Found a 1990s directory map inside a dead mall in Ohio

I was poking around the old Rolling Acres Mall in Akron last weekend and found a full directory map from 1992 still hanging near the food court. What blew me away was that it listed 87 stores but according to the sign only 12 were vacant back then. Does anyone else find it wild how fast these places just emptied out once the anchor stores left?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_river10d ago

You know, it reminds me of how town squares emptied out when the Walmart opened thirty minutes away. Same pattern plays out everywhere, just takes different forms. Once the big traffic drivers leave, the smaller shops can't survive because nobody walks past their door anymore.

troy_gibson4310d ago

I heard some urban planner on a podcast talk about this same thing... they called it the "anchor tenant effect." @the_river, it's crazy how one big store leaving can just collapse a whole block like dominoes. Hard to rebuild that foot traffic once it's gone.