Methuen Mall
Encyclopedia
The Methuen Mall was a single-story shopping mall in Methuen, Massachusetts
. It was built in 1973 on a 60 acres (242,811.6 m²) site and initially included Jordan Marsh
and Sears
as its anchor stores, as well as some-70 other retailers. It remained in operation until 1997, and was demolished in early 1999.
, Burger King
, Andover Bank (now a TD Bank
), and an adjacent shopping plaza, which was initially anchored by a Caldor
department store and an A&P
.
and Route 495, both a short distance from the mall site. The mall's decline started in 1991 when the Mall at Rockingham Park
opened across the border in Salem, New Hampshire
, with the advantages of being a much larger mall and the lack of sales tax
in New Hampshire.
and anthill-themed play areas were placed at either end of the mall, annual petting zoos were held inside (near Sears), and life-sized Christmas dioramas, complete with spun-fiberglass snow and plastic reindeer added a warm touch to any holiday season.
In front of Howlands, a strikingly large, multi-tiered fountain, surrounded by a lounge area reminiscent of an amphitheater, provided a non-commercial community space at the center of the mall. The mere existence of the fountain was a testament to a culture less sterile than is typical of today's suburban malls. The fountain was also noteworthy in that it took up a large amount of space for something that was entirely aesthetic, communal, and non-commercial.
It was possible, at the fountain's heydey, to see children wading in its putrid water, picking over its greenish pennies in search of quarters to be used at the Dream Machine arcade situated at the end of the food court. By the mid-80s, the fountain, along with Howlands, had disappeared, and was replaced by more commercial spaces such as a Sunglass Hut and various wheeled kiosks.
, has always been at a disadvantage due to New Hampshire's lack of a sales tax, compared to Massachusetts's 5.0% (now 6.25%) sales tax
. However, for many years, the Methuen Mall competed very well with its cross-border counterpart, the Rockingham Mall, which was much smaller and did not contain the high profile anchors that the Methuen Mall did. However, that changed in 1991 when the Mall at Rockingham Park
opened across the street from the Rockingham Mall, which closed and was rebuilt into a "big box" center shortly after. The new mall was, and still is, the largest mall in New Hampshire. Although the prices were higher than those of the Methuen Mall, the allure of the big, two-storied mall with no sales tax attracted many previous customers of the Methuen Mall, especially during the Christmas shopping season, when the differences in crowds were very apparent. Sears would open a store in the new mall, but kept the Methuen store opened for the rest of its lease term. Other stores like Jordan Marsh
and Filene's Basement
would actually move to the new mall.
moved into the space formerly occupied by Sears and became the mall's newest anchor store. These last years of the mall's existence brought in a lot of unique stores, who perhaps would not have had a chance to thrive in the mall's earlier, more successful days. Stores such as "Sheds Unlimited" heralded the mall's demise through their bizarre presence in a once thriving center for fashionable retail stores. Soon after that, they left the mall, leaving a huge empty space, both in the mall, and in the hopes of survival. In 1997, the mall decided to turn the empty space into a civic and convention center named the Valley Expo Center. The center's first event was an all-night rave
. This gave the mall its nickname "Crystal Methuen Mall". Apparently, most adult Methuenites were unaware of what a rave actually was and when the news reports surfaced after the event, the community was outraged. The center held a couple other events, mostly trade shows, and soon fizzled out. The only business left at the mall at this time was an Applebee's
with an exterior entrance. The owners at this time were looking to completely demolish the building and build something new. Applebee's, however, did not want to leave. Their lease wasn't up, and being the only sit-down restaurant in the area, they were actually making money. Without any other options, the mall owners demolished the rest of the mall, leaving just the space occupied by Applebee's. After a long court battle http://www.firstam.com/landsakes/html/email/030900elimsub.html, Applebee's finally did leave. Applebee's initially declined to open in one of the new freestanding restaurants on the site, but eventually built a new freestanding restaurant about a block away in 2005 which abruptly closed in September 2010.
after the loop made by the highways that surround it. The new, non-enclosed shopping center has no real anchor stores, but is highlighted by a Stop & Shop
, Home Depot, Borders
, AMC Theatres
, and Marshall's, as well as about two dozen smaller businesses, including the Gap
, Pearle Vision, Friendly's
and Radio shack
, stores that were in the original Methuen mall.
Methuen, Massachusetts
Methuen is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 43,789 at the 2000 census.-History:Methuen was first settled in 1642 and was officially incorporated in 1726; it is named for the British diplomat Sir Paul Methuen. Methuen was originally part of Haverhill,...
. It was built in 1973 on a 60 acres (242,811.6 m²) site and initially included Jordan Marsh
Jordan Marsh
Jordan Marsh & Company was a department store in Boston, Massachusetts, which grew to be a major regional chain in the New England area of the United States. In 1996, the last of the Jordan Marsh stores were converted to Macy's. The store was formerly part of Allied Stores and then Federated...
and Sears
Sears, Roebuck and Company
Sears, officially named Sears, Roebuck and Co., is an American chain of department stores which was founded by Richard Warren Sears and Alvah Curtis Roebuck in the late 19th century...
as its anchor stores, as well as some-70 other retailers. It remained in operation until 1997, and was demolished in early 1999.
History
The Methuen Mall opened slowly, a few stores at a time, with Sears being the first, opening on Tuesday, September 4, 1973. When the mall was built, the area was mostly a farming community (directly across Pleasant Valley Street was Mann's Orchards, which still stands today). The success of the mall began to turn the Pleasant Valley section of Methuen into a much more commercialized area. In the years after the opening, the area also became home to a McDonald'sMcDonald's
McDonald's Corporation is the world's largest chain of hamburger fast food restaurants, serving around 64 million customers daily in 119 countries. Headquartered in the United States, the company began in 1940 as a barbecue restaurant operated by the eponymous Richard and Maurice McDonald; in 1948...
, Burger King
Burger King
Burger King, often abbreviated as BK, is a global chain of hamburger fast food restaurants headquartered in unincorporated Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. The company began in 1953 as Insta-Burger King, a Jacksonville, Florida-based restaurant chain...
, Andover Bank (now a TD Bank
TD Bank
TD Bank may refer to:*Toronto-Dominion BankOr its retail banking divisions:*TD Canada Trust *TD Bank, N.A. Or a former retail-banking division:*TD Banknorth...
), and an adjacent shopping plaza, which was initially anchored by a Caldor
Caldor
Caldor was a chain of American discount department stores headquartered in Norwalk, Connecticut, operating throughout the northeastern United States. At one time, the company was a subsidiary of May Department Stores; Caldor was among the country's largest discount retailers.Despite being a popular...
department store and an A&P
The Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company
The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company, better known as A&P, is a supermarket and liquor store chain in the United States. Its supermarkets, which are under six different banners, are found in Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania. A&P's liquor stores, known as...
.
Location
The mall stood close to three major highways: Route 213, now also known as the Loop Connector, ran directly behind the mall and connected the major interstates of Route 93Interstate 93
Interstate 93 is an Interstate Highway in the New England section of the United States. Its southern terminus is in Canton, Massachusetts, in the Boston metropolitan area, at Interstate 95; its northern terminus is near St. Johnsbury, Vermont, at Interstate 91...
and Route 495, both a short distance from the mall site. The mall's decline started in 1991 when the Mall at Rockingham Park
Mall at Rockingham Park
The Mall at Rockingham Park is located in Salem, New Hampshire. It is the largest shopping mall in New Hampshire, as well as northern New England, with of floor space. The mall is adjacent to the Rockingham Park race track in Salem, and was the state's third shopping mall to be built...
opened across the border in Salem, New Hampshire
Salem, New Hampshire
Salem is a town in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 28,776 at the 2010 census. Salem is a marketing and distributing center north of Boston, with a major amusement attraction, Canobie Lake Park, and a large shopping mall, the Mall at Rockingham Park.- History :The...
, with the advantages of being a much larger mall and the lack of sales tax
Sales tax
A sales tax is a tax, usually paid by the consumer at the point of purchase, itemized separately from the base price, for certain goods and services. The tax amount is usually calculated by applying a percentage rate to the taxable price of a sale....
in New Hampshire.
Stores and culture
The Methuen Mall was once a center of late-seventies to early-eighties suburban "headbanger" culture. The mall differed greatly from today's "McMalls" in that creative touches maintained an element of raw adventure: aardvarkAardvark
The aardvark is a medium-sized, burrowing, nocturnal mammal native to Africa...
and anthill-themed play areas were placed at either end of the mall, annual petting zoos were held inside (near Sears), and life-sized Christmas dioramas, complete with spun-fiberglass snow and plastic reindeer added a warm touch to any holiday season.
In front of Howlands, a strikingly large, multi-tiered fountain, surrounded by a lounge area reminiscent of an amphitheater, provided a non-commercial community space at the center of the mall. The mere existence of the fountain was a testament to a culture less sterile than is typical of today's suburban malls. The fountain was also noteworthy in that it took up a large amount of space for something that was entirely aesthetic, communal, and non-commercial.
It was possible, at the fountain's heydey, to see children wading in its putrid water, picking over its greenish pennies in search of quarters to be used at the Dream Machine arcade situated at the end of the food court. By the mid-80s, the fountain, along with Howlands, had disappeared, and was replaced by more commercial spaces such as a Sunglass Hut and various wheeled kiosks.
First signs of competition
Methuen, being a border city of New HampshireNew Hampshire
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...
, has always been at a disadvantage due to New Hampshire's lack of a sales tax, compared to Massachusetts's 5.0% (now 6.25%) sales tax
Sales tax
A sales tax is a tax, usually paid by the consumer at the point of purchase, itemized separately from the base price, for certain goods and services. The tax amount is usually calculated by applying a percentage rate to the taxable price of a sale....
. However, for many years, the Methuen Mall competed very well with its cross-border counterpart, the Rockingham Mall, which was much smaller and did not contain the high profile anchors that the Methuen Mall did. However, that changed in 1991 when the Mall at Rockingham Park
Mall at Rockingham Park
The Mall at Rockingham Park is located in Salem, New Hampshire. It is the largest shopping mall in New Hampshire, as well as northern New England, with of floor space. The mall is adjacent to the Rockingham Park race track in Salem, and was the state's third shopping mall to be built...
opened across the street from the Rockingham Mall, which closed and was rebuilt into a "big box" center shortly after. The new mall was, and still is, the largest mall in New Hampshire. Although the prices were higher than those of the Methuen Mall, the allure of the big, two-storied mall with no sales tax attracted many previous customers of the Methuen Mall, especially during the Christmas shopping season, when the differences in crowds were very apparent. Sears would open a store in the new mall, but kept the Methuen store opened for the rest of its lease term. Other stores like Jordan Marsh
Jordan Marsh
Jordan Marsh & Company was a department store in Boston, Massachusetts, which grew to be a major regional chain in the New England area of the United States. In 1996, the last of the Jordan Marsh stores were converted to Macy's. The store was formerly part of Allied Stores and then Federated...
and Filene's Basement
Filene's Basement
Filene's Basement, also called The Basement, is a Massachusetts-based chain of department stores which was owned by Retail Ventures, Inc. until April 2009 when it was sold to Syms....
would actually move to the new mall.
Attempt to survive
Around 1993, the now defunct Ann & HopeAnn & Hope Department Stores
Ann & Hope is a Rhode Island-based retailer that pioneered practices now common in modern big box stores. Named after the ship Ann and Hope, which was lost at sea off Block Island, Rhode Island in 1806, the store operated from 1953 to 2001 in the Northeastern United States...
moved into the space formerly occupied by Sears and became the mall's newest anchor store. These last years of the mall's existence brought in a lot of unique stores, who perhaps would not have had a chance to thrive in the mall's earlier, more successful days. Stores such as "Sheds Unlimited" heralded the mall's demise through their bizarre presence in a once thriving center for fashionable retail stores. Soon after that, they left the mall, leaving a huge empty space, both in the mall, and in the hopes of survival. In 1997, the mall decided to turn the empty space into a civic and convention center named the Valley Expo Center. The center's first event was an all-night rave
Rave
Rave, rave dance, and rave party are parties that originated mostly from acid house parties, which featured fast-paced electronic music and light shows. At these parties people dance and socialize to dance music played by disc jockeys and occasionally live performers...
. This gave the mall its nickname "Crystal Methuen Mall". Apparently, most adult Methuenites were unaware of what a rave actually was and when the news reports surfaced after the event, the community was outraged. The center held a couple other events, mostly trade shows, and soon fizzled out. The only business left at the mall at this time was an Applebee's
Applebee's
Applebee’s International, Inc., is an American company which develops, franchises, and operates the Applebee's Neighborhood Grill and Bar restaurant chain. As of September 2011, there were 2,010 restaurants operating system-wide in the United States, one U.S. territory and 14 other countries...
with an exterior entrance. The owners at this time were looking to completely demolish the building and build something new. Applebee's, however, did not want to leave. Their lease wasn't up, and being the only sit-down restaurant in the area, they were actually making money. Without any other options, the mall owners demolished the rest of the mall, leaving just the space occupied by Applebee's. After a long court battle http://www.firstam.com/landsakes/html/email/030900elimsub.html, Applebee's finally did leave. Applebee's initially declined to open in one of the new freestanding restaurants on the site, but eventually built a new freestanding restaurant about a block away in 2005 which abruptly closed in September 2010.
Demolition
When the Methuen Mall finally closed, the city of Methuen took a huge financial hit, seeing property tax revenue fall from US$60 million annually to US$18 million annually for the site alone. In 1999, the land was redeveloped by The Wilder Companies into the first of their branded shopping centers named The LoopThe Loop (Methuen, MA)
The Loop is a strip mall in Methuen, Massachusetts that was built on the former site of the Methuen Mall. It contains a Loews Cineplex owned and operated by AMC Theaters.-History:...
after the loop made by the highways that surround it. The new, non-enclosed shopping center has no real anchor stores, but is highlighted by a Stop & Shop
Stop & Shop
The Stop & Shop Supermarket Company is a chain of supermarkets located mostly in the northeastern United States. Its main rivals are Shaw's Star Market and Hannaford in New England, while ShopRite and the A&P family of supermarkets are its main competition in New York and New Jersey.- History :Stop...
, Home Depot, Borders
Borders Group
Borders Group, Inc. was an international book and music retailer based in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The company employed approximately 19,500 throughout the U.S., primarily in its Borders and Waldenbooks stores....
, AMC Theatres
AMC Theatres
AMC Theatres , officially known as AMC Entertainment, Inc., is the second largest movie theater chain in North America with 5,325 screens, second only to Regal Entertainment Group, and one of the United States's four national cinema chains AMC Theatres (American Multi-Cinema), officially known as...
, and Marshall's, as well as about two dozen smaller businesses, including the Gap
Gap (clothing retailer)
The Gap, Inc. is an American clothing and accessories retailer based in San Francisco, California, and founded in 1969 by Donald G. Fisher and Doris F. Fisher. The company has five primary brands: the namesake Gap banner, Banana Republic, Old Navy, Piperlime and Athleta. As of September 2008,...
, Pearle Vision, Friendly's
Friendly's
Friendly Ice Cream Corporation is the owner and operator of the Friendly's restaurant chain on the United States' East Coast. Founded in 1935 in Springfield, Massachusetts by brothers Curtis Blake and S. Prestley Blake, 20, their first shop served double-dip cones for 5 cents...
and Radio shack
Radio shack
Radio shack is a slang term for a room or structure for housing radio equipment.-History:In the early days of radio, equipment was experimental and home-built. The first radio transmitters used a noisy spark to generate radio waves and were often housed in a garage or shed. When radio was first...
, stores that were in the original Methuen mall.