Looks like Crossroads Mall is closing for good in October. Sad News indeed

[Martin]

Through important question that needs to be asked is are the zombies still locked in the tunnels underneath the mall, and if they are what is bing done to protect the citizens that live in that area.

ha ha... nice.

[SoonerDave]

I actually went out to Crossroads today to say a bit of a "final farewell" to the place where I'd spent a good part of my teenager years, and I'm going to figure out where to post a rather sentimental reflection along with some pictures a bit later.

What I did want to offer as I went through the place - and I haven't set foot in there in years - I came away rather surprised. This was not entirely a desolate place that looks like zombies might emerge at a moment's notice. Yes, there were places and areas that gave that distant vibe, but that wasn't the vibe of the whole place. There were seniors walking their daily miles, a few families with kids riding some of the rides, and some eating lunch at one of several food places still operating. There was also a surprising (to me) number of retail establishments open for business, and to me also a clear demonstration that the owners really, really tried to make a go of the Hispanic retheming/incubator concept. I just think they exhausted or overestimated the potential of that location for the incubator concept. And, for the record, I never for a moment felt the least bit threatened or unsafe - at this point, it's so little of a target that not even an "unsavory" crowd would bother targeting the place. Oddly, the sun shone through the triangular center-court roof to give the place an interior illusion of life that didn't really exist, save for the handful of people that were there for lunch, for work, for walking, for whatever. And there was a surprising number of people there working in operating businesses that'll be gone in a month.

Now, at the risk of overstating it, I don't want to leave the impression the place was thriving, because it obviously wasn't. The place had maybe 50, perhaps 100 other people in it, employees included. Storefronts amounting to maybe 10-15% of the mall were operating and current, while the balance were abandoned - perhaps untouched in a decade. The old "Eyemasters" location on the first floor stood with old glass frame racks untouched, but with damaged roof and lighting hanging from the ceiling. The big abstract "football" sculpture from the old #1 FAN store on the 2nd floor was in its place, along with a pile of assorted debris sticking out of a Washington Redksins trashcan, all leftover from a half-completed cleanup. In an odd, almost Twilight Zone-like contrast, the "Bed, Bath, and Beyond" store was open and had quite a few customers browsing. Some stores obviously knew what was coming - some had "All Sales Final" signs on the door, or directing UPS deliveries to other locations. Others looked like they could easily have been in business yesterday, but shelves for retail merchandise were bare as if stripped by a Christmas sale on Black Friday, but closed up and gone on Saturday.

As I walked through taking pictures, a very pleasant older gentleman visited with me for a few minutes, and introduced himself as someone associated with the model railroad group that exhibits at various locations in the mall. I told him I was just taking a final walk through, talked about how sad it was that everyone knew the place would close eventually, and in the course of our visit he dropped some information on me that I had not known - and that was Hudiburg Auto Group had bought the former Macy's space on the north end of the mall, but almost immediately tried to sell it back for what they'd paid for it. The previous owners refused, and as of this day, Hudiburg uses that space as a warehouse and retail front for their parts outlet. I drove over to the north side, and the old 2nd-floor west entrance to Macy's is replaced with iron lattice gates looking directly into a massive warehouse of boxes and shelves - with the drop-ceilings of Macy's still present in places. He also told me that Buchanan's was under lease to continue using the old JCPenny space for their flea market through November, but he wasn't sure if the mall's closing would affect it. He also mentioned that all the current tenants had been advised that the last retail day for the mall was 31 October, but all tenants would have to be completely out of the building by 15 November.

Oddly, there was more activity than I expected. Soft drink vendors rolled pallets of pop to one of the several food stands still in business. The center court area had been rearranged some, with the carousel moved out to the location where the fountain used to be - and surface scars of the old fountain (along with 'wet floor' caution signs). The carousel was obviously long-since broken and out-of-commission, with extension cords and light bars tossed casually around, and detached carousel panels leaned against the center. Perhaps most telling was that what I'm reasonably sure was an auxiliary air conditioning truck was set up in front of where Farrell's Ice Cream once stood, presumably doing work of units in the building that had failed and were obviously not going to be replaced.

Yeah, its a sad thing to see Crossroads go, but obviously not the building - its just a 40-year-oldpile of bricks and concrete that finally lost its race with time and is headed for the history books. The things that we lament are the loss of the fixtures that give reality to the younger-age memories of two or three decades ago, of jobs, of dates, of Christmasses all past, now forced further only into the confines of our memories.

Farewell, Crossroads.

[SoonerDave]

Here is a link to some photos I took of Crossroads today. If you're much under, oh, 30, they'll just look like photos of a dead mall and empty spaces - which they are - but for many of us, its a reminder of a more vibrant and very different time in OKC retail, particularly for the south side. Hope those of you who recall Crossroads in its better days will enjoy these.

https://jagfootballphotos.smugmug.co...ell-Crossroads

[stile99]

Thank you for taking and sharing these.

[rezman]

Very cool SoonerDave. Thanks for that. Having grown up a "northsider", I don't have the strong ties to Crossroads Mall as you and others who lived closer, and spent a lot of time there. I got to see it several times as it was being built, and made the occasional trip down there, usually for dates, birthdays, during the holidays, or when family was in from out of town. I vividly remember when the place was bumping, and it really was a cool place.

https://www.google.com/maps/@35.3957.../data=!3m1!1e3

[traxx]

I'm the same, rezman. I grew up on the north side so Quail was my mall when I was a teen in the '80s. I have some memories of Crossroads, but not like those who grew up around there.

I honestly don't know how North Park mall keeps its doors open. How is it even still a viable mall?

[Pete]

I honestly don't know how North Park mall keeps its doors open. How is it even still a viable mall?

They are actually decently full. They have a bunch of businesses that don't rely on the mall traffic and have their own exposure, like BC Clark (who just built out a very expensive new space) and the restaurants.

It helps they don't have any huge old department stores to fill and that it's relatively small.

And of course, it's a fantastic location.

[Bunty]

They are actually decently full. They have a bunch of businesses that don't rely on the mall traffic and have their own exposure, like BC Clark (who just built out a very expensive new space) and the restaurants.

It helps they don't have any huge old department stores to fill and that it's relatively small.

And of course, it's a fantastic location.

Crossroads Mall should have picked a better location, like where Quail Springs Mall is or better. Maybe locating the state's first huge mall in a central part of the metro made plenty of good sense at the time while having excellent interstate access.

[StuckInTheCapitol825]

I'll bet that in the early 70s, south OKC was WAY different than it was even in the 90s when I grew up down there.
At the time of development, I could see that spot being the best one of them all for a mall.

[SoonerDave]

Crossroads Mall should have picked a better location, like where Quail Springs Mall is or better. Maybe locating the state's first huge mall in a central part of the metro made plenty of good sense at the time while having excellent interstate access.

In 1972, when construction started, Memorial Road was practically the distant boondocks. Crossroads was ideally suited to sit right at the heart of the I-35/I-240 corridor. At the time, it absolutely was an ideal location. And when the place opened, in its heyday, it was a retail spectacle like OKC had never really seen previously. Keep in mind that Penn Square was an open-air, single-story mall, and Shepherd Mall was arguably the "bigger" shopping district in the city at that time along with the Capitol Hill area. Quail came several years later, around 1980.

[Pete]

I worked in the mall around 1980 while attending OU (at Orbach's, a very nice men's store) and there was a constant stream of people from all over the state and beyond who drove in just to shop there.

It was an absolute sensation at the time and there was nothing like it apart from Dallas.

It was super easy to get to from anywhere in OK and that was a big part of the draw.

[Bunty]

Crossroads Mall was one of the first places I wanted to hit the highway for after I bought my first car.

[SOONER8693]

Crossroads Mall should have picked a better location, like where Quail Springs Mall is or better. Maybe locating the state's first huge mall in a central part of the metro made plenty of good sense at the time while having excellent interstate access.

As I recall, from somewhere way back in the dark reaches of my mind, the original location for Crossroads Mall was to be where the Warren and new Moore hospital now sit. That was like 50yrs ago. Of course the current location was later selected and probably the better location.

[Ginkasa]

My anecdotal knowledge of this was the City of Moore actually did not want Crossroads to go in that spot (or anywhere in city limits) so Moore could keep its small town vibe. Funny what changes in just a few decades.

[David]

Here is a link to some photos I took of Crossroads today. If you're much under, oh, 30, they'll just look like photos of a dead mall and empty spaces - which they are - but for many of us, its a reminder of a more vibrant and very different time in OKC retail, particularly for the south side. Hope those of you who recall Crossroads in its better days will enjoy these.

https://jagfootballphotos.smugmug.co...ell-Crossroads

Man, now that was a blast from the past.

Most of my history with Crossroads dates from before I actually moved to the metro proper. We moved into Ardmore in the early 90s and the mall tended to be where we drove up to for shopping before other destinations became available, and was also a preferred destination of my high school band director on road trips for football and other events. Later on when I was in college, on trips back home I would commonly stop midway through between Stillwater and Ardmore and get a slice of Sbarro pizza and an Orange Julius.

I couldn't say how many paperback books I bought from the bookstores, but there were quite a few.

[rte66man]

I worked in the mall around 1980 while attending OU (at Orbach's, a very nice men's store) and there was a constant stream of people from all over the state and beyond who drove in just to shop there.

It was an absolute sensation at the time and there was nothing like it apart from Dallas.

It was super easy to get to from anywhere in OK and that was a big part of the draw.

Ditto. We lived in Duncan at the time (late 70's) and would always make it a point to drive up to Crossroads 2-3 times a year.

[warreng88]

Plaza Mayor redevelopment a work in progress

By: Molly M. Fleming The Journal RecordOctober 13, 2017

OKLAHOMA CITY – Raptor Properties isn’t giving up on revitalizing Plaza Mayor.

But the next plan is still in the works, said John Wooley, principal with Raptor. He said there’s a Priority-1 plan being developed. There are second and third-priority plans as well.

“There are several things that have to happen before (Priority-1) comes to fruition,” he said.

CRM Properties Group bought the property in 2011. It owns the west side of the property, the southern anchor space, and the center’s entire middle section. The company also has nearly 60 acres of land, according to county records.

Raptor has been handling the mall’s revitalization, Wooley said. The mall will close to the public Oct. 31.

Two other entities have ownership as well.

Maryland-based Crossroads QALICB LLC owns the space that was home to Montgomery Ward, but it now occupied by Santa Fe South High School. The charter school stared classes there this August and will renovate the second floor for another charter school.

The northern anchor space for what was formerly Crossroads Mall is owned by DLH Properties LLC. The Hudiburg Autogroup has a parts department at the building.

“Our number one goal is to repurpose the property,” Wooley said.

Raptor tried to revitalize the site without traditional anchors. The company hired consultant Jose Legaspi to make it a Hispanic retail center. There was talk once of having an incubator space for Hispanic retailers, but that never fully came to fruition, said Robert Ruiz, who previously helped market the property.

“We want to find something that’s a repurposed use for the property,” Wooley said. “If someone else wants to do it, we’re open to that as well. Anything’s possible.”

Ruiz said the mall was gaining traction with the Hispanic community during the three years he worked there. He saw the store occupancy increase from 17 percent to 46 percent.

Events like Fiestas Patrias would bring more than 15,000 people to the center. Other festivals saw their events’ attendees more than triple in size. A medical clinic opened at the center. National chain stores saw increases in sales, with some seeing million-dollar years.

He left in 2015 to work with the Scissortail Community Development Corp. His position was never filled once he left.

His wife’s company, Enye Media, continued to have events at the center for another six months.

“There’s still a need in the Hispanic community for a cultural center,” he said.

Wooley said Raptor has been meeting with city officials to get their thoughts on the next ideas for Plaza Mayor. With the two-highway intersection and the large land tracts, there are many possibilities, he said.

“We know a lot of people are disappointed,” he said.

[SoonerDave]

Now that's a very strange article. Why on earth would you announce that you are closing the mall, permanently, tell the tenants to be out by mid-Novermber, release a press note that effectively says you just couldn't make it work, that the economic burdens were unbearable (words to that effect), then do a story like this that makes it sound like, "well, about that closing...here's a secret plan..."

This makes no sense. Maybe I'm reading too much into it.

Perhaps they're trying to diffuse inferences that the place was going to be razed? Pointing out that two of the anchor buildings are owned by other groups?

Like I said, it's just peculiar.

[OkiePoke]

Article about a mall near Cleveland.

https://techcrunch.com/2017/08/25/an...nks-to-amazon/

[bombermwc]

Its a bit hard to see reasoning for closing if occupancy went up from 17 to 46%.

One thing they never did well was to concentrate the retailers together instead of letting them spread out. They could have designated a medical/office wing, retail wing, etc, but never did. Trying to make it into a flea market instead of an actual "outdoor" market turned indoors was doomed to fail when you can't offer the food vendors a proper place to cook.

As you said, a lot of this just doesn't make sense, but if ownership is spread out the way it appears to, then that arrangement probably doomed it from day 1. With no consolidated effort to offer space and share rent income, each entity would be for themselves instead of the common facility good.

[SoonerDave]

Its a bit hard to see reasoning for closing if occupancy went up from 17 to 46%.

One thing they never did well was to concentrate the retailers together instead of letting them spread out. They could have designated a medical/office wing, retail wing, etc, but never did. Trying to make it into a flea market instead of an actual "outdoor" market turned indoors was doomed to fail when you can't offer the food vendors a proper place to cook.

As you said, a lot of this just doesn't make sense, but if ownership is spread out the way it appears to, then that arrangement probably doomed it from day 1. With no consolidated effort to offer space and share rent income, each entity would be for themselves instead of the common facility good.

Sadly, that is reflective of what I understood to be one of the long-term underlying problems with Crossroads from day one - even the original ownership was splintered, factional, and dysfunctional - one side would want to do X, the other, Y, with each one blocking the other out of...??? spite???. I'd heard rumors of a really nice food court rework was on the agenda just a couple years after it opened, but it never got done...for just this reason. Really, really said.

[BLJR]

Will the school that just occupied an area stay there? I am assuming yes, since I think they took over an area on the end.

Sad to see it go, but I don't have any recommendations. I quit going 13 years ago. Seemed like everytime I went, there was something going down (fight, shoplifting, etc...) inside or out in the parking lot.

We took the kids to the Christmas area last year, and they couldn't believe it was a vacant mall. Son even commented that it looked similar to QS Mall, and wanted to know why it closed, so we had a discussing in what happens when economics, retail, and a criminal element all combine.

I saw karma show up there once. 2 kids ran out of the Foleys (before it was Macys) with a bunch of clothes. They were headed east, and no way the security was going to get them. As they got about half way across the parking lot, a train came through, blocking their escape path, and security was then able to corral them.... it was priceless.

[jn1780]

Now that's a very strange article. Why on earth would you announce that you are closing the mall, permanently, tell the tenants to be out by mid-Novermber, release a press note that effectively says you just couldn't make it work, that the economic burdens were unbearable (words to that effect), then do a story like this that makes it sound like, "well, about that closing...here's a secret plan..."

This makes no sense. Maybe I'm reading too much into it.

Perhaps they're trying to diffuse inferences that the place was going to be razed? Pointing out that two of the anchor buildings are owned by other groups?

Like I said, it's just peculiar.

I kind of read it as them working on a plan and not actually having a finalized plan.

[SoonerDave]

I kind of read it as them working on a plan and not actually having a finalized plan.

But that's kinda my point - when you release a note to the media saying "Closing Permanently 31 October," that sounds pretty final to me. The article doesn't.

[jn1780]

But that's kinda my point - when you release a note to the media saying "Closing Permanently 31 October," that sounds pretty final to me. The article doesn't.

I think its pretty final that Crossroads won't be a traditional mall again. Its either going to be office or completely torn down and redeveloped.