I got a great letter about a month ago from former YDR freelance writer Greg Gross.
Greg is about my age – you might remember him from our joint candy-store memories from last June – and he’s been following along with our looks at what’s been where on Route 30 and elsewhere in York County.
He writes, “I’ve really been enjoying your quest to put into writing where various points of interest were on Route 30. It’s definitely changed a lot in just half of my lifetime. I recall going to a cinema at the North Mall?? — think that’s right. Where Burlington is now? — that had a staircase in the mall that went nowhere. It was fun, as a kid, to climb those stairs for some reason.”
I think that was actually called the York Mall – the North Mall was where Manchester Crossroads is now, home of L.A. Fitness, Old Navy and A.C. Moore, among others.
But Greg continues with another question, a good one! He writes, “Anyhow, I’m kinda curious why those old indoor malls gave way to the strip malls that are there now. All I can think of is that the upkeep of the corridors became too expensive. It seems more and more outdoor malls are cropping up here – like York Town Center in Springettsbury and York Crossing and the new Delco in West Manchester. But an indoor mall seems more convenient when it comes to one-stop shopping. I’ve noticed most people at York Town and Delco hop in their cars and drive a few hundred yards to the next store they visit rather than simply walking. Only in York County, I suppose.”
He’s right – this is definitely so much more common. I wonder if it’s a total convenience thing – in other words, if you just want to go to one particular store, are you somehow inconvenienced if it’s in a mall?
Or maybe we can blame stores like Walmart (which built its first Pennsylvania store, coincidentally, at the York Mall!) – if you can get a whole mall’s worth of stuff inside one store, who needs a mall?
I don’t know, but I’d love to hear your thoughts!
My name is Joan and I'm a lifelong Yorker. Throughout high school and college, I swore I was getting out of here as soon as possible. Now, a few years later, I can't think of anywhere I'd rather be. I love my town. And, as a local editor, I hear every day how much you love your towns, too. So please, connect with me and let's share what makes life in York County great. I'm here to help you enjoy this place as much as I do!
Strip malls are more convenient when time is of the essence. With today’s lifestyle not many people have time to stroll through a mall to get to a store that doesn’t have an outside entrance. There are plenty of other places they can go to get what they need in less time.
I worked at two stores in malls one being the Bon Ton at the old York Mall. Malls are expensive to build, maintain and retain shops due to raising rents. Also except for the bigger stores with outside entrances, smaller stores have no real signage to attract shoppers or an outside entrance for them to enter the store. It’s funny, when they built the York Mall the former York County Shopping Center lost it’s “strip shop” appeal. Now it’s a thriving place again. Malls and strip shopping can combine into one. Check out the “additions” to Park City in Lancaster. The mall in Hunt Valley Maryland was dead until they tore it down and built the strip concept. I for one love to go to the mall in Towson Maryland for the wide variety of stores but parking can be a challenge.
Yo Greggie! My Mom was your Sunday School teacher.
J. M. Fields Department Store was in the North York Mall long before L A Fitness and Old Navy, etc. It was one of York’s first discount department stores in the City.
Of course, Robert Hall was in West York. They advertised heavily at Easter time.
All of the above are correct. Before I left northern VA to move back to PA ten years ago, some of the malls had already been converted. The reason given then was because shoppers no longer wanted to have to walk long distances and fight for parking in order to shop at just one or two stores. One other reason that few people will discuss is the malls became hangouts for teen groups and serious shoppers got tired of large groups of teenagers who sometimes were disruptive. They became discipline problems for mall security and management and were driving customers away. Personally, I like the change. Walking in malls wears me out.
http://www.deadmalls.com/
I agree with Jo’s comment about the walking distance issue. As someone with health issues, the thought of parking at a Mall and then having to walk a long distance to get to the store I want is prohibitive. Plus, depending on what is purchased, you have to carry all those items throughout the Mall and to your car (no shopping carts in Malls!) I also agree with the teen hangout problem. I stopped going to our Mall’s Food Court after it became a hangout for teens. It’s not that they were all disruptive kids, but the large amounts of them made it difficult to walk, unless you wanted to literally “push” them aside to make your way!
One thought from the other side, though: you can’t beat the feeling of Christmas that you get in a Mall when it is beautifully decorated & they play carols throughout the entire Mall. It’s warm inside, people are in a better mood, and it just seems so festive — at least to me!
I would like to share my memories of the Delco Plaza, which was an indoor shopping center. The major anchors, K-Mart and Hills (later Ames), were located at opposite ends of the shopping center. In between was a 5-screen UA Cinemas and several small shops, some of which were accessible from both inside and outside. There was Pet World, Comix Connection, Megatronix (video games), Bookland, D.E. Jones, and a post office branch. At the center entrance was an arcade, a pizza place, and a Chinese restaurant. Other tenants include an eye doctor, a dentist, Oletowne Jewelers, Kempo Karate, and a PennDOT driver’s license center. I remember there being an indoor mini-golf for a brief time in the early 1990′s. The shopping center was demolished in 2005 and has since been redeveloped. Other nearby businesses that were also demolished include Tractor Supply (former Pathmark store), Ollie’s, and Roll ‘R Way.
One of my earliest memories of shopping malls is of the North Mall and the escalator. It was my first experience riding one and I thought it was the coolest thing ever. I would get so excited when it was time to visit the S&H Green stamp store because it ment a ride on the escalator and an orange juilius afterwards.
Speaking of the North Mall, does anyone remember the really long ramp at the one end near I think GC Murphy’s that would take you from the top floor to the bottom? I remember running around and around and when you almost got to the bottom, there were about 10 steps? It was all carpeted and as a small child it was quite fun. Good Memories!