A groundbreaking ceremony for the Warren Mall took place on November 16, 1977. Construction lasted just under two years, the 275,000-square-foot mall officially opening for business on October 5, 1979. (By way of comparison, Madison's West Towne Mall sprawls over 915,307 square feet.)
The original business mix included three anchor stores -- KMart, The Bon Ton, Penney's -- and about 60-some other shops and restaurants, including Radio Shack, General Nutrition, Waldenbooks, Kay Jewelers, Kay-Bee Toys, Ponderosa, and other national and regional chains. The Bon Ton and KMart remain in business, but the rest of the mall now resembles a ghost town.
Even the main entrance, shown in this 2008 photograph, has a forlorn look to it. (All photos in this post taken by Retiring Guy,)
If you focus on the mustard-colored seating area -- always wondered why that color was chosen -- the center court area still has a bit of a welcoming look to it.
Until you take in a bigger picture.
Although it might look that way, I didn't receive special permission to visit the mall. It was open for business at the time I took these pictures in 2008.
According to an October 25, 2013, article in the Warren Times Observer, the Warren Mall now has 8 tenants. Make that 7. If you live in Warren and want to shop at Big Lots, you have to drive 20 miles north to Jamestown, New York. What a sad commentary.
Warren is actually is beautiful place, nestled in the foothills of the Allegheny Mountains, with some great examples of 19th and early 20th century architecture.
Here's a shot of Liberty Street, Warren's once bustling business district that the Mall did no favors.
This post was inspired by a sentence in a recent obituary published in the Warren Times-Observer.
Her 6 year old daughter says, her mother enjoyed playing with her and her son, Bubba and enjoyed going to the Warren Mall to go shopping. (Punctuation as is.)
Well, there is, The Bon Ton, and Kmart.
Maybe Bubba's mom is the one who wrote this fantasy.
And this column graph tells its own sad story.
Warren PA: No longer "home of 15,000 friendly people".
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