Huge News! Town Center purchased with redevelopment plan!

[Chriscross309]

Originally Posted by JohnNada

There is no reason to come to Charleston for shopping or dining anymore. The Town Center was successful when it was a place that had things other places did not have. Now everywhere else has the same or better retail, similar dining options and the internet to get what they need.


When the short-sighted and incompetent folks running the town decided to not bring in Dillard's they signed the death warrant for the CTC. Danny Jones...



Beckley, Huntington and Parkersburg all are more vibrant places than Charleston and seem to have a more positive outlook for the future too. They feel like they are in another state compared to Charleston. Tragic.


After being gone from Charleston for about a year I can say I don't miss the Charleston that exists today but I sure do miss the Charleston of the 1980's.

It is sad that the city cannot attract even the simplest of businesses to the region. There is no positive energy coming from the private sector, and its very frustrating. Nobody wants to invest in this place. It is nice seeing some renovations taking place downtown like the Civic Center, Library, B&B Loans Building, Atlas Build, Once Commerce Building, etc... But there's certainly not enough going on for the capital city of the state!

[JohnNada]

The only thing that could save Charleston in the near term is a huge catalyst for growth.


Not happening. I just don't see anyone bringing in 3 or 4 thousand good paying jobs directly in and around the town.


So what's there left to work with?


Charleston has to take what it has and grow it. Invest in it and develop it.


The two things that come to mind are Mt Stage and UC.


UC needs to be grown like crazy. Charleston needs to work with them to expand. Bring in young people. Bring in energy. It can be done but...


The other thing is Mt Stage. At one time Mt Stage brought in great talent and looked like it was going to explode into a major player in live music.


Charleston could and should invest big time in making Mt Stage the Grand Ole Opry version of rock/folk music/Americana. etc.


Bring in artists that people would fly in here to see. Develop tourism, food, and lodging around it.


It's going to take some outside the box stuff and some vision that the current players aren't capable of seeing.

[JohnNada]

I was back in Charleston yesterday for a dinner at the Chop House. It's been a good while since I've been to the mall.


First, I've got to say that the printed images that they've put all over the walls are amazing. They capture beautiful scenes of the city from several time periods. It's almost like a museum. It's worth a trip. Kudos to whoever came up with the idea.


The mall itself is depressing as to be expected. As a kid that roamed the mall in the 80' and 90's and beyond it is painful to be in that place and see what it is now and recall the days when it was packed with people and stores.



Walking past what used to be Bennigan's I thought to myself how it used to be on a Saturday evening that place would be packed with a line out the door and people sitting out on the patio area in the mall eating.



If you like to be haunted and you remember what going to that mall was like then go there now and you will see ghosts in your memories. And honestly there's probably not one store in that mall that I would really even go there to shop in.



But the murals are very cool and I highly recommend checking them out.

[Chriscross309]

Originally Posted by JohnNada

I was back in Charleston yesterday for a dinner at the Chop House. It's been a good while since I've been to the mall.


First, I've got to say that the printed images that they've put all over the walls are amazing. They capture beautiful scenes of the city from several time periods. It's almost like a museum. It's worth a trip. Kudos to whoever came up with the idea.


The mall itself is depressing as to be expected. As a kid that roamed the mall in the 80' and 90's and beyond it is painful to be in that place and see what it is now and recall the days when it was packed with people and stores.



Walking past what used to be Bennigan's I thought to myself how it used to be on a Saturday evening that place would be packed with a line out the door and people sitting out on the patio area in the mall eating.



If you like to be haunted and you remember what going to that mall was like then go there now and you will see ghosts in your memories. And honestly there's probably not one store in that mall that I would really even go there to shop in.



But the murals are very cool and I highly recommend checking them out.

Thanks for sharing. I haven't gotten a chance to go inside the CTC, since I moved last summer. I heard about the pictures on the walls, and I agree that it's much better than those white plywood eyesores.

Everytime I have been in there over the last 8 or so years, I get similar emotions about how far the mall has fallen from its past glory days! One of the things that really hits home is remembering how full the foot court used to be, with the arcade in the corner. I also miss the huge FYE, and being able to find just about any kind of movie or CD I wanted.