“Sinking Echelon 2: Empty Spaces”



I am expecting to attend a job fair in Vineland later this week and although I have modest expectations for it being worth my time I was in need of a new shirt for a suit I was recently given. I went to Boscov’s in order to get the chore done before the Flyers game. I decided I was in the market for a few other things and figured I would venture out to the mall.

This was a good time to write a follow up to Sinking Echelon an article I wrote on the decline of the Mall from the glory days. I predicted that after Santa Clause made his rounds that it more stores were likely to close up shop for good. For awhile a bit of hope glimmered and rumors drifted around that an Ikea was going to open up in one of the vacant anchor stores, and it would be announced after New Years. It’s almost March and it would appear that this is not the case.

Well things haven’t been going all that great. The popular food court stop Popeye’s closed. It was odd since it was one of the more successful places in the dismal mall. However many rumors surfaced that it closed because it was actually a drug front. The Mattress store above the food court pulled out as did FYE. The mattress store was even reportedly offered a lower lease agreement but balked (that is a word right?) at the offer. The mall also suffered as result of two retail chains downsizing Wilson’s Leather (gone) and Remington (gone in Mid-March) who decided to just sell their products at department stores.

As I walked through the mall it seemed like a better place to take a nap than shop. The lights are soft, the music is soothing, there surroundings are familiar and it’s a quiet as library. Three stores I went into I was literally the only customer in the entire store. With exception of Boscov’s and Waldenbooks I don’t think any other store I went in broke double digits in customers. You almost feel like you are interrupting after hours inventory in some places.

Anyway from what I heard PERIT who purchased the mall has no plans to change as much as a light bulb for another year or so. They are just waiting and seeing. That makes some sense since the Mall sign hasn’t glowed at night for over 3 months. However at the same time the paid someone for their new slogan “Friendly faces and Friend Finds” or something to that nature that they plastered all over the empty mall stores. Perhaps they should have gone with friendly faces empty spaces.

I can’t imagine that the mall can go through another year of ghost town business. So I am predicting that the Mall will close in by May or at the latest August. Despite recent rumors that the owners told the remaining store owners that the Mall plans to stay. The also tried to sell store owners a bag of magic beans I imagine.