One more update for you on this one! The Golf Mill redevelopment site now says "Coming 2027"! That is pretty generous IMO. But that is the current projected date. golfmill.com/redevelopment/
I wish I had the chance to experience the water wheel and its more outdoor days. What I've read here in the comments, it sounded really nice. Hopefully if they do this renovation correctly, we'll get to experience a bit of that charm again. 🙂
I too remember that. I remember hearing they’re going to do a redevelop the mall. They’re going to make it outdoors, and they’re going to bring back the water wheel.
@@JohnAckerman31 the Golf Mill redevelopment site has been updated to say "Coming 2027"! It's going to be very much a typical mixed-use development. But also harkening back to its roots for example like you say with the water wheel. I am looking forward to the final results on this one. 🙂
It was so bittersweet to see this for me because this is the mall my parents used to frequent, and I took a lot of rides with them when they came here. They lived on the Northwest side of Chicago and for some reason, they would come here rather than the HIP which was actually closer for them. I think this was the mall that they even took my daughter and nephew to visit Santa Clause at when they were little. So, I have lots of memories here because of my parents. It was creepy eerie in there in parts of your video. Think of the life that this mall once held and now like so many of them there's not much more then silence. It's so sad to see all of these places going under, but I get it. Online shopping is the way to go today, and these places are here to make money. Still, all the memories of being a teenager hanging out at the HIP and other places will always only be memories now never to be made by another teen. I just feel so lucky that I grew up in an age where going out to meet friends was a big thing. Now it's all texting and facetiming and messenger. Somehow the personal touch has gone out the window when the wave of the future came crashing through. I wonder if Water Tower Place is still open. I think it is but not positive. That's another mall I used to love to go to as a teen. It was beautiful in there. Great documentation on Golf Mill Wayne. Thank you!
@flocosta thanks for sharing those memories. Love hearing stories like this. Have to agree with pretty much everything stated here. Since you're such a great friend and supporter. I'll give you some big spoilers. HIP and Water Tower videos are coming!!! HIP will be here much sooner. Know you meant Golf Mill instead of Old Orchard. But I may be documenting that as well. There's a new Wayfair retail store that is all the rage in that area.
@memoriesbywayne You're right, I meant Golf Mill. I fixed it, lol. My gosh, I think I knew about the HIP, but don't tell me Water Tower Place is on the list too. Geesh. I don't think there's going to be any malls left after this. I think I told you before that they have a mall in Clarksville that they'll soon be updating, so for some reason, it's still going strong down here. I'm not sure why, but all I can think is that it's the only one around here and about 50 miles from Nashville, so there's not much competition.
@flocosta oh neither is in danger. I have a video coming out real soon about my "Chicago Origin Story". And HIP was close by. And I have a personal connection to HIP as well and wanted to vlog it. HIP is healthy and thriving much like Woodfield. Water Tower is a Chicago vlog where you can watch my kids and wife spend all my money if that interests you lol. If you ever feel like vlogging any malls down there I'd be excited to watch! :-)
I used to go to the HIP all the time! I lived about two minutes from the mall. As a kid, my mom and I would walk to the mall which was nice. We would go to Golf Mill from time to time. I remember growing up the mall was always packed with people. This of course was before online shopping and everything. Of course, Sears was the only way to get to the other end. I remember the store was always busy because everyone went to Sears for everything. I remember when the Target opened in the mall. That was in 1998 when that opened
@JohnAckerman93 now if you're an ancient person like myself, growing up in the area, you may have gone to the Brickyard as well! I probably went to Brickyard more than HIP. My Grandma really liked HIP, so if I went, it was usually with her. Honestly when I was in the area as a kid I was more interested in going to Rolling Stones lol.
this was my late 80s/90s mall, we'd grab the free bus and ride it there to Cyberstation and the theater. Funny, cause when Sears was still in there we always felt that back half of the mall, where Target / Kolhs was, always felt weird and totally detached. Def great memories of that area as a kid/teen, but even way back in the early 2000's, we knew it was dying.
@timsep1 thanks for sharing! I still feel like putting an anchor in the middle like that is the weirdest thing ever. 😆 Wish I'd had the opportunity to walk through. FYI, I do have an update video coming soon. And I do check out one of the floors of the professional building. Old and creepy AF, but still pretty cool. 🙂
Same here. I used to live on the Northwest side of Chicago, and my parents and I would mainly go to Harlem Irving Plaza since we lived only a couple blocks from the mall. Occasionally we would go to Golf Mill and I’ve got to say, back in the 90’s and early 00’s this mall was always busy. I remember the Sears that was in the mall, and I still remember when the Target first opened. Just sad as to what the retail industry has turned into now. Everything is this online stuff. I will always go to a store to buy things I need. Every once in a while I’ll go online to buy things
@@JohnAckerman31 I recently read or watched something discussing how Gen Z is preferring to go to physical stores more. They want to try on things and not waste money. It's better for their TikToks. I don't know what that may mean for the future of malls and retail. 2024 going into 2025 has been very bleak. Especially for brick-and-mortar retail department stores. But as I remind folks here regularly there are still thriving malls like HIP and Woodfield. Someone is still figuring out how to bring people to malls. Everything goes in phases. And we may see people getting bored with online shopping and desire a more exciting shopping experience.
I worked at the Circuit City near Golf Mill in 2002. The area was already going downhill then, which was 22 years ago at the time of writing this. It was an idyllic suburban neighborhood back in the 70's and 80's.
@@memoriesbywayne Right there by the Target at entrance #4 (which I believe used to be a Venture) is where the Radio Shack used to be. I remember going to the mall and being pissed that I had to walk a gauntlet all the way up to the far northwestern corner of the mall to shop there. That's why there was another RS across the street in the strip mall by Four Flags. I also remember there used to be a Pacific Stereo right next door to the free standing RS, which later turned into a computer store in the 1980's, and they used to sell the Commodore Amiga there. They used to have A2000's set up that you could play with and I never was able to afford one. Down the sidewalk to the north in that strip mall was the Egghead Software. The theaters used to be in their own building at the far southeast corner of the mall property, there were 3 theaters there. I saw Empire Strikes Back there in 1980. I also remember seeing Ghostbusters there in 1984. In 2003 I bought a brand new Ford van at Golf Mill Ford. They used to have a Ford truck dealership there. I still have the van... rolled over 200k miles a couple years ago. So many memories from that part of town. I live in Arizona now.
i am 60 and also grew up in niles. We took the free bus to spend the day. It was out doors then. went to Woolworth for lunch at the counter. Played around the waterwheel. Went for school clothes at Sears. Saw Jaws and Star war's at the golfmill 123.
The outdoor version sounded really cool from what I've heard others here describe it. Hopefully they re-invent some of that charm with this upcoming renovation.
the bowling alley was cool, as was the golf mill movie theatre right next to it. Both on the south side of the lot, close to the old IHOP, which was across the street. Great video!
I can't believe the mall had the stuff that I've been learning through comments and research. Sounds like it was such a cool and unique place. Thank you for sharing!
@@memoriesbywayne Certainly! And I appreciate your video! I forgot to mention there was Golf Mill Motel, which was across the street from the mall, on the north side, on golf road. It was an absolute pit when I saw it in 92, and was torn down around then...
Gotta be honest, this video made me tear up a bunch! One, I grew up in Nile’s, so I spent my whole childhood/early teen years here. And two, when I was 16 I ended up working at 5.7.9. I still get flashbacks of that place! I have been there a bunch since then. But now it’s been quiet a few years & I gotta get over there tomorrow before they completely demolish it for the new GMM!
Thank you for watching! Glad you enjoyed the video. Stay tuned. Have another Golf Mill video coming soon. And same day I visited Oak Mill Plaza as well! As a Niles native, you may appreciate that video as well. 🙂
@@breetifulz90 I was just a little bit older in '06. Not too much lol. Freshly out of college, enjoying peak Disney Channel Days. Kim Possible, Lilo & Stitch, Raven, Suite Life, Wizards, Even Stevens... it was just an absolute carefree time for me. I miss it. 🙂
This is happening in England too. When I was growing up, in the 1980s, my local mall use to be packed with various shops and plenty of shoppers. British Home Stores,Marks and Spencer, Owen Owen, Sainsbury's were just some of the well known stores in there. It was opened in full in 1976, after 5 years of building, which had seen the demolition of the old town centre. Now about 1/3 shops in it is vacant, including the largest one. Many residents have begged the council to lower the rents, but they never do.
@keithmartin1328 wow that does sound very similar to what is happening in the US. Not something I thought much about honestly cause for whatever reason, very little malls are documented outside of the US.
@@memoriesbywayneIronically parts of the mall you filmed, the brown tiles, the lighting and trees, were in the Kingfisher shopping centre at the same time th-cam.com/video/-mWKeMd8EFs/w-d-xo.htmlsi=htUt5LyCl1XwXTHq.
@keithmartin1328 awesome video! Brown tiles are such a comforting piece of nostalgia. At least for us 80s kids in the US. Cause we all grew with a family room or basement that had faux brown wood wall paneling. Funny enough the basement of the house we bought a few years ago came with it. And have no plans to get rid of it lol.
@@memoriesbywayneMy parents moved to Redditch (central England) from Scotland in the 1970's. At the time Redditch was a new town and companies were given grants to set up businesses there. That is why the Kingfisher was built, because malls were a new idea over at that time. Also 4 large car parks and a new ring road were built for the mall. However, these car parking spaces were made for Minis, Escorts,Novas, Uno's etc which were all small cars popular at the time in Britain. Now, however, most people here have SUVs and it is amusing watching as they struggle to park these enormous Toyota Ravs, Hyundai Tuscons, Ford Rangers etc into these small spaces 😅.
@keithmartin1328 Know the difference in culture for sure you were much more focused on smaller more economical cars back than, then we were. Interesting now seeing the bigger vehicles have to adapt to the existing infrastructure.
I live in a different part of the Chicago suburbs, but I was up around Golf Mill in early November and decided to stop in just for the hell of it. Was astonished at how empty and quiet it has become. I work in a store at a different Chicago-area mall, but one that's fairly well kept, has a relatively healthy occupancy rate, and is busy enough to remain afloat for the foreseeable future, so seeing Golf Mill in its current state is just kind of a downer.
I have memories as a child when this mall was busy and various kinds of stores. Nowadays everything is closed or empty it feels like a ghost town. The only thing that I feel like has any life is the food court, but it's hanging on by a thread.
@WildcardGrey there were 2 food places there when I went. Rumor is this place is closing Oct. 31st. Haven't been able to verify it yet. But I plan to stop by one more time.
@darianmarshall4262 it was the oddest thing I've ever experienced at a mall for sure. I don't think I've run across any article or video yet explaining why they made that decision.
General Growth Properties(then owner) chose not to renovate the north wing, since it had MUCH fewer stores than the bigger part of the mall south of(former) Sears. This part of the mall for a long time(and even before the 2006-07 remodel) had fewer stores than the south(main) portion, so I don't blame GGP for deciding against renovating the north wing. Looking back, the mall only gained a few new businesses with that remodel. Which were Ross(that was done via gutting a former side hallway, and turning that area over to Ross), Deb(closed only a few years after it opened, and slightly before Deb's bankruptcy that closed all stores), and Elephant Bar restaurant(a chain based out of California). Luckily for Golf Mill after Elephant Bar closed, they were able to fill in this space with another one called Ginza. They closed sometime after the pandemic began, around 2020 or 2021. Before Elephant Bar and Ginza, that restaurant space housed some other restaurant i can't remember the name of, and before that it was Chi-Chi's. Yes the chain that closed all restaurants in the US(though a few still remain in Europe, or at least did pre-pandemic), due to some sort of food poisoning incident that caused a lot of bad press for Chi-Chi's.
@@BoratWanksta thank you for that history lesson! Wish I had it when I filmed this. When I eventually go back, I will be sure to credit you and discuss this more. Had so many questions going into this place. And so many more leaving lol. Never even gave this mall much thought before. Now it really fascinates me. I'm really glad now they decided against renovating the north wing. I don't know whether to call it retro vibes, back room liminal vibes, vaporwave lol. All that wing would have needed is a working fountain and I would been in heaven!
@Chicagoguy1984 unfortunately I didn't live too far from this location yet never went here. The stories I've read and watched about how unique, revolutionary, legendary, this mall was for its day, is amazing. Like a central hub for the community. I don't know if I should call it the "Woodfield of the 80s" or what. It's all before my time. What they have proposed is absolutely beautiful. But I'm going to be real sad to see this retro section go. And it's a bigger gripe of mine, the overuse of the "mixed-use". Why does everything need to be outdoors? Anyone live in Chicago in the winter? And why does every piece of commerce need to have apartments attached to them? It's an argument I will never win. But I am interested in checking out this final product.
I too went here when I was growing up. And the Sears and JCPENNEY did bring in a lot of shoppers. That of course was before online shopping and everything like that
@JohnAckerman93 I feel like Sears and JCPennys was the staple department store for me growing up in the 80s, at least. Those were usually one of the two we went to and one of the two we went to for the annual family portrait.
The shopping mall in Niles, OHIO, the Eastwood Mall, built in 1969, is still thriving!!!😊 Since Youngstown basically has nothing and nowhere to shop, the Eastwood Mall managed to survive!!👍
Hopefully sometime in the future I can document that mall. I've been wanting to go back to Ohio lol for quite a while now. There is something valuable having malls in smaller markets. Where I live in never-ending suburbia there is no end to shopping centers and strip malls where folks can easily just drive right up to whatever department store they are looking for. And there's mega-outdoor shopping centers that are almost outdoor malls in and among themselves.
Wow, the analytics show the views skyrocketing, like 1K views in the past few days! Not sure how you all found me, but thanks for watching. Pretty decent sized retail and mall playlist on the channel. Send suggestions for places you want me to check out! :-)
I took my girlfriend (now wife) to the Mill Run Playhouse, located there, in 1970 to see Diana Ross in concert. This was after she'd gone solo. It was closed in 1984.
@@whatsamattayu3257 I saw one video mention the concert/entertainment center there. I heard it was unique for the area. It is one of those things I've been meaning to research more. I'd like to see more photos. :-)
I was at one of her shows too. I remember her recruiting people from the audience to come on stage with her and sing. Was kinda mad because I didn't pay to hear them screech to her music. Mill Run was in-the-round and had some good acts.
I saw the original Rocky the theater here on a first date. Her name was Adrianne. What are the odds? Yo Adrianne! worked for the music company who ran the music dept at Sears. Moonlighted at Club international clothing store here.
Place was packed in the 80s and early 90s. I worked at Best Buy across the street there. Sad that it's turned into a ghost town and fell behind on being updated.
@beauar1 it's crazy for me to picture this place like so many have described it in comments. But I believe it. I received these same type of comments on my HIP video. The malls right outside the city limits had to be shopping meccas back then. I was just too young to understand or appreciate it. I barely remember much about my family going to the Brickyard. Other than it was where we went for the goofy yearly JcPenney photos. 😆
@geerstyresoil3136 it was perfect. 😆 I saw another channel quickly document that as well before I went here. Glad it was still here. Sad though. Seems like this mall had a pretty successful past.
@@memoriesbywayne This is sad. I remember that the mall had a wooden bridge with fish in a man made pond. Also a water wheel. When I was there as a boy it was still an outdoor mall.
@phillipmarlowe0525 I've only ever seen old photos. But it looked neat. Interesting enough, they seem to want to bring back those vibes with this renovation. I'm over all these "mixed-use" mall renovations in the Chicagoland area. But this one may be pretty nice.
Back in the 90's i worked first in Service Merchandise across the street. I was the guy who'd oull your order and out it on the conveyor belt that bought it up from the warehouse to the register counter. They went bankrupt and outta business. Layer on I worked at the GNC inside the mall selling vitamins and fake boner pills, finally I worked in the Sears in the mall selling TV'S. They also went out of business but i was gone when that happened. It was just an easy convenient drive working there and plenty of places to apply for work when you're in your teens into 20.
@ryanl4175 Golf Mill? There are a lot of other commenters here who are knowledgeable on the history of this place. Much more than I. But, I will say, this mall is located on the very busy corner of Golf Rd. and Milwaukee Ave. So, take that for what it is worth. But that is my guess. Fun fact! Golf, IL is a real town. A tiny town. A weird, sorta community managed town. Something I need to cover in a full video. Located on the eastern end of Golf Rd. (hence the name). Along the shores of Lake Michigan.
That's how they named OakMill mall also. I lived there from1969 to 2010. Golf mill waa a much better mall when.it was an outdoor mall. Thanks to the late great Mayor Blase who had it built in the late 50's.
Hey Wayne. As a first time visitor to your dead mall blog, the first suggestion I have is to pick up your feet when walking! The sound of your feet dragging along the floor or pavement is distracting and annoying. Often it's the little the little things that can make or break your production. Take my comment as a constructive criticism. On the positive side you did provide a detailed history of your mall, something that lazy bloggers never take the time to research.
One more update for you on this one! The Golf Mill redevelopment site now says "Coming 2027"! That is pretty generous IMO. But that is the current projected date.
golfmill.com/redevelopment/
I remember the mill with water wheel and goldfish in the pond. I always looked forward to go there as a kid.
I wish I had the chance to experience the water wheel and its more outdoor days. What I've read here in the comments, it sounded really nice. Hopefully if they do this renovation correctly, we'll get to experience a bit of that charm again. 🙂
I too remember that. I remember hearing they’re going to do a redevelop the mall. They’re going to make it outdoors, and they’re going to bring back the water wheel.
@@JohnAckerman31 the Golf Mill redevelopment site has been updated to say "Coming 2027"! It's going to be very much a typical mixed-use development. But also harkening back to its roots for example like you say with the water wheel. I am looking forward to the final results on this one. 🙂
Harlem / Irving Mall still vibrant!
@SignorNessuno65 yes it is! I have a new video from HIP coming soon. 🙂
It was so bittersweet to see this for me because this is the mall my parents used to frequent, and I took a lot of rides with them when they came here. They lived on the Northwest side of Chicago and for some reason, they would come here rather than the HIP which was actually closer for them. I think this was the mall that they even took my daughter and nephew to visit Santa Clause at when they were little. So, I have lots of memories here because of my parents. It was creepy eerie in there in parts of your video. Think of the life that this mall once held and now like so many of them there's not much more then silence. It's so sad to see all of these places going under, but I get it. Online shopping is the way to go today, and these places are here to make money. Still, all the memories of being a teenager hanging out at the HIP and other places will always only be memories now never to be made by another teen. I just feel so lucky that I grew up in an age where going out to meet friends was a big thing. Now it's all texting and facetiming and messenger. Somehow the personal touch has gone out the window when the wave of the future came crashing through. I wonder if Water Tower Place is still open. I think it is but not positive. That's another mall I used to love to go to as a teen. It was beautiful in there. Great documentation on Golf Mill Wayne. Thank you!
@flocosta thanks for sharing those memories. Love hearing stories like this. Have to agree with pretty much everything stated here. Since you're such a great friend and supporter. I'll give you some big spoilers. HIP and Water Tower videos are coming!!! HIP will be here much sooner. Know you meant Golf Mill instead of Old Orchard. But I may be documenting that as well. There's a new Wayfair retail store that is all the rage in that area.
@memoriesbywayne You're right, I meant Golf Mill. I fixed it, lol.
My gosh, I think I knew about the HIP, but don't tell me Water Tower Place is on the list too. Geesh. I don't think there's going to be any malls left after this. I think I told you before that they have a mall in Clarksville that they'll soon be updating, so for some reason, it's still going strong down here. I'm not sure why, but all I can think is that it's the only one around here and about 50 miles from Nashville, so there's not much competition.
@flocosta oh neither is in danger. I have a video coming out real soon about my "Chicago Origin Story". And HIP was close by. And I have a personal connection to HIP as well and wanted to vlog it. HIP is healthy and thriving much like Woodfield. Water Tower is a Chicago vlog where you can watch my kids and wife spend all my money if that interests you lol. If you ever feel like vlogging any malls down there I'd be excited to watch! :-)
I used to go to the HIP all the time! I lived about two minutes from the mall. As a kid, my mom and I would walk to the mall which was nice. We would go to Golf Mill from time to time. I remember growing up the mall was always packed with people. This of course was before online shopping and everything. Of course, Sears was the only way to get to the other end. I remember the store was always busy because everyone went to Sears for everything. I remember when the Target opened in the mall. That was in 1998 when that opened
@JohnAckerman93 now if you're an ancient person like myself, growing up in the area, you may have gone to the Brickyard as well! I probably went to Brickyard more than HIP. My Grandma really liked HIP, so if I went, it was usually with her. Honestly when I was in the area as a kid I was more interested in going to Rolling Stones lol.
this was my late 80s/90s mall, we'd grab the free bus and ride it there to Cyberstation and the theater. Funny, cause when Sears was still in there we always felt that back half of the mall, where Target / Kolhs was, always felt weird and totally detached. Def great memories of that area as a kid/teen, but even way back in the early 2000's, we knew it was dying.
@timsep1 thanks for sharing! I still feel like putting an anchor in the middle like that is the weirdest thing ever. 😆 Wish I'd had the opportunity to walk through. FYI, I do have an update video coming soon. And I do check out one of the floors of the professional building. Old and creepy AF, but still pretty cool. 🙂
Same here. I used to live on the Northwest side of Chicago, and my parents and I would mainly go to Harlem Irving Plaza since we lived only a couple blocks from the mall. Occasionally we would go to Golf Mill and I’ve got to say, back in the 90’s and early 00’s this mall was always busy. I remember the Sears that was in the mall, and I still remember when the Target first opened. Just sad as to what the retail industry has turned into now. Everything is this online stuff. I will always go to a store to buy things I need. Every once in a while I’ll go online to buy things
@@JohnAckerman31 I recently read or watched something discussing how Gen Z is preferring to go to physical stores more. They want to try on things and not waste money. It's better for their TikToks. I don't know what that may mean for the future of malls and retail. 2024 going into 2025 has been very bleak. Especially for brick-and-mortar retail department stores. But as I remind folks here regularly there are still thriving malls like HIP and Woodfield. Someone is still figuring out how to bring people to malls. Everything goes in phases. And we may see people getting bored with online shopping and desire a more exciting shopping experience.
I worked at the Circuit City near Golf Mill in 2002. The area was already going downhill then, which was 22 years ago at the time of writing this. It was an idyllic suburban neighborhood back in the 70's and 80's.
@ambientstereorecordings3528 I've kinda gotten the impression from articles I read. The 70s and 80s were its heyday for sure.
@@memoriesbywayne Right there by the Target at entrance #4 (which I believe used to be a Venture) is where the Radio Shack used to be. I remember going to the mall and being pissed that I had to walk a gauntlet all the way up to the far northwestern corner of the mall to shop there. That's why there was another RS across the street in the strip mall by Four Flags. I also remember there used to be a Pacific Stereo right next door to the free standing RS, which later turned into a computer store in the 1980's, and they used to sell the Commodore Amiga there. They used to have A2000's set up that you could play with and I never was able to afford one. Down the sidewalk to the north in that strip mall was the Egghead Software. The theaters used to be in their own building at the far southeast corner of the mall property, there were 3 theaters there. I saw Empire Strikes Back there in 1980. I also remember seeing Ghostbusters there in 1984. In 2003 I bought a brand new Ford van at Golf Mill Ford. They used to have a Ford truck dealership there. I still have the van... rolled over 200k miles a couple years ago. So many memories from that part of town. I live in Arizona now.
My buddies Dad used to own a Mrs Fields cookies in Golf Mill. We crushed it so hard back in the day
@@pjyast I bet! I still love a good mall cookie! :-)
the water fountain they had in the center that dropped down into a pit now covered was my favorite area of this old place.
I would have never guessed there was a fountain there!
i am 60 and also grew up in niles. We took the free bus to spend the day. It was out doors then. went to Woolworth for lunch at the counter. Played around the waterwheel. Went for school clothes at Sears. Saw Jaws and Star war's at the golfmill 123.
The outdoor version sounded really cool from what I've heard others here describe it. Hopefully they re-invent some of that charm with this upcoming renovation.
the bowling alley was cool, as was the golf mill movie theatre right next to it. Both on the south side of the lot, close to the old IHOP, which was across the street. Great video!
I can't believe the mall had the stuff that I've been learning through comments and research. Sounds like it was such a cool and unique place. Thank you for sharing!
@@memoriesbywayne Certainly! And I appreciate your video! I forgot to mention there was Golf Mill Motel, which was across the street from the mall, on the north side, on golf road. It was an absolute pit when I saw it in 92, and was torn down around then...
@chrisnash430 figures there would be a motel among everything else. 😆 I do have a return update video coming, hopefully soon as well.
Gotta be honest, this video made me tear up a bunch! One, I grew up in Nile’s, so I spent my whole childhood/early teen years here. And two, when I was 16 I ended up working at 5.7.9. I still get flashbacks of that place! I have been there a bunch since then. But now it’s been quiet a few years & I gotta get over there tomorrow before they completely demolish it for the new GMM!
Oh and I was 16 in 2006 so there’s that 😂😭🖤
Thank you for watching! Glad you enjoyed the video. Stay tuned. Have another Golf Mill video coming soon. And same day I visited Oak Mill Plaza as well! As a Niles native, you may appreciate that video as well. 🙂
@@breetifulz90 I was just a little bit older in '06. Not too much lol. Freshly out of college, enjoying peak Disney Channel Days. Kim Possible, Lilo & Stitch, Raven, Suite Life, Wizards, Even Stevens... it was just an absolute carefree time for me. I miss it. 🙂
Value city furniture was the store on north end that was next to Burlington( former kohls)
Yep. Thanks. I did remember from NorthCdogg22's video shortly after I walked through. Or I think I saw it on the map later lol.
The Oak Mill Plaza in Niles is also stuck in the 80s
@@ddthekiddofficial Oak Mill was an amazing place. I have a video coming soon!
This is happening in England too. When I was growing up, in the 1980s, my local mall use to be packed with various shops and plenty of shoppers. British Home Stores,Marks and Spencer, Owen Owen, Sainsbury's were just some of the well known stores in there.
It was opened in full in 1976, after 5 years of building, which had seen the demolition of the old town centre. Now about 1/3 shops in it is vacant, including the largest one. Many residents have begged the council to lower the rents, but they never do.
@keithmartin1328 wow that does sound very similar to what is happening in the US. Not something I thought much about honestly cause for whatever reason, very little malls are documented outside of the US.
@@memoriesbywayneIronically parts of the mall you filmed, the brown tiles, the lighting and trees, were in the Kingfisher shopping centre at the same time
th-cam.com/video/-mWKeMd8EFs/w-d-xo.htmlsi=htUt5LyCl1XwXTHq.
@keithmartin1328 awesome video! Brown tiles are such a comforting piece of nostalgia. At least for us 80s kids in the US. Cause we all grew with a family room or basement that had faux brown wood wall paneling. Funny enough the basement of the house we bought a few years ago came with it. And have no plans to get rid of it lol.
@@memoriesbywayneMy parents moved to Redditch (central England) from Scotland in the 1970's. At the time Redditch was a new town and companies were given grants to set up businesses there. That is why the Kingfisher was built, because malls were a new idea over at that time. Also 4 large car parks and a new ring road were built for the mall.
However, these car parking spaces were made for Minis, Escorts,Novas, Uno's etc which were all small cars popular at the time in Britain. Now, however, most people here have SUVs and it is amusing watching as they struggle to park these enormous Toyota Ravs, Hyundai Tuscons, Ford Rangers etc into these small spaces 😅.
@keithmartin1328 Know the difference in culture for sure you were much more focused on smaller more economical cars back than, then we were. Interesting now seeing the bigger vehicles have to adapt to the existing infrastructure.
I live in a different part of the Chicago suburbs, but I was up around Golf Mill in early November and decided to stop in just for the hell of it. Was astonished at how empty and quiet it has become.
I work in a store at a different Chicago-area mall, but one that's fairly well kept, has a relatively healthy occupancy rate, and is busy enough to remain afloat for the foreseeable future, so seeing Golf Mill in its current state is just kind of a downer.
Yep, definitely some malls are doing better than others right now. Glad you're working at a healthy mall. So many jobs are being lost.
I have memories as a child when this mall was busy and various kinds of stores. Nowadays everything is closed or empty it feels like a ghost town. The only thing that I feel like has any life is the food court, but it's hanging on by a thread.
@WildcardGrey there were 2 food places there when I went. Rumor is this place is closing Oct. 31st. Haven't been able to verify it yet. But I plan to stop by one more time.
@@memoriesbywayne I best check it out 1 last time then before it closes.
Very interesting. I don't think I've ever been to a mall where you're forced to walk through one of the anchor stores to get to the other side of it.
@darianmarshall4262 it was the oddest thing I've ever experienced at a mall for sure. I don't think I've run across any article or video yet explaining why they made that decision.
I like your Emo Phillips impression!
@bobgomez9481 not sure who that is so I'll just say thanks?! lol
Dude, that is so spot on description. 🤣🤣
@rollodane54 I Googled enough to know the person exists. Whether to make fun of me or not, eh, it is what it is. It's whatever. 😆
Golf mill mall was a weekly thing for us. Driving from wheeling to norridge to see granny down milwalkee ave in 60s 70s
@@harrybaulz666 sounds fun. I've heard so many amazing stories here in the comments. 🙂
General Growth Properties(then owner) chose not to renovate the north wing, since it had MUCH fewer stores than the bigger part of the mall south of(former) Sears. This part of the mall for a long time(and even before the 2006-07 remodel) had fewer stores than the south(main) portion, so I don't blame GGP for deciding against renovating the north wing.
Looking back, the mall only gained a few new businesses with that remodel. Which were Ross(that was done via gutting a former side hallway, and turning that area over to Ross), Deb(closed only a few years after it opened, and slightly before Deb's bankruptcy that closed all stores), and Elephant Bar restaurant(a chain based out of California). Luckily for Golf Mill after Elephant Bar closed, they were able to fill in this space with another one called Ginza. They closed sometime after the pandemic began, around 2020 or 2021. Before Elephant Bar and Ginza, that restaurant space housed some other restaurant i can't remember the name of, and before that it was Chi-Chi's. Yes the chain that closed all restaurants in the US(though a few still remain in Europe, or at least did pre-pandemic), due to some sort of food poisoning incident that caused a lot of bad press for Chi-Chi's.
@@BoratWanksta thank you for that history lesson! Wish I had it when I filmed this. When I eventually go back, I will be sure to credit you and discuss this more. Had so many questions going into this place. And so many more leaving lol. Never even gave this mall much thought before. Now it really fascinates me. I'm really glad now they decided against renovating the north wing. I don't know whether to call it retro vibes, back room liminal vibes, vaporwave lol. All that wing would have needed is a working fountain and I would been in heaven!
Ggp is gone and it's new operating company sold this asset.
@@ryanl4175 thanks for the update!
So sad to see this!!! I use to go to Golf Mill back in the 2000's and it was ALWAYS PACKED!! The Sears and JC Penny brought in many shoppers
@Chicagoguy1984 unfortunately I didn't live too far from this location yet never went here. The stories I've read and watched about how unique, revolutionary, legendary, this mall was for its day, is amazing. Like a central hub for the community. I don't know if I should call it the "Woodfield of the 80s" or what. It's all before my time. What they have proposed is absolutely beautiful. But I'm going to be real sad to see this retro section go. And it's a bigger gripe of mine, the overuse of the "mixed-use". Why does everything need to be outdoors? Anyone live in Chicago in the winter? And why does every piece of commerce need to have apartments attached to them? It's an argument I will never win. But I am interested in checking out this final product.
I too went here when I was growing up. And the Sears and JCPENNEY did bring in a lot of shoppers. That of course was before online shopping and everything like that
@JohnAckerman93 I feel like Sears and JCPennys was the staple department store for me growing up in the 80s, at least. Those were usually one of the two we went to and one of the two we went to for the annual family portrait.
The shopping mall in Niles, OHIO, the Eastwood Mall, built in 1969, is still thriving!!!😊 Since Youngstown basically has nothing and nowhere to shop, the Eastwood Mall managed to survive!!👍
Hopefully sometime in the future I can document that mall. I've been wanting to go back to Ohio lol for quite a while now. There is something valuable having malls in smaller markets. Where I live in never-ending suburbia there is no end to shopping centers and strip malls where folks can easily just drive right up to whatever department store they are looking for. And there's mega-outdoor shopping centers that are almost outdoor malls in and among themselves.
Wow, the analytics show the views skyrocketing, like 1K views in the past few days! Not sure how you all found me, but thanks for watching. Pretty decent sized retail and mall playlist on the channel. Send suggestions for places you want me to check out! :-)
I took my girlfriend (now wife) to the Mill Run Playhouse, located there, in 1970 to see Diana Ross in concert. This was after she'd gone solo. It was closed in 1984.
@@whatsamattayu3257 I saw one video mention the concert/entertainment center there. I heard it was unique for the area. It is one of those things I've been meaning to research more. I'd like to see more photos. :-)
Wow! I attended a Bobby Vinton concert at the Mill Run in 1978, my first show!! (I am from neighboring Park Ridge)
@@Anniearchy that is awesome. This concert venue thing got me really interested now.
I was at one of her shows too. I remember her recruiting people from the audience to come on stage with her and sing. Was kinda mad because I didn't pay to hear them screech to her music. Mill Run was in-the-round and had some good acts.
@John_-kj1tl that is awesome! We should really go back to having concerts at malls lol.
I saw the original Rocky the theater here on a first date. Her name was Adrianne. What are the odds? Yo Adrianne! worked for the music company who ran the music dept at Sears. Moonlighted at Club international clothing store here.
@mack2192 awesome. Been enjoying learning the history of this mall. 🙂
Place was packed in the 80s and early 90s. I worked at Best Buy across the street there. Sad that it's turned into a ghost town and fell behind on being updated.
@beauar1 it's crazy for me to picture this place like so many have described it in comments. But I believe it. I received these same type of comments on my HIP video. The malls right outside the city limits had to be shopping meccas back then. I was just too young to understand or appreciate it. I barely remember much about my family going to the Brickyard. Other than it was where we went for the goofy yearly JcPenney photos. 😆
The Bowl And Dine, on the South end of the lot had wonderful dinners with organ music.
@@centralscrutinizer7374 sounds awesome. 🙂
My wife saw Rick Springfield perform there
@letitgo8336 that is awesome! I saw one video mention their unique venue here. It's something I've been meaning to research more into.
The redevelopment got approved by the way
@ryanl4175 good news, but also kinda sad. I will follow up on their plans cause I'd like to do one more walkthrough.
Epic Fail poster was an Epic Win, lol😂
@geerstyresoil3136 it was perfect. 😆 I saw another channel quickly document that as well before I went here. Glad it was still here. Sad though. Seems like this mall had a pretty successful past.
I use to go there as a kid . My grandparents would take me there. So sad. 😢
@phillipmarlowe0525 might be closing end of October. :-( Trying to get another confirmation of that.
@@memoriesbywayne
This is sad. I remember that the mall had a wooden bridge with fish in a man made pond. Also a water wheel. When I was there as a boy it was still an outdoor mall.
@phillipmarlowe0525 I've only ever seen old photos. But it looked neat. Interesting enough, they seem to want to bring back those vibes with this renovation. I'm over all these "mixed-use" mall renovations in the Chicagoland area. But this one may be pretty nice.
I used to work at Lids kiosk in the food court.
@@Marie56833 awesome! Wished I had worked at a mall at some point in my life. Sounds fun.
Reminds me of "Dawn of the Dead."
@@glennjoselane1690 a good theme for most malls these days. 😆
Back in the 90's i worked first in Service Merchandise across the street. I was the guy who'd oull your order and out it on the conveyor belt that bought it up from the warehouse to the register counter. They went bankrupt and outta business. Layer on I worked at the GNC inside the mall selling vitamins and fake boner pills, finally I worked in the Sears in the mall selling TV'S. They also went out of business but i was gone when that happened. It was just an easy convenient drive working there and plenty of places to apply for work when you're in your teens into 20.
@michaelmakowski3522 cool story, man. I've been learning a lot of interesting history of this area.
"The Sears...?" Dude, that's just like saying "The Jewels"
You must live in Cicero.
@garyaufmann7739 Well, I didn't grow up far from Cicero. 😆
Shh, theirs an underground not open to the public.
@@ryanl4175 serious? So something to connect the two ends of the mall?
@@memoriesbywayne perhaps, but not open to the public
Can anyone tell me how it got its name?
@ryanl4175 Golf Mill? There are a lot of other commenters here who are knowledgeable on the history of this place. Much more than I. But, I will say, this mall is located on the very busy corner of Golf Rd. and Milwaukee Ave. So, take that for what it is worth. But that is my guess.
Fun fact! Golf, IL is a real town. A tiny town. A weird, sorta community managed town. Something I need to cover in a full video. Located on the eastern end of Golf Rd. (hence the name). Along the shores of Lake Michigan.
@@memoriesbywayne yeap, patrolled by contract with cook county sheriff deputies
That's how they named OakMill mall also. I lived there from1969 to 2010. Golf mill waa a much better mall when.it was an outdoor mall. Thanks to the late great Mayor Blase who had it built in the late 50's.
@@Eddy1969 interesting. I never heard of Oak Mill. I will look into that.
it's on the corner of Milwaukee Ave and Golf Road (: I live a mile away
Hey Wayne. As a first time visitor to your dead mall blog, the first suggestion I have is to pick up your feet when walking! The sound of your feet dragging along the floor or pavement is distracting and annoying. Often it's the little the little things that can make or break your production. Take my comment as a constructive criticism. On the positive side you did provide a detailed history of your mall, something that lazy bloggers never take the time to research.
@jamesmitchell1780 thank you for watching, the comments and suggestions!