Most and Least favorite mall (Smyrna, Alpharetta: purchase, closing, shopping mall)

[midtown mile girl]

For the past few years, management at Lenox and Phipps have let "pop up" stores selling jewelry and such open up to have rent coming in which does make the mix of stores seem a little off. My biggest gripe are the kiosks with overly aggressive salespeople who seem to chase you to give out samples.
But with the economy coming back, some of those stores will go away and others will come in.
I don't know if anyone noticed, but Telsa has opened a showroom next to Neiman Marcus.
Everyone needs to remember that places like Lenox, Phipps, Buckhead Atlanta gets out of town visitors, so management is not thinking just about locals when it comes to tenant mix.

[-thomass]

i like that gtcorndog voted for south lake and south dekalb

[Born 2 Roll]

Originally Posted by dblackga

MARTA (the train) doesn't serve Cumberland Mall, duh. Cumberland Mall started declining as Perimeter started rising, and once the North Georgia Premium Outlets opened, Cumberland really started a nose dive. Cumberland started losing major tenants, and the tenants that remained tended to be third-tier retail, which scared away other major tenants. Then the mall got tired-looking, and there wasn't enough money to "renovate" it significantly.

These are some good points.

Another factor that contributed directly to the decline of Cumberland Mall was the opening of Town Center Mall about 11 miles further out I-75 in about 1986 if I remember the year correctly.

The rise of big box retailers (most notably Walmart and the proliferation of Walmart Supercenters throughout Northwest Metro Atlanta and the rest of the region) has also contributed directly to the decline of aging regional malls like Cumberland.

The rise of other retail centers and districts throughout Northwest and West Metro Atlanta (like the aforementioned Town Center Mall area, the East-West Connector/Austell Road area, Hwy 278-6 through the Hiram area, Hwy 92 in Woodstock, Canton, West Cobb, East Cobb, Arbor Place Mall in Douglasville, etc) have also contributed directly to the decline of Cumberland Mall.

Also, before the announcement that the Atlanta Braves were moving to the area, another factor that had seemed to have maybe been holding back the Cumberland Mall area in recent years was the lack of direct rail transit access that seems to have enhanced the real estate development prospects of the Lenox Square and Perimeter mall areas in the early years of the 21st Century.

[aries4118]

Originally Posted by arjay57

Since when did one's 60s and 70s become "old"?

And for those who are not there yet, trust me, you will be before you know it.

I wasn't even born when Cumberland Mall opened.

[arjay57]

Originally Posted by aries4118

I wasn't even born when Cumberland Mall opened.

Gee, aries, you are, like, so young.

[Born 2 Roll]

Speaking of the decline of Cumberland Mall because of the proliferation in newer retail outlets throughout suburban Northwest Metro Atlanta....Wasn't it the opening of Cumberland Mall in the early 1970's that led to the decline (and eventual demise) of Cobb Center Mall which was the first major regional shopping mall in Cobb County that ironically was reported to have led to the decline of Downtown Marietta in the 1960's?

[aries4118]

Originally Posted by arjay57

Gee, aries, you are, like, so young.

Like totally.

[chimama1]

Originally Posted by Born 2 Roll

Speaking of the decline of Cumberland Mall because of the proliferation in newer retail outlets throughout suburban Northwest Metro Atlanta....Wasn't it the opening of Cumberland Mall in the early 1970's that led to the decline (and eventual demise) of Cobb Center Mall which was the first major regional shopping mall in Cobb County that ironically was reported to have led to the decline of Downtown Marietta in the 1960's?

Ah, yes! My mom worked at that Rich's in the early 70's, so in the 80's that was still her go-to shopping destination. In our family it was referred to as "the Small Mall." We always did our back-to-school shopping there in Oct when everything went on sale

I have the vaguest memories of the weird, dark, quiet connecting indoor/outdoor space that led to some random stores--including the only Woolworth's I believe I ever set foot in.

And was there a lunch counter or deli? I remember sitting on diner-style stools and eating delicious egg salad sandwiches...

How funny that another poster just mentioned Howard's, too. The Small Mall was where it was located before it moved to Concord Rd location. Truly a south Cobb/Smyrna institution!

[arjay57]

Originally Posted by aries4118

Like totally.

May the force be with you, young Jedi.

We oldsters are counting on you!

[staywarm2]

So what do all of you think of the newer outdoor malls, like The Forum in P'tree Corners, The Collection in South Forsyth, and the brand new Avalon in Alpharetta?

Personally, I think they are very pretty and have nice stores, but I miss the comfort of having an indoor mall to protect me from bad weather, like rain and snow and even high humidity.