Monmouth Mall's Final Days - Exploring a Dead Mall Before Demolition
Vložit
- čas přidán 7. 03. 2024
- The Monmouth Mall has a long history and has undergone many changes through the years. However today a large portion of the mall sits dead and abandoned while it awaits the wrecking ball. Come with me as we explore this mall and relive its glory days.
Other Videos you might enjoy:
Mini Mall Stuck in Time - The Point at Carlisle Plaza - • Mini Mall Stuck in Tim...
Johnstown Galleria - Gorgeous 90's Era Mall - • Johnstown Galleria - G...
Shopping at One of the Last Open Kmart's - • Shopping at One of the...
Shopping at One of the Last Kmart's - • Shopping at One of the...
Shopping at One of the Last Open Sears Stores - • Shopping at One of the...
The Galleria at Pittsburgh Mills - • Exploring a Bizarre Fe...
York Galleria - Dead Mall Full of Neon - • York Galleria - Dead M...
Lycoming Mall - Retro Time Capsule Dead Mall - • Lycoming Mall - Retro ...
The Final Days of The Galleria White Plains Mall - • The Final Days of The ...
Enfield Square Mall - Cold and Lifeless Mall in Connecticut - • Enfield Square Mall - ...
Brass Mill Center, Waterbury, CT - • Dead Mall with Unique ...
Hudson Mall Jersey City, NJ - Mini Mall on Death Row - • Hudson Mall Jersey Cit...
90's Relic Dead Mall - The Mall at the Source, Long Island NY - • 90's Relic Dead Mall -...
Sunrise Mall, Massapequa NY - Dying Mall Soon to be Closed - • Sunrise Mall, Massapeq...
Dead Mall Tour - Exton Square Mall, Exton Pennsylvania - • Beautiful Dead Mall - ...
Exploring What's Left of the Harbor Square Mall (Shore Mall) - • Exploring What's Left ...
The sheer size of the parking lot shows how busy this mall once was...
It was always busy the years I worked there. They had parking areas so far from the entrance along the highway, highway 35, that you would never see full, but usually at Christmas, all spaces were full. Every other Wednesday usually had A&S one day sales, holiday season was always a jungle, etc. Going to Sebastian's pub for a few beers on lunch break or after work, Supercade at the other end of the mall was great. It had a "Ground Round" restaurant, which was good too, which I believe was a separate building near where Supercade was. You would throw the empty peanut shells on the floor, but I am sure someone would complain today that it is not safe and would not allow it. Penny's entrance and the stair area in front of their first floor entrance was a popular meeting place. Except for the customers, it was cool. :-)
Without you this would probably go forgotten. Seeing this is a necessary punch in the gut… sad to see them go but you’re doing history justice.
Keep up the good work, buddy.
Thank you. I just want there to be a record of the place
@@RayOutThere There’s so many that I wish had been done.. all I got left is memories. Like I said you’re doing the lords work, bro!
Yeah, sad to see this place go, i only went to this mall once before, definitely something interesting to see, i really hope they can keep the stores and parts they plan on preserving. It's up to them, it's their decision. 😔😔😔😔😔🥺🥺🥺🥺😥😥😥😥😭😭😭😭. Please excuse my overusage of emojis.
grew up with malls they were a big part of my life I get very sad when i see malls disappearing I have so many fond memories of my life with malls
So sad to be hearing of this! I grew up in Tinton Falls and the Monmouth Mall and Freehold Raceway Mall were both my go-to malls. I remember when Monmouth Mall had JC Penney, Macy's, Abraham and Strauss, and Bamberger's, just to name a few. So many painful memories.
The red, yellow, blue and white tiles were from the Great American Cookies Company.
Those wood chevron floors in Macy's are beautiful!
I would have LOVED to have that 70s shelf seen in the last view into Penney's. I hope someone takes it home!
Thanks for the tour, Ray. That Lord & Taylor store had a really nice facade.
I thought it had to be something like Great American Cookies! Glad you enjoyed the video!
You think in 10-15 years you will be doing an abandoned walk thru of freehold raceway mall. I remember the day it opened, sweet deals at the kee-bee toys,I made out like a bandit!
I think Freehold will stick around. Simon usually keeps their malls alive
sad to see this mall fall off like this. I remember going here as a little kid and thinking the place was huge!
So depressing. Our childhoods are disappearing. Ugh. Thanks for documenting it Ray! 😊😊😊
Thanks for watching!
Man…..so many memories of this mall soon to be gone😢. I actually bought a pair of Globe shoes from that Zumeiz back in 2022. Thank you for everything Monmouth Mall!
So sad :(
Lots of memories from the 80's for me.
Love the transition between old and new footage, it's like having time machine on your hand, excellent music choice too.
Thank you so much! My last video was kinda bad and I wanted to "resurrect" it
This is actually very heartbreaking😢
yeah😥 thanks for watching
I forgot all about Le Crepe. I loved it there.
And the Ground Round back in the day
Oh yeah. I forgot about Le Crepe too! Ground Round was cool. Peanut shells all over the floor. Sebastian's pub was nice too for a few beers after work. They opened up TGI Fridays in a separate builing right across from Penney's parking lot when I worked there and that became a new hangout. There was also a Firestone, Midas, or some automotive shop right across from TGIF.
Nice job documenting the transition going on in retail away from suburban shopping malls. Malls ( and suburban big box retail ) replaced central business district retail several decades back. Some of these structures are getting repurposed, but it seems they are a small minority. It seems a waste to demolish so much when residential housing has been scarce and costly.
Ray, thank you so much for the accurate and extensive coverage of Monmouth Mall. I have been going there since it was Monmouth Shopping Center in the 60s. Ironic how it is now going to come "full circle" and convert back into what it once was: An open air Shopping Center (to be known as Monmouth Square) I have lots of fond memories of going there as a young child, teen,then an adult, and I will truly miss it. I'm hoping the new venue will live up to expectations. Thanks once again for this extraordinary coverage of an iconic place.
Thank you so much, I really appreciate that! I do think its funny that this mall has come full circle to being an open air plaza once again
Awesome video. Wish I could have seen this place before it closed.
Just a few years ago it was pretty lively
This mall is 5 miles from home. My daughter worked at gymboree in 2017 or 18. Back in the late 70s early 80s, you couldn't move. 100s of people packed in side to side. Christmas time? Forget it. You parked out by route 35 and walked to the entrance. This really hits home for me. Spent teenage years there and beyond. I don't think the current plans are gonna save it. What's up with the bookstore? Staying or going? Thanks Ray for another great video.
I think that the B&N will be moved somewhere else and a whole foods put in that area.
@@RayOutThere moved somewhere on the property or no?
I just posted and then noticed yours. I would always think that the parking next to route 35 was a waste of space until I worked there. Yep, those spots were always full at Christmas time. I would pull into the parking lot for work, see them full, and think %$$#^%!
Rainy day here! Perfect time for your video❤
Glad you like it!
I lived right around the corner, I used to shop there all the time.
Such a shame
Thanks for the video. Sad to see these places go. Safe travels.
Thank you!
Good job Ray! I have never been to this mall but I bet there were a lot of memories in that place.
I never spent much time there myself until I started getting into mall exploration
Love the details highlighted throughout & the endless escalators. We were just in our own semi-lively mall this afternoon and the relative blandness of its corridors compared to these older stores really stands out.
Everything is so bland nowadays, I think its affecting people's moods in a bad way
It’s hard to imagine this mall is just within days of getting demolished with so much of it still intact and the lights on. Great video. Sad to see this being a victim of today’s modern shopping habits. This is a remnant of how people used to get together before WiFi, cell phones and Apps. Take us back to 1995 please!
Great editing on this video Ray! Love the transitions between the before and now and all the history you incorporated into it!
Thank you Mom!
Was hoping youd go back. This was by far the best and most detailed video on Monmouth Mall that I have seen. Great job!
I really appreciate that, thank you so much!
That footage of Suncoast is such a throwback! 🤩 it’s a massive shame there’s no more Suncoasts in the North East anymore…
I miss them so much!
Thanks for this extensive video once again. Never been here but I can imagine the impact on the community with all the jobs being lost as this is going down
I wonder if the new development will be better for the community. I really don't know the answer
Hi Ray! another great video you never fail keep them coming we use to shop at this mall back in 70"s it was one of the top malls in the state all we have now is memories
It used to be quite a busy mall until the owner decided to redevelop it.
When they opened the Freehold mall, it seemed like they did the 90's remodel to compete with them, but it just did not seem the same after that.
Great job Ray!! Always nice to see your work preserving and documenting these malls so that once they're gone, their memory can live on. Cool mall and you're right, the outside that JCPenney has very nostalgic architecture ... and it looks totally awesome!! Thanks as always.
Glad you enjoyed it. This place will be gone but at least its been captured
I think it was done in the mid 80's. If I remember correctly, it was being done when I worked there 84-88.
Hey Ray, great video man! You've really captured all the Monmouth Mall vibes, especially that JCPenney with its backrooms feel. And you're spot on about the liminal space vibe in that dead mall. It's like time froze, and you're walking through a place that's both familiar and strange. Keep up the awesome work!
Thank you so much, and you do the same!
Me seeing that Simpsons Konami arcade cabinet brings back memories.
Great game. I remember playing it at the movie theater when i was a kid
Great video! We still have our Suncoast in Beavercreek Ohio, neon sign and all. I guess we are one of the last in America. So unfortunate to see this mall heading for demolition, it looks like it was really upscale and nice back in it's heyday. Appreciate you documenting and taking us along, as always!
Thank you for watching! I would love to see a Suncoast just one more time.
I went to the Suncoast at this same mall in 2019 and one of the customers asked the clerk, " this is an amazing store! Is it a franchise?" I found it very funny because this was a middle-aged guy and I figured he would have been familiar with Suncoast Video from his youth. But maybe he grew up in a place that didn't have Suncoast.
Amazing video Ray. Despite I never visited this mall, I have always looked into updates of this place since 2021 so it has been heart breaking watching this place die off. Honestly though, this small glamorous mall has hit its end in this chapter so hopefully a new exciting one can start in the next few years.
I will be interested to see how the new development turns out. I will definitely check it out when its complete
Great video!
Thank you!
There was a sporting goods store here back in the 80's I used to love coming to as a kid. They had an authentic Chicago Bears NFL football helmet up on a high shelf behind the counter, next to a little tv. I wanted that helmet SO badly!
I remember stores like that!
Was that the one down by the Sam Goody on the first floor at the end by the entrance to A&S, Macys, or whatever it was and is now Boscov's, I think? It was near the escalators? Was it Wilsons Sporting Goods?
Hey! I've been going to this mall since I was a kid, and it's been a nostalgia punch to see it closing.
I do know Disney Store lore because I remember the old one so, so clearly: It used to be on the 2nd floor, I don't remember exactly which store it was but it had that mid-90s "theater" aesthetic you may recall, with the middle section stuffed with plushies around a projector/TV in the back. It did eventually move to that other store before it closed and became East Meets West!
I had to search around but eventually I found a picture of it on flicker
Hi Ray
Great.Video!
Always sad to see these malls get demolished I guess it’s a sign of the times there is one in my neck of the woods that is still going strong no signs of closing
Malls that have good management can still thrive
@@RayOutThere True the mall in my area once Sears closed the mall kinda went through a transformation now there are all these fancy stores and restaurants that are always packed
I have lived 5 minutes away from this mall most of my life. It is/was not a stand out mall, but it was my mall and I love it. I remember A&S and Bambergers, but besides K-B Toys and Babbages, the place I miss so very much is York Steak House. It was a medieval aesthetic restaurant that served a wicked quarter-chicken meal deal with killer chocolate pudding.
Medieval themed steakhouse? Sounds amazing!
East meets west was a great store for metal tees. They used to have one in quakerbridge but not sure if they still do. My favorite wast east in Burlington center right next to heros world.
I think there still is one in Quakerbridge. I think there's still lots of stores around in other malls too.
Good vid Ray! Thanks for posting. This mall was part of my life in the early 20s and also while going to MU. I’m curious how Brunswick Square is doing. I heard it’s not dying so no one seems to be filming it…
I've been to Brunswick Square a few times and its just kinda unremarkable. Its not dead, its not super busy either. And it just looks rather boring. If there was enough interest I would make a video on it thought
@@RayOutThere oh, I understand. I go back to the days when it had York Steakhouse, Roy Rogers, Fun-n-games arcade, KB Toys, Hot Sam pretzels and McCrory’s… it was great!!
Thanks for the reply!
This video is a great final tribute to this mall, nice job. Also neat to see the juxtaposition of the old footage with the new. As much as I would like to see the mall stay in its present form, I seem to be in the minority as most people have stopped shopping there. I have to admit the complex that they are building there seems like it would be a cool place to live or work. Anyway thanks for the great video.
Glad you enjoyed it!
Great video
Thanks!
I was there last month sad to see
Hey. It is shame that they are going to tear it down. They should take our taxes and do something with it instead (we pay enough). Another great video. Thanks for the content and hard work.
Thank you for watching!
@@RayOutThere welcome!
We used to go to Suncoast.🎬
I miss it so much!
I’m with you, it makes me sad.
The past 16 yrs have been absolutely brutal for the retail sector and to think the retail apocalypse still isnt over!
With Macy's about to close more stores, we're about to see another wave of malls closing
@@RayOutThere now only 150 macys left!
@@chm9935 wow and almost 20 yrs ago there was 800 plus
@@retroguy1976 Yes. Its unreal. They are struggling not to go the way of liquidation like Lord & Taylor
Amazon crushed retail and malls.
It’s surprising to see that asbestos sign given the renovations the mall underwent through the years, it’s been a known problem for a while. You’d think it would have been addressed way back when. Good video preserving this mall before it’s gone forever.
Yeah that surprised me too.
It’s like watching part of my childhood die. I remember going on “group dates” here because we were too young to solo date or going to the movies and having that friend that worked there who let you into the R movies. This is sad!
Good memories!
Haven’t been to this mall in a long time. The last time I was there, it was Boscov’s grand re-opening. The medical building next to the store was already built. The mall itself was quiet, probably about 75% of the stores were closed. It’s hard to think that this is going to be the future site of 1000 apartments. Probably rent will be $2500 for a one bedroom. Hope that all of these changes are for the best.
Only time will tell
I remember at one end of the mall, it was right outside the first floor entrance to "Caldors" which became Target and not sure what other stores were there, that in the early 90's, they had a few sections of the Berlin Wall on display. That was cool.
I remember when I was a kid and they were enclosing the shopping center. Walking past the stores, I think the roof was being built, but the hallway floors had not been laid yet and it was dirt with wood in spots so you could walk through the puddles and not in the mud. There was also a bank in a small building right outside of Bamberger's, next to the area that supercade was at, that I got a plastic blue piggy bank from to save my change in. It was Eatontown Savings and loan, or something like that.
I belive the Caldor space became Old Navy. That's the first I've heard about the Berlin wall being there, that's wild!
7:53 is very - a e s t h e t I c -
I remember the air soft range in there a few years ago
I've visited Monmouth Mall a couple weeks ago. The only businesses operating today are Boscov's, Macy's & the movie theater.
Its a ghost town
Looks pretty, sad it will be gone
I believe those were the Disney Stores that were renovated by the Children's Place when they bought them out for a short period of time which is why it has that red look. It was one of the worst versions of the Disney Store.
Beaumont Texas still has a Suncoast as of late 2023. They even fixed the neon sign and run the TV's again.
How much is a plane ticket?!
Good to see you back, buddy.
I was wondering when we'd get an upload.
Yesterday I was watching some vids of the old Sherman oaks galleria in LA.
I recognized it from commando, but didn't realise how many other films it had featured in.
I sat and watched that phantom of the mall, lol. Great that they shot almost all the film in the mall.
It wasn't the best film I'd ever seen, lol. But, it was good 80s cheese.
Plus, ill watch anything pauly shore is in.😂
By the looks of it, i never got a notification for your last video. I don't recognise the title.
I'll make sure to watch it tomorrow.
This one took me some time. And I've just had real life things to do. Sherman Oaks is an iconic movie mall. I always think of T-1000 saying "the galleria?"
@@RayOutThere yes!
John playing after burner.
That was a great arcade game.
That's one of the thing's i miss about malls, the arcades.
We don't need more apartments in NJ the roads are already to crowded.
Municipal expenses in most NJ towns continue to climb but raising taxes is out of the question. Instead of doing the sensible thing and merging NJs many Podunk towns, they are chasing more rateables by building 'luxury' apartments everywhere.
I really don’t know how some of these arcades are making profits. Those newer raw thrills type games are astronomically expensive. They constantly wind up at the arcade auctions.
I have seen arcades with just old school 8 and 16 bit cabinets do amazing with all age groups.
I feel like these little mall arcades are just passive income for whoever owns them.
Man I remember going there
A mall near me called the nanuet mall they converted it partially to an outdoor mall and removed parts of the indoor.
I used to come here all the time with my dad and get anime at Suncoast. Better times :c
I too used to get anime on vhs at the Suncoast in my local mall. Good memories
Things really started to gradually go downhill after the fiscal panic of 2008. Now we have car dwelling zoomers, CEOs suggesting we have cereal for dinner, macys/jcp selling secondhand clothes, $18.00 big macs in CT, etc
The mall looks so clean and modern, how'd it become abandoned?
The owner has let the leases expire in order to demolish and redevelop the mall
Whoa. I used to go there all the time! I remember a store called Intrinsic.
Was it like a new age shop?
@@RayOutThere It had toys, swords, New Age stuff, some CDs, D&D stuff (the guy I dated at the time was into that). I bought a Billy doll there in 1997 (the first "Out & Proud" gay doll). I still have him in the box with the Intrinsic price sticker on him.
That sounds so cool, stores like that are so much fun
What determines that the only choice is between luxury apartments or the wrecking ball. An old mall could become the nucleus of a small town with moderate housing in the expansive parking lots, Small local college teaching tech trades more relevant to current needs and a place for small or local business to start? Perhaps this is a crisis of the same stores in all the malls across the entire country dominating the corporate market place. In most cases they are insignificant but you need small business and a place for them to evolve.
Have any of the multi use centers been built and actually worked. This seems like the way they're doing it now to these dead malls
I've seen many built in recent years that are still sitting half vacant. Seems to me they're just as dead as the malls.
so much to salvage - think of all the elements that could be reused
At one point the colorful panel store was Spencer's
That Planet Fitness entrance looks like the old movie theater entrance
Does anyone in the comments know when Braddocks men’s store closed at this mall? I still have some very nice suits that cost a lot of money decades ago hanging in the back of my closet.
I’m hoping you do an episode about Livingston Mall. I think the Macy’s there is going to be one of the locations that Macy’s will close this year, causing the death blow for the mall itself as there would only be one anchor tenant left.
I was there recently and even the “God Is Great” store closed along with the Victoria’s Secret.
I plan on filming that one soon.
This use to be a great mall. What do you think about the future for Quakerbridge, Marketfair, Freehold, and Woodbridge? Thank you, I love your content.
I think the malls you mentioned will survive for as long as the owners take care of them
Hello! I am a reporter for The U.S. Sun. I have written an article about this mall and we were wondering if we could feature your video in an article? We think our readers would love it. With your permission, we will credit your page. Thanks!
Hello and yes I am interested. Could you contact me via DM on Instagram? There should be a link on my main page
@@RayOutTheresure! I just did.
1000 new luxury apartments no one can afford, Cool
exactly
kind of ridiculous everything is luxury development and apartments
Yeah, I really wonder how this will turn out
I thought before Haynes, it was A&S
Gonna go from an empty mall to an empty 'luxury' apartment complex
Most likely
Mixed use. Smh. Smh. Thats been so hit or miss. Luxury apts?! Who the hell can afford that now?!
I agree. I've seen so many go up in NJ and most of them are half full
@@RayOutThere Yup! The one at voorhees town center half full.
No more hats here.
Wonder if the internet and amazon kills all the mall business.?
Not as much as you would think. Mall location and good management matters more.
Thats part of the reason. Other reasons----decline of disposable income, mall chain stores like Waldenbooks either liquidated, heavily downsized, or closed all their brick/mortar locations, changing consumer shopping habits, no new fashion trends, people can now hang out with others via tech without having to leave their home.
of course they did plus Covid
Dead and dying malls---the result of America converting to a "service economy" (e.g. bartenders, retailers, food servers).
Hello! I am a reporter for The U.S. Sun. I have written an article about this mall and we were wondering if we could feature your video in an article? We think our readers would love it. With your permission, we will credit your page. Thanks!
Yes that sounds good, just give credit to my channel.