Dead Metro Detroit Malls *Universal, Livonia and Summit Place Mall pictures included*

[ASR89]

A while ago, there was a thread about Livonia Mall. It had maybe 70+ posts, but towards the end, it turned into city-suburbs debate. I was going to post some pictures that someone requested, but never got to it. I passed by the former Livonia Mall yesterday and it made me think about the subject of "dead" or former Metro Detroit malls. So I uploaded and compiled a lot of pictures that I took. Two of the malls don't exist anymore.

The 200+ pictures of Livonia Mall, Universal Mall and Summit Place Mall can be seen at:

http://s114.photobucket.com/albums/n...bad89/?start=0

UM = Universal Mall
LM = Livonia Mall
SPM = Summit Place Mall

First, there is the Universal Mall in Warren, on the first page. It closed last summer. I went with someone else and checked it out a couple days before it closed. Most stores were closed by then except for Burlington Coat Factory, a few clothing stores and an arcade.

Then from page 1 until 4 is Livonia Mall. The first of three Livonian malls was closed a few years ago, Wonderland Mall. That has since been redeveloped. They plan to do the same here. Only Sears and the cool mall sign were left on that site. When I passed by yesterday, everything else was completely leveled with only dirt left. I went maybe two days before it closed last summer. A couple months prior, the mall was still on life support at maybe 15% occupancy. It was dark and there was a buzzing sound as I passed through the halls.

From the end of page 4 until 6 is Summit Place Mall in Waterford on the border of Pontiac. Supposedly, it was originally very small but grew to 1.4 million square feet in the early 90s, making it the largest Michigan Mall for a while. I know Twelve Oaks is over 1.5 million sq ft now. Unlike the others, Summit Place is still open, but it was really vacant and dark. It's amazing to think that at one time, it was completely full. I read that as of April, it is now 96% vacant.

Discussion is welcome.

[artds]

These malls served their purpose and they all thrived in their day; but times change, and like everything else, retail must change with the times. New concepts like mixed-use developments are now all the rage.

[R8RBOB]

Growing up back in the day, I remember going to malls like Tel-Twelve, Wonderland, Livonia and Northland. Tel-Twelve isn't really a mall anymore. Wonderland and Livonia no longer exist and Northland is on last rites. Funny how these gathering places turned into ghost towns.

[DetroitDad]

Great pictures!

Change is always tough, but in this case I think it will prove to be a good thing.

I know Wonderland was once an open air mall. Does anyone know what was on these sites before they were malls?

[ASR89]

DetroitDad - I imagine a lot of malls were fields or farm land. It seems like early malls formed when people moved out of the city into the suburbs. According to the following article, Wonderland was formerly an aiport.

http://www.scribd.com/doc/7688544/Na...vonia-Michigan

[LodgeDodger]

Great pictures!

Change is always tough, but in this case I think it will prove to be a good thing.

I know Wonderland was once an open air mall. Does anyone know what was on these sites before they were malls?

And how, will this prove to be a good thing? Summit Place Mall is empty except for the anchors. The only reason the anchors are still open is due to the stores having a direct entrance from outside. The largest retailer around Summit, at this time, is a St. Vincent DePaul store. There is a Target store, but I'm quite sure it won't be in operation long--they currently lose $66K/week to shoplifting.

Tell me how this has the potential to be a good thing, DetroitDad.

[rjk]

I'm surprised that Universal lasted as long as it did.
The last time I was there [[early 2000's) it wasn't much more than a flea market.

[Roq]

New concepts like mixed-use developments are now all the rage.

That is what is happening to Universal. I drove by the other day and the Target looks about ready to open [[if it hasn't already) and the Del-Taco facing Dequindre looks open. I haven't heard what the other stores will be yet.

[Roq]

Speaking of mall/retail development, does anyone know what is going in at the corner of 8 & Dequindre? I was by there tonight and that whole corner has been demolished. I saw a sign was there but didn't catch what it said.

[softailrider]

Speaking of mall/retail development, does anyone know what is going in at the corner of 8 & Dequindre? I was by there tonight and that whole corner has been demolished. I saw a sign was there but didn't catch what it said.

There was some kind of warehouse club there [[not a Cosco or Sam's) about a decade ago. It's been totally vacent for that long. Not sure what's going in. Kind of a dead area in through there.

[rjk]

Someone told me that a discount grocery store is part of that development.
I believe this person said it's suppose to be a Save-A-Lot.

[Det_ard]

And how, will this prove to be a good thing? Summit Place Mall is empty except for the anchors. The only reason the anchors are still open is due to the stores having a direct entrance from outside. The largest retailer around Summit, at this time, is a St. Vincent DePaul store. There is a Target store, but I'm quite sure it won't be in operation long--they currently lose $66K/week to shoplifting.

Tell me how this has the potential to be a good thing, DetroitDad.

To the west and south of the mall retail is pretty dead, but to the east [[across Telegraph) there seems to be a lot still. At one point I heard about a proposal for a minor league baseball stadium for the soon-to-be-dead Summit Place Mall site. That'd be cool.

That Target shoplifting figure is insane. $3 million a year? Average sales per store is about $38 million, that particular Target is probably $30 million or less so shrink is 10% of revenue [[assuming the $66k figure is at retail)?? Like I said, insane, if true. Average is probably 2% - 3%. That's enough shrink to put the store out of business if it were a stand-alone.

[LodgeDodger]

The Oakland Pointe shopping area isn't in much better condition. Other than a couple of restaurants, a women's store, some fast-food restaurants, and a huge dollar store, there really isn't much over there to write home about.

The area is dying. I don't understand how it can be 'a good thing'.

As far as the Cruisers team, I've not heard much about them of late.

[DetroitDad]

These malls served their purpose and they all thrived in their day; but times change, and like everything else, retail must change with the times. New concepts like mixed-use developments are now all the rage.

Lodgedodger, what happened to you? You switched from being likable and giving out hugs, to giving out jeers and calling people out. Where did the old Lodgedodger go?

[Meddle]

Northland was pretty scary when I left the area. I spent a lot of time in Tel-Twelve, Livonia, Westland, Wonderland and Fairlane. I can't imagine any of them vacant & demolished.

What's the other one out at 275 and 6 or 7 mile in Livonia? Sort of upscale.

I was at Twelve Oaks a few times and Briarwood rarely.

[East Detroit]

Cruised by the empty Metro Detroit mall in my Honda.

Said to myself, "Gosh, I just don't understand."

[alsodave]

Cruised by the empty Metro Detroit mall in my Honda.

Said to myself, "Gosh, I just don't understand."

You should have went the Wal-Mart instead--I'm sure the parking lot was full, though...

[alsodave]

Thanks for the pics, Ljbad89. There was nothing like the ambience of the Universal Mall.

[LodgeDodger]

Lodgedodger, what happened to you? You switched from being likable and giving out hugs, to giving out jeers and calling people out. Where did the old Lodgedodger go?

Still that lovable old gal. In the future, you might wish to think twice before calling me out concerning my knowledge of the city.

For the record, I've never handed out a "jeer" on this forum.

[daddeeo]

Laurel Park is still buzzing on 6 mile in Livonia.

[Johnlodge]

And how, will this prove to be a good thing? Summit Place Mall is empty except for the anchors. The only reason the anchors are still open is due to the stores having a direct entrance from outside. The largest retailer around Summit, at this time, is a St. Vincent DePaul store. There is a Target store, but I'm quite sure it won't be in operation long--they currently lose $66K/week to shoplifting.

Tell me how this has the potential to be a good thing, DetroitDad.

Sean thinks that if the suburbs die, everybody will move back to the city and his decision to move there will be vindicated. In fact, if that happens then the region as a whole will just die, and the City of Detroit will be even more dead than it is without any surrounding economic activity to share at least some symbiotic benefit with.

And no, Lodgedodger hasn't changed at all from what I've seen. Must be something else.

[Detroit500]

Yes, these malls are dying, but isn't the mall concept kind of dying? Who has the need for the "mall" in the face of megastores such as Cosco, Wal-Mart, Meijer, not to mention internet retail, where you have a huge amount of options and usually costs are lower. Also, look at how stores like J.C. Penney and Kohls are expanding, not through building inside of malls, but inside of strip-malls, or just being singular buildings.

At the same time, the malls are becoming more of a niche for upscale shopping experiences, look at the three successful malls in this region -- Great Lakes Crossing [[granted an outlet mall), Somerset Collection, and Twelve Oaks. These three offer more of the "premium" stores such as Saks, Neimans, Nordstrom, and are also are near [[or have incorporated) other entertainment opportunities than just shopping such as movies, nice restaurants, etc.

[jackie5275]

When I was a kid during the heyday of the Pontiac Mall [[which I still call it today)which became SPM, it was always crowded. My parents took us there at least once a week either to shop or to pay store credit card bills in person. We used to go to the movies there, and before the movie theatre was built, Waterford Twp used to put on a fireworks show for the 4th of July there in the parking lot. As a teenager, I was there almost everyday. At Christmas, it was always packed. Back then, I never could've predicted that place would become so vacant. My mom still lives out that way & shops at the Macy's there. I went to shop there with her once last year. We walked from Macy's to JCP through the empty mall. I was astounded at the complete emptiness of it. There was NOTHING. Looking back, I think the things that have done in SPM were the opening of 12 Oaks and the expansion of the mall. The expansion was making it like a 12 Oaks Jr. However, I think more folks liked the ambience of 12 Oaks and continued to trek out to Novi for it. I think Great Lakes Crossing was probably the last nail in the coffin, but SPM was in ICU long before GLC was built.

[LodgeDodger]

Sean thinks that if the suburbs die, everybody will move back to the city and his decision to move there will be vindicated. In fact, if that happens then the region as a whole will just die, and the City of Detroit will be even more dead than it is without any surrounding economic activity to share at least some symbiotic benefit with.

And no, Lodgedodger hasn't changed at all from what I've seen. Must be something else.

Thank you, John. *big hug*

[LodgeDodger]

Yes, these malls are dying, but isn't the mall concept kind of dying? Who has the need for the "mall" in the face of megastores such as Cosco, Wal-Mart, Meijer, not to mention internet retail, where you have a huge amount of options and usually costs are lower. Also, look at how stores like J.C. Penney and Kohls are expanding, not through building inside of malls, but inside of strip-malls, or just being singular buildings.

At the same time, the malls are becoming more of a niche for upscale shopping experiences, look at the three successful malls in this region -- Great Lakes Crossing [[granted an outlet mall), Somerset Collection, and Twelve Oaks. These three offer more of the "premium" stores such as Saks, Neimans, Nordstrom, and are also are near [[or have incorporated) other entertainment opportunities than just shopping such as movies, nice restaurants, etc.

Detroit, while I would agree Somerset and Twelve Oaks are nicer malls, GLC isn't. To call it upscale would never have entered my mind.

I had a sneaking suspicion I was no longer the target demographic, but stores like Costco and Sam's Club are not my style. I don't need a 100 case of granola bars at a time. ;-)