videos!

[@hyperspaceoddity7805]

This mall is so beautiful. It's amazing how intact it is, and that you can actually go inside the store. It's always a shame to see such a beautiful piece of architecture go to waste.

[@SuonoReale]

I love this video. It kinda shows how the early 90s were the bookend of the late 70s.

[@crystalscan2002]

what they need to do is turn off the water to mall

[@UptownWatta]

Tony Thatcher they cant its against code. you have to keep the water on in the event it catches fire

[@mshara1]

So, basically, the fire code is destroying the building.

[@ecologist_to_be]

Tony Thatcher Turning water off wouldn't stop rain

[@jamesmurphy9639]

Sarah Smith or snow, New York is pounded by snow

[@prismstudios001]

That has got to be driving up the water bill of anyone living, or running a business nearby. You could shut off the main to that store.

[@jscountrygirl85_326]

Such a beautiful looking mall! I really love the early 90's look and feel to it. I would've loved to have visited this place when it was still open! It would be a real shame it it got torn down. I'm sad that malls like this are disappearing all over the country. :(

[@stevarino1989]

So cool that there's footage of the grand opening! This mall opened when I was 9 months old and my mom took me to the grand opening. I went here all the damn time with her and loved it. Lived about 5 minutes away. I remember when McCurdeys got turned into The Bon-Ton. It was originally a Sibleys until 1992 when it turned into McCurdeys. I drive by it on Rt 104 all the time and it's just so sad to see now. I hope it can be revamped with the whole Skyview On the Ridge thing.

[@therealwilfreddierkes9980]

I’m born and raised in Southern California. Gen X, I guess they call us. Anyway, I’m down right fascinated with anyone from the east coast, who is knowledgeable in subjects like this. I’ve never heard any of the stores you mentioned in my life. And I’m old. Lol Nevertheless, thank you for sharing, i really love hearing about it. 🤘🏼

[@4coolkids4]

Great videos! You should go visit Great Northern Mall in Clay NY, that mall is so dead.

[@Avenue72nd]

I'm just as wowed as everyone else that this mall been vacant for 8 years and it looks pretty amazing.. Kinda sad how malls are dead and/dying. It was once fun for everyone..

[@Daniel28021991]

Awesome video, what a beautiful mall.

[@MsWaggydog]

In Australia our malls flourish because of grocery stores, pharmacy, post office, hair salons and a whole lot more. I don't see that in these American videos. No wonder the Internet killed the American malls.

[@pgtmr2713]

MsWaggydog We had a newer mall in the area with a grocery store. The mall is relatively fine, grocery store is gone.

[@AroundIndiana]

MsWaggydog you are right. The malls that have died never adapted to the current trends and needs of the customers.

[@jc1979af]

I saw the same thing in Kuwait. All the malls there had grocery stores and pharmacies along with the typical mall stores. I did see a mall in the states with a Walgreens, so it is not entirely uncommon to see a pharmacy in one.

[@dena81]

that was what fascinated me about Australia having so many things in it. Ours is just shopping and nothing else. The only way they can survive is either have movies, some type of music/movie series, or outdoor restaurants. it's what's been killing the american malls.

[@biblemademedoit]

Same thing takes place in Canada, close to residental areas, mass transportation and street access helps.

[@dessination6665]

It's too nice and too immaculate to be abandoned. I would be privileged to own that Mall.

[@angelm2655]

Such an awesome mall. I see why it's your favorite.

[@ilovemycockatoo84]

Wow that was amazing!

[@jennifernevin8100]

I grew up near here and was at this mall when it opened. By '98 there was nobody there. It was close to the city and on the bus line. Lots of troublemakers hung out there. I loved going there cause no traffic, easy parking, fast. Then everything started closing. Too bad. It was nicer than the other local malls.

[@stevarino1989]

Nah in 1998 it was still a fairly decent mall with most of the stores still open. Even in 2001/2002, just at the beginning of the decline. By around 2004 is when it really started to go down the toilet and it seemed empty. I was about 1 when the mall first opened and spent most of my childhood there. Very depressing to see.

[@kbs1212]

That intro got me hooked. What a jam.

[@JJMHigner]

These videos are great testimonials via the Life After People idea that, after 11 years, water issues would already be eating away at the building. It truly does not take long for these massive buildings to start collapsing.

[@102Help]

great video man, reminds me so much of Dan Bell's dead mall series

[@TRUCKOCD]

It would be cool to find even more 90s and early 2000s ads and furniture and some clothing and other items to fill in some of the stores and turn it into a retail museum. Maybe put a restaurant in there, gift shop.

[@victoriacappon767]

Used to love going to this mall as a kid, I live in Irondequoit.

[@hightower6645]

That mall had the most breathtaking glass ceiling!

[@patsgarage8593]

Amazing how nice that abandoned mall is!!

[@gardenshock51]

Was traveling with family once a long time ago and we walked into this mall. There wasn't a single store in it, but looked brand new. It was the first dead mall I'd ever seen and scared me. It honestly looked like the stores all just left a year before walking it.

[@JoshuaCh10consider]

thanks for your work. its a stirring situation, seeing this vibrant part of our life in America changed. i will paste a copy of my note on your other video , again here: Hey there Ace. i wanted to compliment your video style. I find it quite interesting to see the contrast presented in dead and dying malls. Specifically, i am glad that you present the video review of these fading commercial centers in a straight forward manner. I hope your channel doesn't go the way Dan Bell has done. No disrespect intended to Dan bell , he and his team can style whatever way they want. I am referring to the way most of their productions endeavor to put a scary, spooky , and gouhly perspective on these places. I like the way your channel just takes us there and with video and narrative, you just give us the situation without hype slants. Great channel. i'm glad to find ya. and again, my comments are not meant as an insult to Dan Bell's cool works. A lot of people really go for that style. I wanted to give this feedback to re-enforce what i like about your video documents. I'll be back. In fact , i never subscribe to anything, but, i think, for your channel i'll make an exception,,, subbed. : )

[@ImAChoirNerd2]

My family used to go to this mall a lot since it was so close to home. It's so sad how quickly this mall went down and how many times it switched owners. And even more sad how long it just sat there empty with no plan to reuse the building. So sad. I still remember riding in that blue elevator.

[@quasarmcoc]

10:40 Absolutely insane that a Sega Channel sign exists there! Sega Channel launched in 1994 and discontinued in 1998. So crazy how long those signs have been there, this is an incredible mall.

[@slawg30201]

SEÆGÃaaaa

[@nordfreiheit]

When I was a kid I went to this mall all the time. It was incredible. Bizarre to see it in this condition today.

[@RavenRuled]

Good video. It's something that one thinks about time to time but now perhaps more because whenever a mall renovates they run the risk of dispersing clientele (people find other places to shop and do not necessarily come back) or you find yourself in a mall wondering what the hell happened. When I think back to the early 80s and how a mall could have Woolco, Bay, Eatons, Safeway, Deli, Food Court, Sport collegiate and a variety of filler stores and now it just seems like it is cell phone stores with a dollar store and maybe a Walmart.

[@naturallyaspirated9391]

I have no idea why Wilmorite allowed this mall to die off, and put all of their resource into their other three older, uglier, single story malls in the region. In my opinion they should have allowed Greece Ridge mall to die off, and focused more energy into this one.

[@breebreecakes6189]

Naturally Aspirated THANK YOU 👏👏👏

[@hahahaha2241]

Greece ridge is turning into this one with the crime, fights, and theft. Soon it will move to marketplace, then what will become of Eastview in MY GOOD CHRISTIAN SUBURBS?? 😂

[@garygansbrubaker]

My Ex was from Brighton, and we went to some Mall near Mendon, but aside from being very busy 14 years ago is a lifetime ago in Mall years.

[@monkeywkeys3916]

Awesome structure. I would be stoked to shop there.

[@jordanjazz821]

I lived in Rochester in 1989-1995, which was my elementary school years. We lived in Brighton area, and Dad worked at Kodak when we lived there. I remember going here when it was still happenin’, we would eat at the food court surrounding the carousel which I rode on with my brother and sister back then. I think it was long after we moved away that this mall started slowly declining, it’s a sad but amazing change to see what it is now.

[@TubeSocksOfAaronBurr]

Is there any more footage from this tour? I want to see all of the stores...this was my childhood mall. The memories coming back when looking at this are crazy.

[@Halicorn]

I'm shocked that this beautiful mall doesn't look to have been insanely vandalized like so many other dead malls I've seen videos of. (Or at least, it doesn't seem to be in this particular video.) I'm so happy that the mall in my area appears to be thriving!

[@CR-ny7ep]

I was in that mall exactly once, and it was actually rather busy; thanks to this video now I know it was in 2003, probably late March. Penney's was about halfway through the liquidation sale. I remember it having an odd central section three stories tall, this video doesn't seem to get out of the Sears wing so I'm not sure how far off my memories of it are. It was just never that convenient for me to go to, or I preferred going in some of the others in the area as I passed through.

[@nealanpaulaking9708]

I miss mall times

[@liwowoli]

Cool that that sign at 9:45 says offer expires January 29, 2002.

[@ThomasP187]

Have you heard of the farmers market in Troy, NY? An interesting take living in upstate NY was I discovered an abandoned price chopper that converted into a heated/ac indoor farmers market. It became owned by the RCDOH and they even had a health clinic for those who did not have access to healthcare. I used to volunteer there as an RN giving healthcare to those who didn't have the financial means for healthcare.

[@larryshaner9437]

I used to love going there on the weekend. It was so sad driving by seeing it empty but still imagining the kids riding the horses etc. It was also sad that it got kinda rough there in the evening hour

[@glamourgirl2123]

This mall actually looks to still be in good shape (far better shape than other infamous abandoned malls, most notably the late Rolling Acres in Akron OH)...

[@WhittyPics]

It looks to be in a lot better shape than most of the vacant malls there is videos on

[@Rod-bp8ow]

The mall is full of light and it's bright, it can be turned on into a new indoor farming, a division of that acre size can be for food security, while another for museum as well as a leisure park of what remains, while permanent living quarters or residences for employers and employees, its all about incorporation of employees needs as the mall answers their daily grind without doing much crunch on their budget. It can provide many types of work as well.

[@quantumfx2677]

Yes, we will be doing many things like this to bring food to everyone. We have the tesla towers up and running you can see a video on them in Milford Texas.

[@instaglam7508]

This mall and Randal park mall are the two best looking abandoned malls I have seen on KZbin thus far!

[@esinspace9744]

Oh wow. It's like a clone of the Charlestowne mall in St. Charles, IL. Same layout, same decor, same carousel in the food court. IIRC, there's still a Carson's and a movie theater at Charlestowne occupying the anchors, new outparcels have been built for some reason, and the interior last time I was there was accessible, but empty.

[@georgemartin1436]

Thanks for the background and research. I always want to see the "Directory" signs though, to get an idea of the layout.