Beltway Plaza Mall | a dead mall and the devitalization of retail | ExLog 76
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- čas přidán 21. 11. 2020
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Hey guys, thanks so much for taking a walk with me through this mall. I've been to this place countless times, and despite seeing it change over the course of a decade, it still feels exactly the same. The occupancy is nearly the same, but the quality of the stores has faded from regional chains, to local offerings. Retail here is just...devitalized, and even though the occupancy is fairly high, the quality of this establishment force me to call it a dead mall. It's not always about numbers, and this is a prime example.
#exlog #salguido #dmodfam
Hey guys, thanks for watching. Let me know if you want me to hire that aerobic dog lady for your next birthday, or if you need me to pick any of you up a couple suits at that place Fritz bought his at. Love you all.
Thanks Sal, I really enjoy your show it really helps get through these Covid times... Thanks again man
Yes definitely invite her over 😂
Maryland and Virginia, surrounding Washington DC, have some of the worst remnants of retail and residence. What a fall from grace.
I am really curious as to how much that suit put Fritz back:???
$150
These videos are priceless. They are a fount of nostalgia for malls and every experience we have all shared within them, as well as a finger on the pulse of retail in America.
Hey thanks so much! I always appreciate your comments. Cheers!
Again one of the most interesting and underrated malls in the DMV. I ate lunch at the Japan eatery at the main entry in early 2019 after a physical training for my now-furloughed job. Now i can go there more often as one of the metrobus routes goes from greenbelt metro, in front of the mall’s entrance to deanwood station where i can catch a bus to my apartment complex.
the poodle workout is possibly the creepiest advert iv ever seen crrrrrriiiiinge
Oops lol
Cursed aerobics.
I know right? OMG! Major crrriiinnnnge! LOL
Thank you so much for this video. I grew up right there in Berwyn Heights from 1987 til i moved in 2001. i spent my entire childhood and teenage years at that mall. This video showed me to relive all those spots i used to skateboard to with my friends. It's so crazy to see how few stores i grew up with are still there. And thank you as well for the history lesson!
I grew up in DC. I had two aunts that lived near the mall. I remember the Jeepers here. My mom and sis still go to the Joanns there.
Back in the 80's, the building in the south parking lot that now houses a Game Stop was a Time Out arcade. Back then, the roof of the building had a really cool geodesic dome structure that sort of created the impression you where playing video games in space station. Don't know why the roof was remodeled, have a vague memory that the glass panes leaked, but that might not be correct. There was also a second Time Out location in the mall itself.
Very cool
In the 80s that arcade was called "the Golden Dome" my favorite arcade as a kid. It was rad.
Besides the Golden Dome, there was a second arcade in the ’90s that was next to the AMC Academy 8. Was that Time Out?
Usually cool looking mall decor, roofs, and fountains are removed for more sterile looking architecture.
That wasn't the only local arcade. In the early 80's there was an video arcade on MD 450 near Bowie named the Grand Illusion. Basically it was an old double wide trailer filled with arcade ganes. It was super popular on weekends especially.
That has to be *the* strangest mishmash of stores in a mall I've ever seen. Crazy...
And how! 😊
I like this place. Its weird and random, and I'm a big believer in keeping those types of places around.
I’m right there with you
What a beautiful mall, I love the interior designs as I hope that they don't remodel it or tear it down for a new shopping center. Everyone wants "New", "New", "New" than refurbish such classic designs.
The husky encounter in front of the Jo Ann's reminds me of my random encounter with a german shepherd inside the Sears Hometown at Woodland Mall in Bowling Green last year
Dude, i'm really love all of your videos. Very professional!
Thank you! Finishing the next one up right now.
I love the AMC lighting as you approach the theatre. That's some good cinematography.
Hey, thanks :)
Spooky poodles 🐩 ☑️ awesome community interaction ☑️ loved the logo, paint on railing, and variety of lights. Glad Fritz and you were able to hit the mall
LOL is/was a small amusement park/arcade, previously named Jeepers and I think Funland before that.
Omg I had a funland near me. Wayyy back
Elevator license/inspection registration expired. 1/22/20.
Also, remember the old Landover Mall had a very similar Beltway "clover" icon?
This is awesome and seems they are totally trying to keep it alive looks to be in really good shape!
Remember going here. Saw a movie here in '95. Used to go to that Caldor too. I remember the traffic was crazy. Memories
Such a great place.
Sweet vid! What a weird setup for a mall. good history and background love the music as always
I loved this new format! A lot more interaction..if course its not a completely dead mall yet either.. also that filter in the opening is totally rad! Wicked cool video man!! Thanks!
Hey thanks!
It used to be a chuck e cheese in there , and a arcade outside where the gamestop is at , back in the 80s
Yeah I was so sad when the arcade closed I think it closed in like 2012.I use to go there all the time it was cool
Golden Dome!!!! I think I still have a "coin" from there.
@@azjoe_6310 yep , that joint was so much fun , a dark smoke filled place with games and pinball machines , oh miss those days .
@@Cat-zp3hk yep had so much fun in there
You sure it was not Jeepers instead of Chuck e Cheese? Similar concept though.
Dude this place is f***ing redonculous. I really appreciate the historical context! I’m glad I found another great channel to binge!
Sal let's hope 2021 brings everyone a new beginning of good fortune and normalcy!!!
I live in the complex you drove out of at the beginning and I always go to the mall to go to Giant. It's really old school but we love it!
I lived at Westchester Park up on the 18th floor while I was getting schooled at college park! Put it in as a bit of a silent Easter egg :)
Another sweet video! I was born and raised in Maryland and it never ceases to amaze me I learn new history about my hometown from your videos. It seems like a no brainer to me to take these obscenely large spaces and turn them into affordable housing! I don’t think we will ever need more retail or office space ever again. The state has changed just like the rest of the world. More and more people are struggling, homeless and jobless. We need to fix those issues then worry about other ways to spend(waste) taxpayers money. Imo of course.
Btw big D & D nerd girl here👋👍😎💖
I picked up a girl one Friday night at Beltway Plaza....we spent the weekend together....and got married!
What year was thjs
@@slovelyyx7718 1984
@@g-mang-man7924 are you still together?
No....but we are still friends
I can't even tell you how many times I've been to that mall. So nostalgic! ❤
I haven’t been to this mall since I was a child, probably around 1993
I am glad you pointed out that horrible red and black tile interior that was so popular in malls in the 1980’s
i don't care what anybody says but the 3 Bros Pizza is the actual anchor store there. thats the only store that has has survived thru the ages
I love 3 brothers! I remember that not long after it opened, my sister was around three years old, and she managed to get her head stuck in one of the chairs. A staff member had to go to the hardware store to get tools to take the chair apart.
In the meantime, my sister, sitting with her knees on the floor and her head in the chair, asked my mom,"Can I have my pizza?" 😂
For at least a couple of years after that, the brothers looked nervous every time they saw us come in lol. .
Three Brothers is Beltway Plaza. It is the only reason why I go to Beltway Plaza besides Green belt Giant.
I was hoping you would cover this mall. Thanks Sal!
It was cool to see the different eras of the building style.
Not gonna lie that intro caught me off guard haha. Sal! I’ve been watching you since you were at 10k subs. Please don’t ever stop making videos!
Never!!! Thanks for watching :)
I was there in 1985 when don johnson from Miami vice showed up to give a speech on drugs. You use to be able to smoke in the mall and there were ash trays everywhere. Out in the parking lot was a yellow dome with an arcade and a barb’s big boy, use to live across the street. It was exciting to go there on the weekends and see the lines for movies. Thanks for this
I appreciate this video! I grew up in college park so I’d frequent beltway plaza. Thanks for reminding me about a bunch of stuff I forgot. Also I didn’t realize the big lots closed lol
Love the electro swing at the end. Interesting mall.
great video & narrating. thanks so much for posting...will subscribe!
This is really packed for A dead mall.
Another great Ex-Log. You and Fritz just crack me up!!
P.S. Those suits rock 😁
This mall had been a staple of shopping entertainment for our family since the '70's, and on into the early '90's. The names of many of the stores have left my memory, but not the feeling of going there! I remember seeing Star Wars in '77 at the Academy 6! We loved going to 3 Brothers for a pepperoni pizza, and go down to the Mon Ami(?) store that sold all manner of leather wristbands, tee shirts and belt buckles. I got my first guitar at the music store, my Dad used to buy jewelry for my Mom at the little jeweler that was just inside the fmain entrance on the left (I think), near a school tutoring establishment. There was an excellent record store off the main intersection, I think it was Waxie Maxie's? And the 3 Brothers spinoff restaurant, Schmoozers (or Schmoozies?), was where my wife and I had our wedding rehearsal dinner. *That Luv'n Time boutique has been there at least as long as 3 Brothers, at least 35 years! My mom would forbid me to walk past the place in my youth! lol. The center sections of the walkways had big built up planters in the '80's, and the center had a waterfall and a seating area. The teal tiles in the floor are all that's left to mark where the raised planter boxes and decorative features used to be. It's bittersweet to see how vacant the place now stands, at leasat we have fond memories to recall. Thanks for posting this video, Sal!
Wow, spent many weekends at the Golden Dome. Friends of mine worked at the Subway inside the mall in the mid 80’s. 3 Brothers has great pizza, glad to see they are still doing well. Funny, I do not remember it being 2 stories!!
Wow! Talk about memories.
I use to always go here when I was a kid. The mall was always packed. I stayed going to the theaters and the arcade.
Especially the arcade. Lol
Thanks for this, Bought me back.
I remember going by this mall before and going to the target nearby the mall and I am so happy for you and Fritz
This video gave me some laughs that I definitely needed
Dude, I love you so much for this videos. And let just say me and son use to come to this mall every Tuesday when movie only costed $5. Such a great memories. Thanks sorry to see this mall this way. Still got pictures by the Christmas tree🥲🥲
Awesome video. The intro is especially good. Kinda reminds me of when you start playing GTA5. When you choose which of the 3 characters you want to play with, and the picture goes from a grey slow motion visual to real time... Great job.
Lived in Springhill Lake for a year in the 90s, right behind that mall, while going to UMCP. I remember eating in that small Mexican restaurant and that 3 Brothers and going to both of the AMC locations there. Shocked both those restaurants are still there.
Hooray for the bonus Very Good Husky Doggo!
Used to live right up the hill . . . behind this mall - Franklin Park Apartments . . . left 4 years ago. Hope this mall succeeds, redevelops once more, magnetically absorbing . . . and satisfying all the consumer's needs ! 🇺🇸
I swear this still looks like 1965 in here
ALL they got was some remodel in the 80s the made it look like the Mayberry Mall and Vernon Park Mall
I used to visit this mall - primarily the anchors- several times a year. There used to be a party place with rides, where my kids hosted and attended birthday parties. Beltway Plaza is an oddly charming place. Thanks for the video!
That would be jeepers I think it was like chuck e. cheese then they turned it into a place called planet fun I think .
@@Cat-zp3hk right! We went to both Jeepers and Planet Fun. Thanks, because I could only remember the Jeepers name.
I loved that place. From the outside, you could see some of the rides, and it was very strange having almost a amusement park in a mall, but it was awesome!
I'm pretty high right now, but the interior of that mall is pretty sweet and overall it looks like they keep it up.
Yeah its been getting better there are plans to fix up the mall more to make it even more modern.Alot of the smaller businesses are doing bad though.
Sal’s videos are often my go-to.
Hey, thanks!
*I'm high as fuck now too, dabbing on this danky hash budder all nite.* 💉💉🆗
Agreed upkept better than many that are this slow
This is so sad, seeing businesses struggling and closing. I hope and pray that times get better soon.
Sal , I really enjoy your content. Keep it up !
Thanks, Joey!
So many memories in this mall as a kid and now memories with my kids in this mall.
That guy with the grey hair is a riot. Love your videos.
Thanks :)
Very apt description of 2020. Take my like. I always love your videos though!
Hey, thanks!
Spent many dollars at the Golden Dome Arcade out in the parking lot.
That aerobics teacher is something else!😂
This is going to go way back. I grew up in Greenbelt and went to Greenbelt Junior High School (now Greenbelt Middle School) between 1968 and 1970. Sometimes we would go to the then-plaza after school, particularly if we had an after school club, because the school buses didn't run back then. I do remember S Kleins. Thing is, I remember seeing Romeo and Juliet over there, so there must have been a movie theater way back then.
That 3 Brothers is one of my all time favorite places to eat. Just fantastic.
Cool video. Love the history
I used to work at the Beltway Plaza in the early 70s as the Director of Security before I went over to Landover Mall to work in security. Working for Brown could be a nightmare at times. The Mall never really picked up the customers at any time I was there.
We have the same life. I grew up going to Towson Plaza before the upgrade then worked at Beltway plaza during college. Chesapeake Bay Seafood house. All you can eat poor quality seafood.
::demonstrative high five::
I used to love Chesapeake Bay Seafood. There was a location in Glen Burnie MD that I used to eat at all the time. They had a unique pricing system, you chose what level of food you wanted and could get as much of it as you wanted. They gave you a certain color plate and you could choose from that area of the buffet or anything of lower price. For example if you chose the lowest price level, you got all fried seafood, next level was baked or broiled, next was steamed shrimp, clams and snow/king crab legs, next was steamed blue crabs, highest level was lobster tails. If you wanted the top level food it was over $30 per person. They had a few employees monitoring the buffet so that you couldn't cheat and get anything of a higher price level.
As a small child, I remember when Towson Plaza was open air, and then when they enclosed it (AC!). Later, I worked at the Rite Aid which still displayed Reed's outside (might have been Reed's the first year). $3.35 an hour, saving up to buy a Member's Only jacket not, probably at Chess King (too wild), but at some other long gone men's wear place with pudgy bald salesmen in polyknit who didn't take kindly to 16 year olds - was it all of 35.00? A lot for a kid in 1982.
@@joeseeking3572 I got a gray suede Members Only jacket for Christmas on my 15th birthday in 1983. I only wanted a regular windbreaker but the suede one had a zip out lining that made it good for many different weather conditions. I was one of very few people to have a suede version. Most kids had the standard polyester version or the really rich kids had a full grain leather version. The suede version wasn't very popular for some reason but I absolutely loved mine. I wore it for 15 years until I got too large to fit into it any longer. I still have it stored away in my memorabilia collection. It might be worth some money someday !!!
@@joeseeking3572 Was it Read's? I lived near one and it had an ice cream counter I think and later turned to Rite Aid.
And Kreski's! (? no idea if that is right) it was like a McCrory's maybe.
Ah yes....Member Only jackets *swoon*
I moved to DC in 2010 for grad school too. I started shopping (mostly at Target, Marshall's, and JoAnn's) because the 'burbs have parking lots. I didn't realize how expansive this plaza was! Can confirm the basement stinks. I now work for PGC Planning. Love your channel.
My dad lived on Rhode Island ave and would pick me up every other weekend. The culmination of our weekend was always a movie at beltway plaza. The moment when you were walking up to the amc and turned the camera to the left brought back so many memories. There was a little spot where he would sip coffee while I went through a $20 at golden dome arcade. I was hoping you’d turn left. Strangely I almost expected to see him there. He’s been gone a long time.
This was 1985ish
The stores I loved were
golden dome arcade
Indoor arcade (time out maybe)
Monami tee shirt store
Three bros pizza
Movie theater
Best
Chesapeake bay seafood house
Popeyes chicken.
Loved that mall. Laurel mall was #1 to me, beltway plaza then Columbia mall. Thanks for the video
I bought many pairs of Levis at Kurly's! Had many slices of pizza at 3 Brothers. Played a lot of pinball at the indoor arcade while waiting to see a movie. Bought a lot of blank cassettes at Luskins. Ate a lot of sea food at Chesapeake Bay Seafood House. Saw a lot of movies at AMC. Browsed a lot of books at the bookstore. Lusted after a lot of 35mm cameras at the outdoor facing Ritz Cameras. Oh I miss the 80's.
After the aerobics dogs bit, I knew I had to subscribe. Also, I've been watching Dan Bell and retail Archaelogy, so I think I'll enjoy your vids.
You DEFINITELY will enjoy Sal's vids because he puts a LOT of effort and research into them (Not saying that the others don't, but Sal seems to go above and beyond when it comes to getting the whole story on these Malls, dead or alive.)
I remember the Greenbelt Mall. During later 70s it was a great place. I thought it will never go out business.
You should of gone to the Three Brothers one of the best pizza places in Maryland. This is the original 3 Brothers
Oh I’ve been dozens of times...so good
I was going to say that also. I moved to College park 20 years ago and that 3 Bros was one of the first food places I found. The pizza is excellent!
You are so right!!!
I have been to this Three Brothers many times and it is one of my absolute favorite locations. I always enjoyed wathcing pizza eating competitions on Saturdays there as a kid.
I'm loving that men's store! All those jackets!
Fritz pulls an awesome "Marty Feldman" look there at the end..lol.
Always enjoy your videos...as usual! Stay safe.
A picture of Marty Feldman was actually Fritz’s contact picture on my phone for years. True story.
I live in NoVA and discovered this mall by accident, in the area and looking for a Target on google maps. This was a few years ago (preCovid) and just before Christmas. It was absolutely packed, and appeared completely leased out! It was a fascinating snapshot of the striving immigrant led economy of older inner suburbs. Yeah, it's not what (cough cough white) people expect in a mall, but it was a pretty cool spectacle. Landmark was never as lively as this place was. Very cool to visit this place if you've never been.
I am a big mall enthusiast to and still r I know a lot about some of the MD malls u logged wow keep it going sal
Love your content!
Hey, thanks!
Fritz is so hilarious and he was totally killing that suit jacket. He should have left it on.
There was never a Chuck E Cheese. First there was Jeepers and then, Planet Fun. And a couple of arcades - one in the mall, and the other a standalone arcade in the parking lot. But they all had a Chuck E Cheese vibe lol.
Very well maintained mall clean
Daggonit, Sal! I've got things to do, and here you are distracting me with another video!
Oops!
@@sal AHAHAHHA. SUUUUUURE you are Sal!!! ;)
I grew up in New Carrollton, right next to Greenbelt. I saw the original Star Wars in 1976 at the AMC theaters.
Wow, brings back memories. I live in Baltimore now and left PG County eleven years ago. Watched many movies at this mall. My husband and I had our first date at AMC fourteen years ago. I always hated the parking garage/deck at the front entrance. Weird. It was the first thing I thought of when I saw the title of this video. Is the US Postal Service substation still located there?
No
Place has held up surprisingly well compared to the Albany, NY area malls. Went on a movie date there back in 1992 while living in MD and it seemed a little sketchy.
Hahaha this opener was golden!
There was also a theater on the outside of the mall on the left side. I saw Little Shop of Horrors and BTTF 3 there. It closed in the early 90s. It's where the party store is. The classic Golden Dome arcade outside also had a location inside the mall on the hallway walk to the Academy 8. And there is nothing better than the original Three Brother's location there.
I've been there several times but only for the stores that face outside. Might have been inside 2 times since 1986.
The ceiling in the main hallways at Beltway Plaza Mall, I am geeking out, beautiful.
Isn’t it amazing??
That's actually really cool y'all are playing D&D
LOLOLOL. Still trying to unsee the Fembot Jazzercise instructor. The Poodles were awesome. Great job Sal another super informative, highly entertaining Saga. You rock. Capt Sal drives the cart scooter like a boss. Stay safe.
AHAHHAHHAHAHA you will NEVER unsee that...it is now burned into your brain like a brand from a branding iron.
* EVIL LAUGHTER * :) ;)
There used to be a jeepers, but it closed down after a shootout . They tried to open back up under a new name, but people did come back out of fear of what happened before and closed down permanently...
I briefly worked in a store in this mall in the late summer of 1988 before getting a non-retail job in DC. I didn't stay long in the area as I found late eighties DC very depressing.
I lived in Greenbelt for one year during the mid ‘80s and must have driven by it over a hundred times on my way to the university. But I can’t for the life of me remember even seeing it. I also lived in New Carrollton and Hyattsville during that era and I remember visiting those malls... weird.
Beautiful dog, strange to see one in a mall without the guide harness. Not surprised to see the cop shop in the mall. I am surprised to see the AMC open, movie theaters have been clobbered due to the virus, even where they are allowed to be open many can't get new films - my local twin has "until we can get new movies, we will remain closed until further notice" (FL allows theaters to be open at 50% occupancy - masks required). For a 'dead' mall there's not many tenant vacancies but (what I'm guessing is) the LOL arcade has bit the dust - and owing money.
Every time I've gone past this mall on the way home, I've wondered what's in Shopper's World. I've only been in this mall like twice in my life or something, since the mall we would really go to (pre pandemic) would be Annapolis Mall or Tysons Corner if we went to VA.
The LOL Fun went in either 2013 or 2014. It was easy to miss since it was in that no-man’s land between the Giant and Target.
I moved to College Park in 2011 because the housing was so affordable for a grad student. That was my Giant until I moved to DC in 2015. Was such a weird yet vibrant mall. The Target was way better than the PG Mall one.
There were Neo Geo arcade machines spread everywhere in 2011. There were a few near the Jo Ann, and then I wandered the length to find the rest. Sort of an easter egg hunt.
The fact is that any re-development is not going to carry those tiny shops forward. They are only flourishing because the space is so old, functional, and not traditionally desirable.
Greenbelt native, born in 1969. I have lived other places, but I moved back here in 2003, and I have been here ever since.
I was at the mall all the time in the 80s - before it turned into an octopus with all of those entrances and wings etc. It was so odd, my ex-husband called it Scary Mall.
However, I don't think it's really fair calling Beltway Plaza a dead mall when you visited there in 2020. Very few people were in any malls in 2020. Normally it's quite a busy place. Okay, complaint over LOL.
To answer your question about the skate park, I don't know anything about the one you mentioned, but one was built in Old Greenbelt, next to the youth center 20 ish years ago.
The LOL was a comedic enterprise (pun intended.) When I first saw the announcement that it would open later that year, my son was about 7 or 8. The sign kept changing the opening date. By the time it was actually open, my son was no longer in the age bracket the store appealed to.
Also, I don't know if you have heard about this, but there's a plan to completely revitalize the whole Mall area. They're adding walkways and green spaces and outdoor tables, etc. It looks like it will be really good for the community.
Thank you for the trip down memory lane. 😊
Lol my old school was right next to this mall and I was so scared to shop there. They we’re often shootings and fights in the mall which caused my school to have frequent lockdowns. The marshalls, target, and party city are good but everything else in the mall is eerie looking
Thanks Sal. Happy Thanksgiving.
Happy Thanksgiving!
I'm a Dan Bell subscriber, but this is great. African food? " Books A Million"? Knives in the dollar store? This place ain't dead! Wish I lived near there!
You need to do a tysons corner center log. I went to college near there.
Filming it in a week or two!!
I went there a few days ago wondering what a video opposite of a dead mall would be like
Tyson's is boring and what you would expect. This place is way more eclectic and interesting.
there was also a bells catalog dept store that was in s'kleins area from 76-79. I bought a record player there in 1977
This was my favorite mall as a kid
Update: The tjmaxx in the mall will be closing permanently in February of this year !
I remember going there in the 70's/80's Mantrap Salon, lots of movies, Caldor, Luskin's...so many memories, thanks for posting
Do you remember what was on the end that ended up being a Target? I can't remember what was there before Target...or was it added for Target?
@@azjoe_6310 I'm not sure if Target was built or if they moved in where Caldor was on the end. I moved away in 94.
@@jamesKI4JKV I asked my buddy and he said it was an S. Klein's and that his brother worked there.
@@azjoe_6310 wow, that's going way back. cool stuff
@@jamesKI4JKV The only thing is that that must have been in the mid 70s---for the life of me I don't remember what was there in the early to mid 80s. I may pose the question on a PG County Facebook group.