Theres a couple of things I find fascinating about it. I hope the future redevelopment can bring some of that spirit back to the area. Mike, former tenant. Forest Fair Village Mall in Fairfield, OH: A Storied History Outside of the eastern wing, the flag does not seem to appear anywhere else. This is the ugly, uninviting entrance, which the signs recognize as being dowdy (an awning is on the way), but its still better business for the gym than providing an entrance through the malls corridor itself. And the directory hasnt been updated for at least a few years; it still shows such long-departed tenants as Burlington Coat Factory and the cinemas. When I visited in 2019, the mall was sufficiently deteriorated that I cannot imagine the place ever securing any new tenants beyond a paintball arena. The Kohl's wing of Forest Fair Village, May 2018, 1990s: The Shops at Forest Fair and redevelopment, 2008present: Cincinnati Mall, Forest Fair Village, "Larger Bigg's mall planned in Fairfield", "Developers optimistic about five mall stores", "B. Altman to be a Forest Fair Mall anchor", "Forest Fair Mall's full opening delayed", "Forest Fair tenants slow in opening stores", "Beer down under: Pub opens at Forest Fair", "Success of Forest Fair Mall isn't assured", "Hooker wants OK to close 3 Forest Fair Mall stores", "Last B. Altman's changes focus to stay in business", "Cities count on Forest Fair's full recovery", "Kohl's Department Stores to open at Forest Fair Mall", "Meijer hyperstores boost competition in Southwest Ohio", "Saks bought by Proffitt's in $2.1B deal", "Media Play helps jazz up renewed Forest Fair Mall", "Shoppers check opening of Saks discount outlet", "New owners, new theme give hope to Forest Fair", "Forest Fair Mall tenants upset by operator's timing", "Mall to reopen with focus on families, discounters", "Johnny's Toys opens in Cincinnati Mills", "Two years after makeover, mall struggles to find niche", "Development of former Cincinnati Mall still in 'holding pattern', "Bass Pro moving to West Chester, adding eatery", "New in Town Burlington Coat Factory moving from Cincinnati Mall to Springdale", "Bass Pro move to further slow Forest Fair mall development", "Future of the former Cincinnati Mall in limbo again", "Cincinnati malls' death spiral: Will yours survive? Tuesday Morning store closings 2023: See the full list And the last major tenant to depart, Babies R Us, still looks like it could open again tomorrow, at least judging from the signage. The business isnt on the edge of the mall; one has to walk through these creepily vacant corridors to get here. Glad to get your firsthand perspective on this, Jeffrey, with the rigor I would have expected. But I suspect the ones that will were doing okay before will rebound fairly confidently at least for a few more years. [18] In 1996, Meijer opened across the street from the mall. Forest Fair Village (formerly Cincinnati Mall, Cincinnati Mills, and Forest Fair Mall) is a shopping mall in the northern suburbs of Cincinnati, Ohio, United States. The malls former names include Cincinnati Mall, Cincinnati Mills, and Forest Fair Mall. It was perhaps a bit less kitschy than Gurnee Mills, being a bit more clean and uncluttered compared to earlier implementations, but it still had very little staying power. That B Adventurous place was originally called WonderPark, and it was an arcade owned by Namco. Not only is their coverage more captivating (and thus more popular) than mine, but theyve chronicled considerably more malls than I have. What are they doing differently than in the past, when it was safe? Or, perhaps, the more honest question should be, What is prompting the criminal element to come to this mall when it wasnt there before?. The Forest Fair Mall is a shopping mall located in Cincinnati, Ohio. It will also meet with Forest Park's leaders before submitting proposals. The green house is always free to visit! One can only imagine the sort of hullabaloo within the Cincinnati metro when this mail first had its soft opening: who isnt going to be willing to load the kids up in the minivan and drive them out to see a gazebo of flying pigs? With all the trouble that its gone though, its mind boggling that it hasnt been demolished or at least decanted into a power center or lifestyle something or other. But all you have to do is drive south on Winton road and see there area has become blighted. But then theres flying pigs! Arcade Legacy, one of the remaining tenants, moved out in September 2022, and the mall was finally closed on December 2, 2022. it absolutely screams 1990searly 1990s, even. During this same year, Meijer opened across the street from the mall. The east side of Cincy is where most of the affluent people live, and theyre not going to drive that far out of their way. Your account largely aligns with what Ive researched as wellat least the part that I knew. While it wasnt crowded, it wasnt empty either, though perhaps one might have expected a gloomy winter afternoon during the holidays to be peak business. I used to have a store there, and we had a great community of business owners. In the same year, the mall lost Burlington Coat Factory. Each wing offered a different theme of shopping. Elsewhere in the mall, at the convergence of several of the neighborhood themed corridors, is the old movie theater (at the upper level) and the food court (lower), with an unusual underwater motif that may have helped divert attention from the comparatively low levels of natural light, compared to other parts of the mall.Its rare to see a food court with such low ceilings.The atrium above features aquatic creatures suspended by wires.Apparently the giant fish are inflatable?This area also features one of Forest Fair Villages two surviving inline tenants: Arcade Legacy, seen in the space below.It boggles the mind how this business can continue operatingone of three locations in metro Cincinnati, and it apparently keeps chugging along until midnight on the weekends, long after Forest Fair Village would have remained open when functional (movie theater notwithstanding). A sad Christmas display at Forest Fair Mall/Cincinnati Mills Forest Fair Village closed due to fire, safety hazards - Cincinnati Again, I found it unusual that B Adventurous would even offer access via the malls lonely, unheated interior, since punching a hole in the exterior wall would make more sense from a visibility and safety standpoint. [47] After a $70 million renovation project, the mall reopened officially as Cincinnati Mills in August 2004. Then again, the interior design may be one of the few good decisions involved in Forest Fair amidst all the bad ones. Im going out on a limb here, but the stars on the American flag and the red/blue motif vaguely echo the aging Cincinnati Mall sign out along the highway, leading me to wonder if this wing of the mall received a bit of a face lift during the short-lived Cincinnati Mall period, perhaps part of an aborted rebranding that otherwise would have carried throughout the mall. Find a Sephora store location near you now! The Cincinnati Mall was known for having some unique anchors, including Wallaby Bobs, which boasted that it was the first brewery-restaurant in the nation that operates in a suburban shopping mall. The mall also had Koala Klubhouse, which was the first daycare to be licensed to operate within an American shopping mall. Pop-A-Razzi Gourmet Popcorn. An example of data being processed may be a unique identifier stored in a cookie. Just be warned: it would be only about 10 degrees warmer than the outside air. Nonetheless, Im going to call this one a montage, because the photographs will dominate throughout this article, and I havent created a montage post in ages. Im going out on a limb here, but the stars on the American flag and the red/blue motif vaguely echo the aging Cincinnati Mall sign out along the highway, leading me to wonder if this wing of the mall received a bit of a face lift during the short-lived Cincinnati Mall period, perhaps part of an aborted rebranding that otherwise would have carried throughout the mall. Continue with Recommended Cookies. We and our partners use cookies to Store and/or access information on a device. The mall changed hands again in 2002 when the Mills Corporation acquired and renamed Cincinnati Mills. Discover new and exclusive beauty brands in our ensured safe shopping environment. Four different areas were sectioned off. The Forest Park Fire Dept. Though the mall I featured recently wasnt a high end area, it was much more successful than Forest Fair, and I noticed virtually every in-line store with two entrances had closed the gates on one of the two. Its nearly impossible to state how cool that was. But at least it explains the freshness of the interiorhow unworn the carpet looks (most commercial facilities from 1990 would need a replacement). I spent a lot of time there, circa 2005. An afterlife for former Forest Fair Mall? There are new plans Forest Fair Village Website. Thank you for sharing your comment about Forest Fair Village Mall. We and our partners use data for Personalised ads and content, ad and content measurement, audience insights and product development. As the property owners had become delinquent on their taxes, the mall was sold to Cincinnati Holding Company in 2010. [48] By January 2005, the mall had a 90 percent occupancy. In that previous paragraph I demurred before using the word austerean unlikely adjective for such a meretricious and kitschy place. Most were probably mall walkers. The next phase opened the following year. The second thing I find fascinating is how it had two promising starts, with 90+% occupancy, but in both cases the tenancy quickly crashed. However, competition with Northgate and Tri-County malls continued, and by 2006, many stores had started to close. This group was actually headed by the same banks that had given LJ Hooker his $250 million loan for construction. From 2020 to 2021, people started to notice that Amazon was using the former malls parking lot to stage their deliveries, and even leaving piles of trash, and broken down and destroyed amazon vans behind. Search USA shopping malls near you: Search popular stores in America: Type store name: Do not miss. I grew up in the early 2000s and saw the downfall of this mall at a pretty fast pace. Equally alarming: even in this state of desuetude, the mall was not close to empty. It was mostly gangs from forest park that harressed shoppers at the mall, and young teenage girls. The mall also features a food court and a variety of stores and restaurants. Sure, mallwalkers are often focused. [1] Australian retail developer LJ Hooker acquired the property from original developer Amega in 1986 and chose to make Bigg's an anchor store to a large enclosed shopping mall, which would be named Forest Fair Mall. Some of our partners may process your data as a part of their legitimate business interest without asking for consent. And these are just two guys; there are many more doing great work. [25] Although Phillips Edison & Company had placed a bid for the property,[29] that company was outbid by Miami, Florida-based Gator Investments, whose purchase of the property was brokered in January 1996. Simon Properties bought out the Mills Corporation and shortly sold the mall to a local holding company who rebranded it with the uninspired Cincinnati Mall moniker. In late 2022, the Mills Corporation announced it bought the mall and would continue the redevelopment and reinvention, which included a name change to Cincinnati Mills. Initially, the site at the northeast corner of the Interstate 275 beltway's interchange with Winton Road was to consist solely of Bigg's, a local hypermarket chain. I'm Spencer Walsh, a professional traveler who loves to help people discover new places and learn about different cultures. B. Altman took over the space Higbees had left behind, but this left one anchor store vacant, which held up the projects completion and caused delays in the opening of some areas of the mall. The property, which is. [57] Under North Star's ownership, Steve & Barry's vacated due to the chain going out of business,[56] while Off 5th, Guess, Lane Bryant, and Dress Barn relocated to a newly built outlet mall in Monroe. [23] All of the other Sakowitz stores were also liquidated at this point, along with all but two locations of Bonwit Teller. [52] Also contributing to the decline were continued competition with Northgate and Tri-County malls, along with a newer outdoor mall called Bridgewater Falls in nearby Hamilton; lower-class demographics surrounding the mall; shopper unfamiliarity with the specialty tenants within; bankruptcy filings of key tenants; and complications from an accounting scandal in which the Mills corporation was involved. The story of Forest Fair Village has been a rollercoaster ride filled with ups and downs. Proof positive that a poor location cannot sustain retail for long, no matter how attractive the facilities might be. Forest Fair Village holds a special place in the hearts of many locals who have fond memories of visiting the mall. In other words, its trail running but the wilderness is Willy Wonka. The property, which is partially in Fairfield and partially in Forest Park, is in a condition that continues to decline. The company had planned to convert many areas of the mall for use as office space, and other non-retail operations. Biggs was a store similar to a modern Super Walmart of today. So much potential here! I became obsessed with malls and that environment ever since. Apr. The one consistency was the dourness. Hope they at least manage to auction off the flying pigs. Fairfield to the North is not so much,. [44] As part of the redevelopment, Mills forced many small independent businesses out of the property. In 1996, Gator Investments purchased the mall and initiated a series of renovations, attracting new tenants like Burlington Coat Factory, Kohls, and Bass Pro Shops. The renovation project cost approximately $70 million. Forest Fair Village, formerly Forest Fair Mall, The Shops at Forest Fair, Cincinnati Mills and Cincinnati Mall was a two-level shopping mall 25.1 miles (40.4 km) southeast of downtown Cincinnati, Ohio, between Cincinnati Mills Drive, Forest Fair Drive, South Gilmore Road and Interstate 275 in Fairfield, a suburb of Cincinnati. When Australian developer LJ Hooker stepped in and purchased the property, his plans changed to include a large enclosed shopping mall including other anchor stores, which would be connected to Biggs, which would become the malls first anchor. I often avoid dead mall articles, quite frankly because there are more than a few vloggers out there who have completely upstaged me. But all things considered, its amazing how unlittered, vacuumed, and generally clean the mall appearedwith very little graffiti (outside of that playground) or vandalismexcept for one feature.Yikes. I guess its also a testament to how little foot traffic it received after that mega-investment from the Mills Corporation and how ineffectual it was at ensuring a sustainable IRR. After having been renamed to Cincinnati Mall and again to Forest Fair Village in the 2010s, the property received significant media attention as an example of a dead mall. Forest Fair Mall was the country's third largest mall when it first opened in 1989. Cincinnati may be one of these cities, and it certainly seems like Forest Fair was unnaturally close to the others, even if it had a different target demographic (a demographic thatyou probably know better than I dois not all that prevalent on the northern Cincy suburbs compared to the eastern ones). The mall faced further challenges under new ownership, including the closure of significant tenants and delinquent property taxes. While stores continued to close, that didnt stop North Star Realty from purchasing the mall from Simon in January 2009. [3] By July 1987, mall developers had also stated that two other department stores had committed to the project: Higbee's and Bonwit Teller. Formerly home to B. Altman, the northwestern wing became "The Lifestyles at Forest Fair", with stores focused on home decor, entertainment, and sporting goods. If you would like to change your settings or withdraw consent at any time, the link to do so is in our privacy policy accessible from our home page.. High hopes and ambitions marked the malls early years. Manage Settings [55] North Star Realty acquired the mall from Simon in January 2009. Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. I've traveled worldwide, from Europe to Asia and Africa to South America. By January 2005, things looked good for Cincinnati Mills as overall occupancy reached above 90 percent. Having concealed faces makes it far too easy to steal and get away with it. Is The Arcade In Forest Fair Village Mall Open | Denver Mart Forest Fair Village - Malls in America This outlet has more than you are looking for as it offers a variety of different stores. Some of their quotes include: I remember going to Forest Fair Village as a kid with my family. What happened there is happening everywhere now days. [15] A 1989 article in The Cincinnati Enquirer described the mall as "entering uncharted waters" due to Sakowitz, B. Altman, Parisian, and Bonwit Teller all being not only new to the Cincinnati market, but also due to the higher-priced merchandise available at those stores, in comparison to the area's more blue collar demographics. In Late 1994, Kohls took over the former B. Altman store space. In addition, the president of Bigg's reported that their store in the mall had constantly struggled in sales due to it being located at the back of the property. And yet this also becomes the imagery of a bitter irony: Forest Fair Village would only succeed when pigs fly. The property had a total of five tenants as of 2017. Yeah it sounds like you caught it during its short-lived second wind. FFM introduced a new concept in 1992 called The Shops at Forest Fair to revive the mall. The mall's former names include Cincinnati Mall, Cincinnati Mills, and Forest Fair Mall. Dont be fooled by the cars in the parking lot: most of my photos captured the busier niches within Forest Fair Village. I would think this would be a perfect place for a winter group run on a cold January day. Forest Fair or Cincinnati Mall (or whatever you want to call it) is split across two municipalities and may face considerably greater challenges, though I agree with you: the building is probably toast by now. It also received a number of proposals for renovation, none of which were realized. And obviously no paper towels or soap. Dont be fooled by the cars in the parking lot: most of my photos captured the busier niches within Forest Fair Village. Most bizarre of all: why is the website B Adventurous a .org and not a .com? Forest Fair Village, Part II: a lesson in how not to create a regional mega attraction. Former Forest Fair mall to be demolished along with 825 other vacant [63] Burlington Coat Factory moved out of the mall in 2013,[64] and Danbarry Dollar Saver closed in 2014. But under the current ownership, the mall has fallen into further decline. Ill be completely corny and say I feel like my life is richer for having seen Forest Fair Village, all the more so because I suspect its days are numbered. Forest Fair | Where Retail Goes to Live Wiki | Fandom Shopping mall has over 21 stores and address is: 600 Cincinnati Mills Dr., Cincinnati, Ohio - OH 45240. Developed by Australian retail developer LJ Hooker, it was located at the junction of Interstate 275 and Winton Road (Exit 39) and boasted a total retail floor area of 1,500,000 square feet (140,000 m2). Mexican-inspired restaurant, bar on its way to downtown Farmington. We and our partners use cookies to Store and/or access information on a device. [15] Another major tenant present at opening day was a 100,000-square-foot (9,300m2) entertainment complex called Time Out, featuring a carousel and miniature golf course. This area also features one of Forest Fair Villages two surviving inline tenants: It boggles the mind how this business can continue operatingone of three locations in metro Cincinnati, and it apparently keeps chugging along until midnight on the weekends, long after Forest Fair Village would have remained open when functional (movie theater notwithstanding). Under this concept, each wing would focus on a different theme of shopping. Vibrant colors compliment unique architectural elements decorated by playful items like cards and wavy pianos that hang from the ceiling, or fish that float in one of the many atriums inside the mall. [19] As part of LJ Hooker's bankruptcy filing, the company offered all four of the department stores it had acquired for sale. Why are some malls still attracting customers and others not? Thanks for reaching out. FAIRFIELD, Ohio (WXIX) - Forest Fair Mall has been shut down due to possible safety hazards, according to Forest Park Fire Chief Alfie Jones. I worked on several security systems over the years from the open through most tenets leaving. There simply wasnt a need for another mall when Tri-County and Northgate were both less than 15 minutes away in two separate direction. It's an incredibly large property with just one ownership group, and it fronts Interstate 275. I cant wait to read the sequel! closed the interior of the mall for the same reason.
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