Redevelopment plans for the center were announced in 2016 when Lesso (later Samanea) acquired the property. Work began to redevelop the site in 2017 with most of the lower level being reoccupied with furniture galleries and art installations. Despite this, the redevelopment of the upper level was repeatedly delayed first because of financial difficulties associated with the ownership transfer and then because of the covid-19 pandemic, and it is only a matter of time before the upper level is closed off…
Great video! I've I would have loved to see Fortunoff when it was actually open. According to my dad he said that I did go once probably in 2008 but I was only 2 years old I won't remember anything lol and also, I have never been able to find a picture of Fortunoff's upstairs mall entrance open. I really wonder what it was also at 9:01 that was Virgin Megastore but that big like square also gets me confused lol there's so much about the mall that I probably still want to learn about.
I remember when they started building this place. It was less than a mile away from Roosevelt Field, which was 2-3 times its size and undergoing its own renovations. And RF is still bustling to this day. I was never sure if it was a direct competitor to RF, or was intended to be something else, but for about 10-12 years, it was packed with foot traffic due to Fortunoff being one of the largest department stores in the area, it had a huge Virgin Megastore, and the Dave and Busters was a destination (which was originally a "Jillian's Eat and Play"). I've heard people say that the management made stupid decisions, like losing/not renewing the lease for Rainforest Cafe (which was the most popular eatery in the area at the time), and the shuttering of Fortunoff led to the mall dying. But it happened FAST. In 2010 it was still pretty full. By 2014 it was dead. A decline that made no sense given that entire area to this day is a HUGE shopping hub. But the nearby Galleria outdoor mall took a bunch of its businesses away, and despite a prime location off a main roadway, it just languished there while literally everywhere else around them was packed to the hilt and thriving. The last holdout in that food court was a family owned "Japanese" place that signed a multi year lease the year before things got bad, and they tried their best, but there was no saving what the management didnt want to save.
Thanks for the history man! It is pretty incredible to imagine at one point this was a prime destination for history in area. I though RF killed this place but, it seems it was a mix of things that contributed to its demise. Thanks for watching!
@@CoolCatProductions-365 I mean, RF did sort of "kill" it in the end, but it was built, opened, existed, and died all within Roosevelt Field's period of expansion in the late 90s. Best I could think is a little bit of "conspiracy theorizing"- this was opened as a SIMON mall the year before SIMON bought out Roosevelt Field. Its entirely possible once SIMON got its hands on the larger and definitely more profitable mall that they slowly started killing The Source. Or at least not bothering to fix things as they went wrong. But from 1997 to 2010, it was bustling, and by 2014 is was basically dead.
Also, I have no idea what "Lola Too" is, but that used to be Brandywine Sports Collectibles when it opened, which was a store that had amazing finds in video games and trading card games while it was still there. That external design is basically unchanged from BSC.
I went here in 2021 and I couldn’t believe it was open with just how dead it was. Sadly I didn’t get any video when I was there but I’m going to go back and record it.
Hello there, most of the malls on Long Island are still around today as Smith Haven, Roosevelt Field, Green Acres, South Shore Mall, Walt Whitman, & both Tanger Outlets are still thriving. Broadway commons is dying but still remains largely occupied except for the former Macys, Sunrise Mall is completely dead and only has a few tenants left, & SunVet Mall recently closed and now is being redeveloped. That is the over-under of Long Island Malls.
They even had an old Rax storefront still up. There hasn't been many of those since the 90's. It looks like this mall has been dying for a very long time.
I thought someone on another post about Source, said the Rax sign in the food court was only added for someone to film either a TV show or movie inside this mall? Good to see this mall is still open, and hadn't closed.
Some decisions seem correct at the time but in retrospect turn out badly, while other decisions are boneheaded mistakes right from the start. Building this mall was the second type.
![Arnot Mall-Gliding into the past [ Horseheads, New York]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/8wygWJ2_Nug/mqdefault.jpg)
![Arnot Mall-Gliding into the past [ Horseheads, New York]](/img/tr.png)
Redevelopment plans for the center were announced in 2016 when Lesso (later Samanea) acquired the property. Work began to redevelop the site in 2017 with most of the lower level being reoccupied with furniture galleries and art installations. Despite this, the redevelopment of the upper level was repeatedly delayed first because of financial difficulties associated with the ownership transfer and then because of the covid-19 pandemic, and it is only a matter of time before the upper level is closed off…
Nice video
Great video! I've I would have loved to see Fortunoff when it was actually open. According to my dad he said that I did go once probably in 2008 but I was only 2 years old I won't remember anything lol and also, I have never been able to find a picture of Fortunoff's upstairs mall entrance open. I really wonder what it was also at 9:01 that was Virgin Megastore but that big like square also gets me confused lol there's so much about the mall that I probably still want to learn about.
So do I! This is definitely one of long islands' forgotten malls
People use the escalator to step down or go up meaning I'm walking on the artwork.
I remember when they started building this place. It was less than a mile away from Roosevelt Field, which was 2-3 times its size and undergoing its own renovations. And RF is still bustling to this day. I was never sure if it was a direct competitor to RF, or was intended to be something else, but for about 10-12 years, it was packed with foot traffic due to Fortunoff being one of the largest department stores in the area, it had a huge Virgin Megastore, and the Dave and Busters was a destination (which was originally a "Jillian's Eat and Play").
I've heard people say that the management made stupid decisions, like losing/not renewing the lease for Rainforest Cafe (which was the most popular eatery in the area at the time), and the shuttering of Fortunoff led to the mall dying. But it happened FAST. In 2010 it was still pretty full. By 2014 it was dead. A decline that made no sense given that entire area to this day is a HUGE shopping hub. But the nearby Galleria outdoor mall took a bunch of its businesses away, and despite a prime location off a main roadway, it just languished there while literally everywhere else around them was packed to the hilt and thriving. The last holdout in that food court was a family owned "Japanese" place that signed a multi year lease the year before things got bad, and they tried their best, but there was no saving what the management didnt want to save.
Thanks for the history man! It is pretty incredible to imagine at one point this was a prime destination for history in area. I though RF killed this place but, it seems it was a mix of things that contributed to its demise. Thanks for watching!
@@CoolCatProductions-365 I mean, RF did sort of "kill" it in the end, but it was built, opened, existed, and died all within Roosevelt Field's period of expansion in the late 90s. Best I could think is a little bit of "conspiracy theorizing"- this was opened as a SIMON mall the year before SIMON bought out Roosevelt Field. Its entirely possible once SIMON got its hands on the larger and definitely more profitable mall that they slowly started killing The Source. Or at least not bothering to fix things as they went wrong. But from 1997 to 2010, it was bustling, and by 2014 is was basically dead.
Also, I have no idea what "Lola Too" is, but that used to be Brandywine Sports Collectibles when it opened, which was a store that had amazing finds in video games and trading card games while it was still there. That external design is basically unchanged from BSC.
@@TenguTalks it is a very interesting store design so I am still curious of what it once was. Thanks for the info though!
I went here in 2021 and I couldn’t believe it was open with just how dead it was. Sadly I didn’t get any video when I was there but I’m going to go back and record it.
The mall is slowly being renovated, so I do recommend visiting the mall in the near future.
I remember that mall. So what malls are left on Long Island now, it's been like 13 years since I lived there. Smith Haven and Roosevelt Field?
Hello there, most of the malls on Long Island are still around today as Smith Haven, Roosevelt Field, Green Acres, South Shore Mall, Walt Whitman, & both Tanger Outlets are still thriving. Broadway commons is dying but still remains largely occupied except for the former Macys, Sunrise Mall is completely dead and only has a few tenants left, & SunVet Mall recently closed and now is being redeveloped. That is the over-under of Long Island Malls.
These malls can easily be saved.
Lower the rent. Give new tennants first six months rent free .
No chain stores and restaurants.
They even had an old Rax storefront still up. There hasn't been many of those since the 90's. It looks like this mall has been dying for a very long time.
I thought someone on another post about Source, said the Rax sign in the food court was only added for someone to film either a TV show or movie inside this mall? Good to see this mall is still open, and hadn't closed.
Man that place is _crazy_ liminal. Glad you could make it there.
Some decisions seem correct at the time but in retrospect turn out badly, while other decisions are boneheaded mistakes right from the start. Building this mall was the second type.
Seeing all of these once epic malls headed toward insolvency and awaiting the wrecking ball is like seeing the downfall of our nation. It's scary.
I agree