Metrocenter Mall: A Mall On Life Support - DEAD MALL & Retail Mini Documentary

[@Dxtuned]

The funny thing is, your daughter's childhood will be filled with memories of empty malls, unlike our childhood's where malls were vibrant town centers.

[@DarkroomMedia007]

BWAAHHAAA YEP!!!!

[@jasburger]

Daryl Dyer mhmm

[@redroversk]

Thanks internet and Amazon, every mall's days are numbered.

[@Baldmaxx]

Having worked for GNC for five years, the reason GNC is is the "last man standing" in almost every mall in North America is because of its leasing practices. Typically the chain will sign a very long term lease (sometimes 25 years plus) to get the lowest possible rent contract. So even in a dead mall environment, because their rent is practically non existent, the unit is always turning a healthy profit. That's why the old cliche of GNC is last to go holds true. Awesome video! 😆🖒

[@RetailArchaeology]

Baldmaxx very interesting information, thanks for sharing :-) It sounds kind of like how Southwest Airlines prepays for its fuel years in advance and that's how it's able to keep its fares so low because its fuel costs are much lower. Thanks for watching!

[@hippiedave1362]

Baldmaxx I didn't know that. Interesting. I think I've always been in GNC and never bought anything. Everything is too expensive if you don't buy their members card.

[@4exgold]

what happens if the mall is heading towards total abandonment though? OK i know it rarely happens, but is their something in the lease that would relieve the company of further obligations if there's a long time left on the contract?

[@Baldmaxx]

4exgold Absolutely the tenant is always offered a way out when a mall property is either sold or is about to be closed permanently. GNC is almost always the last to leave because once the mall gets to that point of iniment closure the pattern is that GNC pays almost nothing to stay open. The high prices they charge and the huge profit they generate even with low foot traffic justify their presence"to the bitter end". 😉💲

[@4exgold]

Baldmaxx have to hand it to them, theyve found a great way to do business :)

[@williamt5359]

Something Nostalgic about this.... today's kids will never know how fun it was to hang out all day at the mall with buds on their heelys

[@Thatonedude19301]

I used to love coming here as a kid. My mom would always get some money saved up so me and my brother can have the time of our lives at the arcade at the food court and the rink that used to be here. I used to love coming here as a middle-schooler. I went on my first date here to the Ruby-Tuesday that used to be at the front of the food court and we watched a movie. Now, there’s only salesmen and Pyramid Schemers trying to get you to work for them. I missed this mall in it’s glory day. Lotta memories here. Most of my high school days were spent at Arrowhead, much better mall imo.

[@kathywatts1806]

I went to Metrocenter in 1982 where I met Wallace and Ladmo and attended one of their stage shows Back then Metrocenter had all 200 shops and restaurants as well as an ice cream parlor and ice skating rink and two video arcades and a cocktail lounge.

[@becomeaudible1]

Farrells ice cream parlor was above the ice skating rink. The Airport was the cocktail lounge. My brothers friend used to do a solo acoustic gig there.

[@rabbithowls71]

Wallace and Ladmo! I got the Ladmo bag on the show when I was 6.

[@tropix1666]

The mall may be dead, but you have the cutest little girl six ways from Sunday. Seriously, helping Dad film a dying mall? ADORABLE.

[@TimsOutpost]

That was the big hangout mall for me and my friends in the late 70's and early 80's. There used to be an ice skating rink below the food court. On the weekends cruising around the mall was a big thing.

[@lookatmattscar]

We were always asking each other at school on Friday. What I you gonna do this weekend? Awe, Probably go "Cruise Metro". Or desert parties to go see Loosely Tight, The School Boys or Surgical Steep play. Am I right Tim? LOL!

[@Diranda23]

I remember 'cruising Metro'. Heh. It got so prevalent that they increased the police around the mall at night on the weekends because of all the teenagers.

[@SLone3251]

I think it's really cute that you take your daughter out to these adventures. Maybe you can pass on a lot of knowledge and history onto her and she'll be a retail historian by the time she's in high school. :)

[@lizzard71]

When I moved to Phoenix in 1990 the city was putting "No Cruising" signs around the Metrocenter to control the traffic, it was that busy.

[@laje]

cruising Metro was totally the thing to do in the 90s

[@BlackPhoenix623]

You mean people would just drive around the parking lots of the mall?

[@lookatmattscar]

For Hours all Saturday night. It was great!

[@phxpaul]

Luka Cee it was the alternative to cruising Central Ave. The city had a ban on cruising Central first, everybody then went to Metro Center which eventually started another ban. You couldn’t drive past the same place mor than once in an hour , or something like that.

[@audreyvangelder1940]

Bill and teds excellent adventure is one of my favorite movies of all time. I must go there now .!

[@account4info]

O.C and Stiggs shows metrocenter before the remodel

[@twebinokc]

Thanks for your tireless documentary efforts. Keep the memories alive! From your newest fans at Royal Retail America and Royal Nostalgia America!

[@PixelatedH2O]

I haven't lived in Arizona in almost 13 years so it's been probably close to 15 years since I've been to Metrocenter also. I have very fond memories of going there as a teen though. Every so often I've wondered what's happened to it so to see this is both wonderful and saddening. The interior has been really updated but I could still tell where exact stores I used to love once were.

[@BlackPhoenix623]

Going to the mall as a teen must have been a great past-time if the mall was thriving with mall-goers and good stores. It's sad that this mall, which was once one of America's great malls, is dead

[@lookatmattscar]

You'd find me there every weekend from 81 to 84.

[@LondHo]

Adam Porter I loved this mall in the early 1980s when I lived in Phoenix. I spent a lot of time in the "castle shaped" video game arcade across the parking lot!

[@MediaWatchDawg]

And I'm guessing in 2017, another sign will proclaim the remainder of the mall will be converted into a parking garage FOR Walmart.

[@DaisukireiChan]

Thanks to these videos I really started to appreciate busy but not too crouded shopping malls or similar places. After seeing what can happen to abandoned places with no one willing or being able to take care of it my mindset kind of changed from "damn, it's crouded!" to "good to see they're doing great"...I recently subscribed to and binged through multiple channels dedicated to lost places, especially related to retail, and it's always sad to see often iconic businesses ending their journey when there are so many stories to tell.

[@joei2129]

I was an overnight graveyard security guard at this mall back in 2007-08. It has been dying since then. I remember having a beer around my 21st birthday in that former Ruby Tuesday's. This video really made this mall look busy, which is a shock! Great video

[@jackfrazer576]

it looks like its in pretty good shape considering some other malls

[@RetailArchaeology]

Jack Frazer yeah this one's not horrible yet, but it's getting pretty bad. I'm hoping it doesn't get any worse because I really do like the way this looks. Thanks for watching!

[@julieerin115]

it's pretty quiet for the holiday season

[@gorflunk]

It's the Christmas lull.

[@juancarrasco6817]

Jack Frazer it was always packed when I was 6 years old

[@chetpomeroy1399]

I remember hearing back in '74 that Metrocenter was the largest mall in the U.S.A. at that time. It was built in an old cabbage field just west of the old Western Savings building. There was a year-round ice-skating rink and a huge fountain in certain areas of the mall. If memory serves, back in the 70's, they had off-white ceramic tile on the floors, but there were no skylights. One of the anchors at that time was a Goldwater's. Like Valley West Mall, Paradise Valley Mall and Los Arcos, it's definitely an old mall that's been through a few business cycles, including the real doozy we just went through. Business cycles are like kryptonite to old shopping malls.

[@malikmuhammadqasimqasim4785]

What a cool voice and a little background music. NO shouting and screaming and NO unnecessary background music... GREAT

[@tylerbuckley7409]

when I was a kid I used to go ice skating here when they had a ice rink there those were the days golf n stuff thanks for uploading this brings back the memories

[@phil34nc]

Wow I thoroughly enjoyed watching this. Awesome job!! Great footage and music!!

[@RetailArchaeology]

Phillip Wright Thanks and thank you for watching!

[@andysorensen1737]

I've seen Walmart as anchors in Canada...when I went in the late 90s, the escalators were designed so you could take your shopping cart on it.

[@KoubuPilot]

Andy Sorensen I've been to a Target like that in San Diego. I wonder how Robin Sparkles would have reacted if Walmart came to the mall?

[@IVR02]

There's a Kmart like that near me. It was previously a Caldor, and before that, a Korvettes. The Korvettes was paired with its own grocery store, which later became a PathMark, and is currently a Whole Foods.

[@geraldgonzalezjr6797]

Andy Sorensen Walmart anchors Christown's Spectrum Mall not 3 miles from MetroCenter. it breathed new life into an otherwise dying mall in Central Phoenix. In fact, MetroCenter was a first cause of the decline of Christown, one of the first examples of enclosed air conditioned malls in the country. this is Phoenix after all.

[@KoubuPilot]

Gerald Gonzalez Jr It would be nice if the Metro Walmart directly connected to the mall, but another entrance means more opportunity for losses from shoplifting. Christown's Walmart and Costco BOTH have mall entrances as well as their Prodigal JC Penney.

[@trevorstewart3904]

My hometown of Fredericton, New Brunswick (eastern Canada) has a Walmart as an anchor. I think it replaced a Woolco, though there might have been something there between the Woolco and the Walmart. If I recall correctly, Walmart did not want the store to be physically connected to the mall, but the mall operator and city insisted. The compromise deal has it connected by a narrow (by mall standards) corridor that runs along the front of the walmart to it's main entrance.

[@johnsmallberries3476]

Metrocenter was so great back in the 80s...had a lot of great times there.

[@cryptozoo22]

In the late 80's, I was seeing a girl who worked at a Merry-Go-Round store (remember those? Big hair and overpriced merchandise for the wannabe New Wave crowd) located in a mall in Tucson, AZ. We'd just started dating when she was transferred to the Merry-Go-Round in the Metrocenter Mall. Despite multiple enticements to get me to visit her, this mall was over 100 miles away from Tucson, and as we'd only just gotten involved, we ultimately decided to end it rather than attempt to maintain a long-distance relationship. As such, I had never laid eyes on this mall until seeing this video today. Thank you for your channel content (I just subscribed), and for the memories this video brought back (and Thank You, Mary Jane Swerzo, wherever you are)....

[@beckigreen]

cryptozoo22 I loved Merry Go Round! I shopped there all the time back in the day.

[@theresnooneleft1169]

Did you pause and check the video carefully? Maybe Mary Jane is still there. Maybe still waiting for you! Heartless knave!

[@robertrogers4272]

WOW this is sad, I was born and raised in Phoenix. I loved that mall I moved out of Arizona in 1995. I Remember Metro center FULL ALL THE TIME BACK THEN. This makes me sad!!!

[@JediFight]

Those wood floors were there when I was a kid, and I grew up next to they mall. Born in '71, it was a huge part of my life. The food court looks terrible now. It used to be amazing with an overview of the ice skating rink. They closed in the overview and put in seating fir the food court. For me, three best parts of this mall were the ice rink (with a giant airplane built into the architecture overlooking the rink), and the movie theater upstairs from the ice rink. You always had a cool futuristic feel that only the 70's could give you in that theater. Lastly, the gold mine, which was a long and narrow corridor /alleyway off the food court area filled with "cool" stores and the feeling of a bizarre.

[@eddybart22]

Grew up going to this mall and seeing it unfold throughout the years has been unreal to me. What use to attract me the most of this mall was that there used to used to be water fountains that would shoot water up in the air and you would hear it hit the ground and just that noise alone is giving me crazy nostalgia right now also the arcade there that used to be directly in front of the food court was amazing. There used to be a Nordstrom here too but those disappeared over the years as well as a Jc penny that had three floors and at that time was pretty cool

[@azchef101]

Loved your commentary on this mall. I'm dating myself here...this was the place to be back in the late 80's. My friends and I would start our night out at Golf-n-Stuff playing video games until 9pm, then we would cruise the one-mile loop until we got kicked out. At one point to deter cruising police officers would track how many times cars went around the loop over a 60-min period. Once I would hit the max, then move over to finish cruising along Central. Many times during my senior year of high school I would race down the I-17 to Metro to grab Hot Dog on a Stick for lunch and then race back to 27th Ave and Deer Valley in time for 5th period. This place holds so many memories for me during my teen years, I hope it comes back to life but it will never be as cool as it was in 1988.

[@lordperezident]

Elisabet Hannafin 27th and deer valley? The only high school in that area is Barry Goldwater on Rose garden. That's the school I went to. They dont let you leave for lunch anymore

[@personofinterest2024]

Best place in Phoenix to get your car stolen!

[@laje]

loved this. thanks for making it. i grew up in Glendale and this mall was my home away from home. back when your parents could drop you off and pick you up hours later. it was the place to be in the summer. i remember the ice skating rink, then the arcade, then nothing. i remember when the movie theater was added. we used to sneak in to R rated movies. lol. i worked at the Sears in 97-98. the mall became even more of my home then. i miss those times hanging out there and cruising the loop. its sad to see it now.

[@marlettechilds1971]

Hi! I remember ditching school and going to this mall in high school. Under the food court was an open ice skating rink and you could look down on the skaters while you had your meal. You might also wanna check out Christtown Mall renamed Spectrum Mall once Walmart became an anchor store. I would always eat at Jade's and vet my shies at Journey's.

[@cesarmtz1992]

I moved away from Arizona in middle school but I remembered the mall was still full when I left and I went back to visit again a while back and couldn't believe how much it had changed.

[@Kiannamonroeee]

We have a mall called Metrocenter here in Jackson, Ms , Its sooooo dead to the point that it has no stores downstairs & only a few upstairs. But instead of the city saving tax payer money by closing it....It remains open. If you EVER visit Mississippi you should do a video on it...

[@JediFight]

I forgot to mention, years ago the resting area on the bottom floors were sunken in about five feet and very lush and green. As a kid, the sunken in area was pretty cool, but mostly just older people sitting there resting. Two of the best stores were Toys By Roy, and Sams Hot Pretzels.

[@jamieholland7689]

JediFight oh yeah, great times at this mall. I loved hot sams! Best pretzels ever!

[@bob59pa]

The dead corridor next to Sears used to have many small stores and was designed to look like you were walking down a city street. Metro center was the first really large mall built in Phoenix it was competing with the Colonnade Mall, Scottsdale Mall, Thomas Road Center, Westgate Mall all smaller and no longer malls and Christown still around.

[@RetailArchaeology]

Robert Young i wish there were pics of what it looked like before. Thanks for watching!

[@GardenerEarthGuy]

Robert Young back when everything north of bell road was dirt, metro center was cutting edge with the amusement park. wonder if that's still there.

[@jaubuchon28]

Gardener Earth Guy golf n stuff will never die

[@GardenerEarthGuy]

joe aubuchon sweet! it's still there...

[@laje]

it was called The Alley. it was awesome and totally random. it looked totally different than the rest of the mall. and the stores were little shops. much smaller than the rest of the mall.

[@StreetTruckinTitan]

Went to the opening. What a great mall it was in its heyday. I remember the plane sky lounge over looking the skating rink. Goods times.

[@jaredhaden1989]

I used to go here, but there isn't much there anymore, really sad if you ask me

[@drawmywayhome2207]

I still go to metro cente, now I'm creeping up into my late teens I remember vaguely going there as a kid with my family to see a movie but spending time to go and walk around in the mall, ugh I hope walmart will kinda bring it back to life

[@pamelamajor1566]

Came upon this video by accident, but I love Dead Mall videos. New subbie here!

[@richardjohnson8197]

I'm not from Phoenix but my ex wife had family there we visited regularly back in the early 90's and at that time the metro center mall was flourishing. There used to be shooting jet water fountains at the corners of the mall where there is seating now, it put on a good show but obviously they were removed. There used to be a HUGE arcade under the food court as big as the food court, obviously gone now but I wonder what they did with the space, part of the movie theater possibly? Back then there was little to no space vacant and I believe on the upper level back in one of the corners was a cluster of shops called the back alley. It was lit in neon and had a claustrophobic feel, pretty cool but obviously again gone now. We stopped through about a year ago and I had to visit the mall, sadly it's a shadow of its former self.

[@LethaWolf30]

Did anyone else come over to watch this after seeing the “A to Z Retail” videos of the mall post closure?

[@markmurphy9625]

a peaceful clean space to spend a little people watching, get a treat and shop place. maybe these well kept 70's ones will come back. some corridors remind me of modern day Cruise ship promenades...

[@user-ev7qw8oi7e]

Awesome video and your narration is very informative. The Village at Orange Mall in California used to be extremely dead. Now they they've added a Walmart there, it's been revived and many days are so busy it's difficulty to find parking.

[@FuzzyPuppet]

R.I.P. MetroCenter Mall

[@lookatmattscar]

Not even. I go there all the time.

[@MaxiiBoii23]

Too early to say that, it's dying, but maybe in 5-10 years. Let's see how Wal Mart affects it overall, it's either good or bad.

[@HalomasterA69]

Lol yes, it's dead. I walk the metro all the time. Even PV is slowly heading to where Metro is now. It's Arrowhead that's the thriving market. Kind of why all the big stores are at Arrowhead and not anywhere else.

[@RD-bx7wl]

Fuzzy Puppet yep when I was little I go there all time

[@jasburger]

Fuzzy Puppet I went to this mall when I was younger to donate a blanket to a dog

[@iamchrisbrewer]

Great video. By the way there was a Walmart that anchored the North Town Mall in Springfield, MO for a few years. The mall was later demolished and the Walmart became a Supercenter. The anchor Walmart was old and smelled pretty funky as I recall it.

[@RetailArchaeology]

Chris Brewer I think Walmarts have 50% chance of smelling funky lol! Thanks for watching!

[@TheInvernessie]

This mall is /so/ similar to the old architecture of Rockaway Townsquare Mall in New Jersey. Right down to the tile work. If anyone also wants to check out a dying mall, Ledgewood Mall is pretty great to see as an example of a 1970s mall. Love these videos!!

[@RetailArchaeology]

TheInvernessie hopefully I can make it to Florida one day :-) thanks for watching!

[@crsh2007]

I miss the 90s :/ We always used to go to the mall on Thursday evenings (my parents' payday) for dinner in the food court, then some shopping (if we needed anything). Then, we'd go to a different mall every Saturday (usually one that was outside the city - we lived in Toronto, so we'd drive to Etobicoke or Missisauga...). Fun times :)

[@RetailArchaeology]

We went to the mall almost every weekend for some reason. When I was a teenager but not quite old enough to drive my friends and I used to ride the bus to the mall and hang out in the air conditioned arcade in the summers :-) Thanks for watching!

[@LuthienNightwolf]

So, this channel just kinda showed up in my recommended, but I actually used to live a few minutes away from this mall, from 2000 to early 2009. While I barely remember some details now, a lot of this is still very familiar and its giving me major nostalgia!

[@daddyg2005]

I was there yesterday (4/28/17). I had to go into Sears to exchange a couple tools. after I was done, I took a few minutes to walk through the lower floor, to Dillards and back. It's so sad to see it looking like a ghost town. I hope having the Wal-Mart there helps.

[@shineeteentop24]

I heard the All4Anime store closed down recently :( one of the only reasons I went to that mall (that and hot topic) in the past. Also, I believe Christown has had a walmart attached to it for sometime. I remember being confused as I hadn't seen it before either. So maybe a Walmart could really help out Metro Center. I remember for some time Superstition seemed like it was dying quickly, but it has bounced back in recent years. I still have hope for metro! (RIP Fiesta Mall)

[@ImFastrnU]

When I was 18 and lived there in the late 80's this place was HOPPING! People cruised around the mall, went to Golf n Stuff....busy, busy place I remember a friend of mine had a 12' boa constrictor named Slash (Guns N Roses was huge back then). We decided to take him for a walk around the mall one Saturday afternoon. It was like Moses parting the sea, people moved to FAR away from us. We were promptly escorted out. I can assure you, security was in full force back in the day.

[@4exgold]

did your daughter have any views on what's going on or was she just happy to go to the mall? :)

[@RetailArchaeology]

4exgold she knew she was going to be on KZbin. She likes to watch herself :-) she also likes to get pretzels at the mall.

[@4exgold]

lol, adorable

[@brian5o]

Retail Archaeology, you mentioning your daughter enjoying a pretzel at the mall brought back memories of when I used to go to the mall as a kid and loved getting pretzel sticks and cheese from Hot Sam's. I don't even think Hot Sam's exists anymore but I sure loved that place back in the day.

[@ZanDogg]

@@RetailArchaeology I like to get wetzles pretzels at the mall and there opening a wetzles in Ehrenberg, AZ which is 19 minutes away from where I live

[@omega4837]

If you're ever in Texas, check out the Golden Triangle Mall. It's been undergoing the same construction since, like, 2009.

[@ezzy555]

That mall used to have a mcdonalds in the food court in the early 2000's and about 5000 more customers

[@victorn65]

Hi Retail Archaeology, great video, thanks! By the way you have a great voice too. Very nice to listen too.

[@diggingattycho7908]

That's a surprise, last time I went to Metro. Most of the activity was around the food court area. I grew up not to far from Metro, I remember when it was a grass field(when I was very little). The food court area of the mall was a lot more interesting. It had an ice rink right below the food court, you could watch the skaters from above. The other nice part about it, in the summers it was a great place to enter the mall. It later became a large arcade with a merry-go-round. After that they filled it in. The original architecture of the mall was really something to see. The remodel doesn't match the ceilings very well. I don't remember when they did the remodel, my guess was back in the nineties.

[@RetailArchaeology]

Max Mills I'm a little too young to remember the ice skating rink but I do remember the huge arcade. Some of my viewers are telling me that the last remodel was actually in 2006 which kind of surprised me. Thanks for watching!

[@VeranumPIU]

By this logic, my local Valle Vista Mall is "dead".

[@mr.robertdobalina9199]

Isaac Ledesma You should see the mall in person. It's dying, but it seems to be picking up. In 2014 it was a barren wasteland

[@lookatmattscar]

I have been living a couple of miles from this mall for over 30 years. Heck, my daughter and I were just in the Metrocenter area for dinner a few hours ago. So for the Bill and Ted fans. Little FYI. That arcade is the music store in the movie and that elevator that is in front of that Sears. That was where the working out thing was going on and Joan of Arch took over. Great video. I loved it.

[@jaywest885]

I know this video was a long time ago, but I have a ton of great memories at this mall. I worked at the sears in 98 and 99. I'm working with the security company in charge of the closed mall right now to get some video of the it before it's demolished in a few months. I miss the hell out of this place.

[@myramadd6651]

Every mall I've seen looks like it ought to be full of zombies for some reason.

[@fixpacifica]

Or giant spiders.

[@hughlingard]

they are full of zombies; american consumers.

[@jaredfogle6612]

MrThirtyTwo more like Dawn of the dead.

[@thesacrilegium]

Jared Fogle More like dead rising

[@vaniawelcome8081]

walmart used to be an anchor to the now closed Foxcroft Town Center (formerly Martinsburg Mall) however they shut the entrnce off to mall due to theft and remodel to a supercenter. The martinsburg mall slowly declined after that, and then closed in November

[@darkdistiller]

I moved to Arizona to the apartments that are near there, and it was a very decent mall with a namco arcade by the food court and some good shops. The amount of foot traffic did drop significantly by the time I moved away to New Mexico. There does seem to be a lot more life in it since the last time I was there around 2012. I know it was updated I want to say 2007/8. They redid the food court and the exterior and the planters on the second floor. I don't think they redid the tile. I think that tile was pre-existing at least 2001 if i remember correctly. I applied at a new age store that use to be in one of those corridors. I beat out a goth guy for it. Fun times. Awesome video.

[@RepTalez]

I grew up in Phoenix in the mid 70's, there was an ice skating rink in Metro Center. A couple times a year our parents would take us there to ice skate.

[@deltaecho5470]

No promises that Wally's World will have a direct entrance into the mall. Could remain closed off to mall traffic. The fact they are going in is not promising, would much rather see Target as that store has better goods and better clientele. Another rumor I heard from one of my best friends is that Metro is under the eyeball of some housing developer wanting the land for, you guessed it, houses.

[@TransitAndTeslas]

Delta Echo Having houses with nowhere to shop isn't smart. Especially in the middle of a large city!

[@williamhaynes7089]

in Phx spectrum mall (chris town) they do have a mall enterance and a "cart parking" area so you can check you cart full of stuff and come back for it later

[@ericfresh]

keep em coming buddy. Any chance you can get down to Tucson? I worked at 2 malls there in the late 90s when I was in college. (Waldenbooks, Suncoast Video and Boarders) I'm hopefully going back for a visit soon.

[@RetailArchaeology]

Eric Eberle I'm takinh a trip to Tucson in a few weeks to film some malls and do some video game hunting :-) Thanks for watching!

[@ericfresh]

Nice!

[@danidearest9999]

Great channel. Great video!

[@ArtisticDuckie]

Oh man, metro center. I think I happened to visit when they were closing Macy's. It was like a war zone, piles of merchandise everywhere, old people wandering aimlessly. The mall felt so dirty and old. The icing on the cake of the experience though was peering down a blocked off escalator into a pitch black basement with a couple of naked mannequins standing just barely on the edge of the shadows. It was a terrifying sight of a dying mall I'll never forget.

[@TheMeganExperience]

Even the areas that appeared to be thriving weren't filled with the big brand name stores you'd expect to see in a more successful mall Only maybe 20% were, the rest were mom n' pop, one location, shops. Those, to me are something you see when the mall is dying; all the big stores stop renewing their contracts. Same thing has been happening at my local mall over the past few years... they first lost Target as an anchor, then JCP, Pacsun was down that corridor so it closed too, Rack Room Shoes, Claire's. Our mall also has no chain food stalls in the food court. The few that are in it are mom n' pop as well.

[@dougda1025]

In the late 70s early 80s I went to metrocenter all the time. There was an ice skating rink below the food court and the movie theatre was across from the good court just like in Fast Times. I got a ticket on a cruising night in 1981 and I was so pissed because I was not cruising just trying to get to my bank ATM which the cops had blocked off a huge area of parking lot around. Metro center was the place to be back then.

[@VeeFL]

A Walmart attached to a mall? I've never seen that before.

[@peromiestiloesunico]

naither i boiiiiiiioioooooooii

[@kylesandidge8372]

There's another mall in Phoenix that has a Walmart in it lol

[@southwestAZ]

Kyle Sandidge its called christown

[@syxepop]

Depends on the 'hood... My hometown in Puerto Rico (in a middle class area of a large suburb town) does have one (western part of the mall w/a mall entrance opened at 9am 'til 9 or 10pm, otherwise the store opens 24/7). Most Walmarts here are at individual buildings, but not all...

[@spectroman71]

I live within 20 minutes of two of them.

[@BedroomScenesMovie]

Oh man.... those shots of the dark, disused lower floor of Dillard's reminded me of Parkway Center Mall - when you were only allowed on the second floor, and all you could see of the first floor was little glimpses from above, of darkness and the edge of the wood tiling where the food court used to be.

[@pixi152]

Up stairs on the other side of Sears from where you where walking there is a great big open store that may or may not be open anymore...that was actually an indoor skate park once. That was YEARS ago back in like 2000 or 2001 when I was still in highschool. I used to go in there and watch the kids skate and they had a DDR game that we would play back when DDR was popular. I watched that video and I can still pretty much walk through and tell you what almost all of those stores used to be at one point. Then again I was going to that mall starting as a kid in the late 80s early 90s. Back when it has an ice skate rink and a indoor dollar theater

[@TDog14126]

Love the IHE music

[@deer5319]

Timothy Verheyn Jr. ikr

[@RetailArchaeology]

That music is particular track is part of the free music library that KZbin provides to creators to use royalty free. I had honestly never even heard of I Hate Everything until some viewers brought it up. I did some browsing and it turns out 100s of channels use this music in there videos. If the channel picks up enough steam and I can afford to license music or have personalized music created I'm certainly going to look into it :-) Thanks for watching!

[@madicat20]

I desperately love your channel!

[@RetailArchaeology]

Madicat Twenty Thank you and thanks for watching!

[@GoddessofWisdom]

Timothy Verheyn Jr. I immediately heard of IHE when I heard that song xD

[@emiliohernandez4615]

It just to be so busy back In 2003 when I moved down here from Utah. It was my fav mall.

[@LELAisLEAN]

I didn’t realise there was an audience for this type of thing. Dead malls have always been a curiosity of mine but I just thought that was a weird thing for me to be interested in.

[@TetrisShark70]

One of the few memories of this mall I have is in the hot topic, its where I got my first 5 inch sonic.

[@wkcyrokin122]

This mall is similar to the memories I have of visiting Cortana Mall in Baton Rouge, LA, where I grew up. I don't remember the mall looking very dead (it's very dead now) but it had a closed anchor store with a whole row of empty stores, and other stores were closing in other locations. But I remember it being busy enough that when I learned it was a dead mall here recently I was shocked. Finding a video of it from 2014 was even worse. It's still open, though, despite how utterly lifeless it was in 2014.

[@llcoolray3000]

Your daughter is a good sport to provide you with cover while wandering aimlessly through stores and malls for however long it takes for you to get footage.

[@Izztana666]

This mall looks so cozy. I would love to shop here😀

[@scottspencer6036]

The arcade in Metro used to be the most competitive in the state. We got a gun pulled on us in the parking lot after shots were fired in the food court one time.

[@penguin44ca]

You and This Is Dan Bell are the only ones that do these things properly. Thank you

[@RetailArchaeology]

penguin44ca Thank you and thanks for watching!

[@SilverGreeneye]

When I heard the Faxanadu shop theme @11:30, I legit gasped with glee.

[@gusolive5522]

Ughhh Phoenix needs a major uplift so many awful strip malls and half dead shopping centers

[@Christopher0817]

what a nice looking mall it's good to see some folks still shop at at mall. I love going to the mall. thanks for the awsome mall footage really enjoyed it

[@RetailArchaeology]

Chris Strader thanks for watching!

[@gagemoss1075]

Awesome shot of the escalators. Chistown has a Walmart as an anchor.; Its where the Broadway used to be (on the east end). Keep up the good work!

[@KoubuPilot]

Gage Moss Christown is an oddball. Half of it was demolished. Prodigal son JCP came back from Metro in a newly built store. They demolished the old Bullock's that housed Dillard's Clearance. Costco was built over the original JCP and connects into the mall. The old Wards still stands but was divided into new stores.

[@RetailArchaeology]

Gage Moss I need to get down to Christown Mall and check it out I don't think I've ever been there before. Thanks for watching!

[@SailorCardKnight3]

Woah, this is trippy. I noticed the date for this was filmed a few days before the last time I made a trip over to Metro. Anyway, I went to Metrocenter alot as a kid with my Grandma and cousins back in the 90's/early 2000s. It was alot livelier back then, and most of the store spaces had shops in them. There was even a Disney store. These days I've noticed about a third of the shops there now are the sort of shops you would see in a dying mall desperate to fill space. (A number of furniture stores with no people inside, the military recruitment offices, and a school of somekind, for examples.) They have remodeled since then in places. Like that play area for the kids used to be one of two water fountains, a big one and a little one, and at certain times of the day it would put on a show and would shoot water into the air. The other fountain was where that Christmas display with Santa is now. I remember cause I would always bug my family to go watch it. One of the anchors there used to be a Mervyn's, which I still miss, they had some nice stuff there. I believe it was where the Walmart is going to be now. Also, that lonely shop you pointed out in the video, All4Anime, its a great little store. The guy who runs it is from Japan and is a real nice fellow. When I was at Metro last time, I went in to browse it, sadly there was nobody else in it. Price-wise I noticed his stuff was a little higher than it was in the past, I guess he had to raise prices to make up for the lack of customers. With it being Christmas time, I took pity and bought a plushie from him (and spent too much for it). It was one of a character I liked that is not easy to find, so it was a win/win. I do hope when Wal-mart opens up it will help bring more foot traffic to his store. Niche stores like his a such a rarity anymore.

[@RetailArchaeology]

The good news is I went into that anime store while I was there and it was fairly busy. There were 6-8 people in there browsing around :-) It was a cool shop for sure. Thanks for watching!

[@Wyld_Stallyns77]

Just queued up Bill And Ted and all that tile work was replaced since the movie was filmed. The rounded architectural 2nd floor how its rounded on bottom and the upper ceilings have not been touched. the elevator you liked was in the Shot of Joan Of Ark taking over the exercising Demo. It looks the same. enjoyed the video.

[@RetailArchaeology]

Scott Brown good to know, I was going to watch Bill and Ted before I did this video but I couldn't find my coffee :-( thanks for watching!

[@ReDRuM868]

i love that dark corridor thats how i remember old malls used to be

[@glennpaull903]

Beautiful mall - you have a nice voice (whoever you are) Thanks for posting.

[@rabbithowls71]

Back in the 80’s it was so packed there. We would always meet up at the food court, and it would take 20 mins to find each other.

[@ProfessorDarkAcademia]

Love the music for this channel.

[@acidfroggy1194]

I remember shopping there when I lived in Phoenix. It used to be a great place but crime picked up, there were fights and mall security didn't do much about it. When I was there I thought it was funny that there was a Starbucks at each end of the mall. There is another mall further south, Spectrum Center, that also had a Wal Mart attached to it.

[@patriciamachado4786]

oh wow I used to shop in this mall when I lived there back in the 80's

[@TananBaboo]

And now it’s closed. Thanks for making this video!

[@hippiedave1362]

on average, what day is the busiest day for malls? Friday nights? Saturdays? I know, when I was a kid, every Saturday in the late 90s/early 2000s our family would go to the mall on Saturdays to shop and look around and eat at Cinnabun. God, I miss Cinnabun.

[@tedhansen3846]

My wife and I drove out to Phoenix in 2002. We went to see places we frequented when we lived there in the 70'/80's. We went to the church we met at and found a vacant field. We went to Valley West Mall and found another open field. We did take a lap around Metrocenter but if and when we head that way again....😢

[@cyrusgraham9842]

whoa! that's Entrance #4 at the Metro Center Mall in Phoenix,Arizona looks the same as it did 16 years ago.

[@snowandice8804]

If you ever come through Wyoming you should video Sunrise Shopping Center in Casper. It is really neat, it was built around fifty years ago, and has really awesome brick work and murals. It is not dead but not lively either.

[@bornsonoran]

Wow! The food court has really changed. That play area is where the ice skating rink was. And opposite to the rink was the Arcade, Movie theater and Ferrell's ice cream parlour. But that was a long long time ago.

[@speeddemon0117]

I used to visit there a lot when I was stationed at Luke.