DEAD MALL: 90s Time Capsule! Mall at the Source (Samanea), Westbury NY
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 25 ก.ค. 2024
- The Mall at the Source opened in 1997 in Westbury, NY. It was already considered a "dead mall" as early as 2009, and it has been mostly vacant for over a decade. Now, it is being redeveloped into a shopping center and creative space. Even during redevelopment, parts of the building remain frozen in time.
Learn more about Samanea at www.exploresamanea.com
Music: Zadig the Jasp zadigthejasp.bandcamp.com/alb...
0:00 Intro
0:40 History of Mall
01:22 90s Branding
01:47 Entering the Mall
02:25 90s Storefronts
04:17 Food Court
05:19 Exploring
06:33 Fortunoff Entrance Open
07:01 Downstairs
07:29 Updated Areas of the Mall
09:10 More 90s Signs
09:30 Outro
I loved The Source mall. It was a great place. Virgin Megastore was my favorite store there.
Roosevelt Field nailed the coffin to the Source, eventhough they are pretty much at the same location.
dont forget the Tanger outlets at Riverhead
The irony being that Simon (the owners of RF) developed the Source Mall
@@Tconlon251_2 Simon and Garfunkel I believe
Westbury Gallery killed it off too
Fourtunoff’s bankruptcy killed it
Oh, wow you made it to this mall. I still love it even though its dead sometimes I just go to look around. I used to go all the time I remember food court too. I was only 3 years old, but I still remember green cactus in the food court lmao I think that closed in like 2009 and the food court chairs are so beautiful. Off Fifth Saks Court is always the deadest. They haven't updated the sign by Fortunoff in 19 years lol Virgin Megastore closed in 2004. Oh, and finally after searching forever, I finally saw what the upstairs of Fortunoff looked like thank you. Maybe I'll try to go soon.
Thanks for this and for doing what you do, this was really lovely. Why do I love stuff like this so much it hurts? the way we commune with these spaces of the past, mourning their loss while simultaneously appreciating them as they persist into the present in this obviously strained way... I like your optimism at the end there. Good things are happening
furby its good to hear from you again you have a .beautiful voice and keep up the good work please update me on the sunrise mall that was my favorite mall
Fantastic video. Thales for sharing!
That cardboard "Rax" sign in the food court is a prop that was recently put up for some sort of stunt or filming that they were doing. The real name of that place was "Little Tokyo". Rax was a weird Arby's-type fast food joint that only existed in the Rust Belt and never had any stores in the NY Metro area. Also, they went bankrupt before this mall was built. If you look closely, the menu board in the Rax is for a Japanese restaurant. At least someone has been using the mall for something useful!
Good video. Thanks.
I used to go to the Source a lot with my parents. When it opened *mumble mumble* years ago - there was a Rainforest Cafe there and we loved eating there. So much fun! It was down a bit from the Cheesecake Factory. I think H&M took its place.
This was my mall. Ranch 99 was the circuit city, that store was notorious for breaking street dates . The red and white in the food court was actually a McDonald's. It never could compete with Roosevelt Field but man seeing it brings back so many personal memories.
The Source also had another competitor five miles to the east, where Broadway Commons had already been established. That mall had Gertz as its main anchor when it opened in 1956. The mall was enclosed in the late 1960s and eventually gained Korvettes as a second anchor tenant at the time before it was closed when it filed for bankruptcy in the early 1980s. Construction of the IKEA store that replaced it began in 1988 with the store opening in 1991 (delayed from 1990), but it was not connected to the mall until 2003, when the JCPenney store that opened in 1999 was converted to a Target, and that process would not be complete until late 2004.
Between the bankruptcy of Korvettes and the expansion of the IKEA to accommodate a mall entrance, Gertz had its store acquired by Stern’s in 1982 and that store would become a Macy’s in 2001. In December 2019 Macy’s announced it would close the former Gertz flagship store; the store would close in early March 2020, a few days before the covid-19 pandemic emergency was declared (with 3/17/20 being the de jure date).
MOM, COME HERE, NEW FURBY BRIDGERS VIDEO!!!!
OMG I WAS JUST THERE!!
As of late 2023 the food court was gutted to make way for a new simulation attraction that is set to open in 2025. Meanwhile a portion of the south wing of the second floor is now occupied by a sports training complex with an indoor trampoline park occupying the space where Saks Off 5th was.
Few things I thought I should add.
that entertainment Park the sign said that I can’t remember the name of has been coming soon for 2 years, so I don’t think that it’s coming soon.
The reason the wok express sign is on is because the equipment in there still works and people work there and use it as a ghost kitchen . I know this because I believe when we noticed the sign was on when we came there once we saw a few people cooking.
The 99 Ranch market is pretty new also, opened like last year I think.
there are also still people in the mall offices (if you go to where the restrooms are, you’ll pass by offices with people in them). just thought that was kinda cool.
I believe there were also tables in the food court around a year ago, even though no restaurants in the food court were open.
I have no idea what the store Lola too is by the way. I searched a while online couldn’t find anything. maybe it was a fashion store of some sort?
I also remember a while ago seeing an area that had like an outdoor playground inside the store. I am pretty sure it’s not there anymore though.
The entertainment park you mentioned (Empire Adventure Park) is still coming to the mall. They’ve been posting progress on their Facebook, as recent as last month.
I use to go as a kid
I my god I remember going to this mall and guess what I used to go there when I was a little kid going on the carousel 🎠 inside the mall and it was the 😢best memories of the world
I made a video series about this place 7 years ago
Do you know, if the mall still looks like this currently?
I’m not sure - I haven’t been back since recording this video last year. I think a few more things may have opened inside the mall.
Is it still open? Id love to see some mood.
As far as I know it’s still open to the public! They are actively redeveloping and opening new things in the mall. You should have no problem going in and walking around
@@furbybridgers i love you for responding so fast have a good family.
It’s still dead right now. I went there yesterday and literally no stores are open except a Ranch Market and a dave and busters.
Food courts blocked off too.
Oh no! Sad to hear the food court is blocked off. That was one of my favorite parts of the mall.
@@furbybridgers 😔😔🫂🫂🫂
@@furbybridgersaccording to their website, part of the food court will be converted to a rock climbing gym called Gravity Vault.
You have to also realize that Broadway Mall has been a competitor to the source and has outperformed it throughout its history. In March 2020 that mall’s main anchor closed after 63 years of operation; it was a Gertz when it opened in late 1956 and then became a Sterns in 1982 before it became a Macy’s in 2001. The other two anchor tenants are Target and IKEA and those anchors did not exist when the mall opened. Target opened in 2004 in the space where a JCPenney clearance store existed from 1999 to 2003. IKEA opened in 1991 but was not connected to the rest of the mall until a renovation project between 2002 and 2005. Due to the closure Broadway Mall has seen a slight increase in vacancies but nowhere near that of most struggling malls in the northeast at least not yet.
@SigmaRho2922 i never been to Broadway Mall and i have visited alot of malls including Samanea. Also heard Roosevelt Field was the reason why the Source failed as well.
Even Green Acres Mall isn’t popular now.
i ate at the cheesecake factory with my best friend 10 years ago.
(: how was it?
@@Mayaisawesome91 it was alright but nothing to write home about
@@eddiew2325 ah ok , yesterday i seen many people dining there surprisingly. I plan to revisit again.
@@Mayaisawesome91 cool. Haven’t been back in years but chain restaurants are more or less the same
@@eddiew2325 ah come back when you can!(:
Looks like Lola Too wasn't actually a real store at all, but a storefront redecorated for the filming of a show called Life and Beth.
Wow! How did you find that out?
I'm not sure where it's going to go. It would not surprise me if it ends up de-malled, with the enclosed mall spaces torn down and the exterior tenants remaining. With Roosevelt Field so close I just don't see much future as a conventional enclosed mall.
I would disagree. The Gallery at Westbury was open after The Source Mall "closed". It is closer to Roosevelt Fields Mall, on the same street and it is extremely busy. Many of the outlet stores that were at the Source are now at The Gallery.
@@dnguyen9747 The Gallery at Westbury thrives because it's not a direct competitor to Roosevelt Field, being an unenclosed plaza with mainly larger stores including outlets. In contrast, the empty interior portions of The Source/Samanea were ordinary mall concourses with typical mall stores, in direct competition with RF.
Will be honest. As a person who grew up going here, this place became trashier and trashier. It got as bad as Sunrise/Westfield in Massapequa