DEAD MALL: Signal Hill Mall - Statesville, North Carolina
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- čas přidán 8. 04. 2023
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This is sad, my brother and i used to come from Hickory to this mall just to play the arcade. This was back before the internet.
I live 15 miles from this mall and didn't know you could still walk inside of it.
That record store had a different name in the 90's that you didn't mention. As soon as I think of it I will post it.
I originally was named the Record Bar.
@@lakeugly Thanks for that! I could see what it looked like, but I just couldn't remember the damn name. ✌️
My family owned the pet store (Pet Pros) in this mall for 18 years! This mall was a hopping place at one time. I still stop in occasionally to see the place. So sad what it has become. I grew up in this mall ❤
I used to visit that store very often to see if the pregnant seahorses gave birth yet. I used to work in SageSport when it first opened.
I remember!!!
Many good times at the mall.. I lived in the ville for most of the childhood and much of my teen years.. days of old, long gone Cheers
Grew up going to this mall on a weekly basis when I was a kid...so many great memories..still living here is Statesville and sad to see this.
I have some great memories of walking around in that mall. The Chic-fil-a and the Arcade were amazing! The pet store and the toy store will forever be etched in my mental archives.
Such great memories! Thank you for this video.👍💯
My parents owned that pet store! ❤
aint no way there was a chic fil a in there ??? i remember the pet store and some electronic store i think but i was so young when it was actually active in there.
@@Briester69 loved that place!
@@myronsamuels8798 yes there was. It’s was up from the music store on the opposite side. So good!💯
@@myronsamuels8798 used to be that was the only place you'd find a chick fil a. Always find them in malls back in the day. It wasn't till after 2000 sometime that I first saw a Chick Fil A that wasn't in a mall.
That ceiling is absolutely horrifying, but the fountain still works! The foliage is out of control, in a good way, but it's getting rough around the edges too. I dig those square recessed lights, actually quite contemporary even today.
I'm from Statesville and I am happy to say i remember this mall. It was so alive and fun. It used to have an after-school program called Eshake and I am happy to say that I went there too. I mean couldn't go many places but it was cool to see people walking around every day and soon being able to get old enough to go across the mall to the other part of Eshake. They had an ice cream place that I would go to often after my mom or dad picked me up from there. There are just so many memories of that mall that this comment would be too long lol. But it's crazy to see it again in this video because they closed the part that you walked through and you can only go into Belk.
So many memories from there.😢
I've lived in Statesville for 30 years. What's sad is that our moniker is the "city of progress" People used to come from Hickory (30 miles away) and Mooresville(30 miles away) to visit this mall. I've witnessed both cities grow and expand while Statesville progress has halted. Their idea of infrastructure is beautifying downtown OLD buildings and businesses and putting a new face on them. All they did was make it harder to park. 😮💨
Very true.
I don’t think Mooresville is 30 miles away from Statesville
@hadarii1567 You're right it's approximately 20 miles... regardless of the distance, people still used to travel from Hickory and Mooresville to Statesville. Thanks for your comment
@@hadarii1567 it’s closer lol
Well I lived in troutman for awhile and while statesvile sucks atleast there’s more goin on unlike the little boring town of troutman.
I used to come here as a kid and teenager. Loved it. Bought my first suit at Belks there, and first computer at Radio Shack. A Tandy 1000 ex.
Nicely presented Kristin, Thanks for going the mileage to capture this mall. Cheers!
Seeing this one going downhill hurts. It has so much character and loved seeing the fountain once again. Thank you for your great coverage.
I live between Hickory and Statesville. I remember going to this mall back in the 70s and 80s with my family. It was a happening place back in the day. I knew it had went downhill after some of the big stores left. I don’t go to Statesville much so, I haven’t been there in years. If I remember correctly Spainhours was mostly clothing. Thanks for the post.
Good times and memories from the 80's, 90's. Shame we let online shopping take these experiences away.
love this place - its actually quite bright and cheery in some spots and that fountain is TDF!! thanx for the tour
I grew up in that area, basically halfway between Statesville and Charlotte, so I remember what Signal Hill Mall was like in its heyday in the 1980s and 90s. I probably ate my first Chick-fil-a there, back when Chick-fil-a was still just a small regional chain (The place with the red and white tile next to the cell phone store). And that boarded up space with a couple of steps leading up to it used to be a little candy store, selling stuff fudge and peanut brittle and these weird candied orange slices. And I'm pretty sure the space next to the pet store used to be a Toys R Us, or maybe a KB Toys. There was a toy store there anyway.
The last time I was in there was maybe in 2008 or so, and it looked like it was declining even back then. The three big anchors were still there at the time, but the smaller spaces were only maybe 50% occupied, and both the Chick-fil-a and the candy store were already closed and boarded up. And if I remember correctly it seemed like some of the spaces were occupied by local government offices rather than actual retail stores.
Sorry, that was a really long comment, but I have too many memories of that mall. But lastly I want to say I appreciate how much research you did on the mall's history. I actually learned some things from this video.
Loved it growing up. Can't tell you how much July 4th fireworks I watched there.
i live in statesville, and when i was little we would always go to the mall. it’s so sad to see it like this.
I used to go to this mall as a kid. Crazy seeing it now.
This video was so surreal considering I’ve been in that mall hundreds of times, and seeing familiar areas where I’ve been was like a fever dream. Btw that American flag and green stage has been up for at least 5 years.
The carpet on those ramps used to be this really 70's orange.
I've recently been told this mall has been sold and is being torn down soon.
It's so sad how the mold has taken over that mall and the adjoining abandoned stores beside it. I wish I would have went into the mall back in 2019 when I was over that way. I'm from NC, and live about an hour away.
The workers will likely have many health issues as they have to face the black mold on a regular basis.
Best dead malls channel.
Well thank you very much! Best dead malls channel commenter. 🥰
I like that it looks like a mall from the 80’s. Malls are now so boring. It looked so dark though like the lights were dim. I’m shocked that the mall is still open with all the mold everywhere.
It was REALLY dark. Most if not all of the light you see is coming from skylights. It was a really bright day that day, so that helped. Can you imagine being in there during a thunderstorm? Between the rain and the darkness it would be so creepy.
Your videos always have such a cool vibe- from the soundtrack to the visuals. Another fantastic mall exploration!
Thank you!!! There will be more soon!
Thanks for getting this vid out from your Savannah visit! I filmed here a few weeks before Christmas and I can’t believe this place is still open. It’s absolutely not suitable for people to be inside. I also don’t understand why they keep the fountain on and maintain the greenery. It’s literal insanity…. The maintenance guy must be like “wtf” with all the CZcamsrs visiting here, but he’s always just waved and said hello when we have visited here when in NC.
No one paid me any mind AT ALL, and I think I was the only person I saw once I was inside. Creepy indeed!
I'm so glad I got to go here before it's inevitable closing. What an experience, no mall like Signal Hill Mold- I mean Mall.
Belks is an above medium (like Sears or Pennys) mainly clothing store. Spainhours was also a clothing but above Belks in price. I remember when this mall opened. It was heavily trafficked back then.
Spainhours was actually an expensive department store, more like what Belk used to be.
I live in statesville and I always wondered what happened to it. Now everyone hangs out at the market near Walmart and games stop
I love how smooth your footage is, as usual. 🙂
Thank you very much!
I used to come here all the time as a kid and it looked amazing back in 2004
I remember stopping at that IHOP while passing through traveling perhaps a decade ago. I only wandered into the mall proper because for some reason there were several classic Corvettes on display. The mall didn't seem that bad then (Oak Hollow Mall in High Point was my reference point for dead malls) but that was some time ago.
Statesville native here. Every year or so throughout the 80s, then every once in a while after that, there would be somewhat of a car show for some reason (the large glass door toward the end of the video, when the narrator is talking about the fountain noise) is how they'd get the cars in and out.
I just got to statesville for the weekend and this shows up in my algorithm 🤣
Awesome video! This mall reminds me of one of three enclosed malls we had in my hometown of Spartanburg, South Carolina. It was my favorite of the three... Hillcrest Mall. I even created a FB group well over a decade ago to pay tribute to Hillcrest. It's called Hillcrest Mall: Bringing Good Things Together. It opened in August 1982 and was closed in 1998, demolished the same year. I still miss it to this day. Small mall just like Signal Hill. I live almost two hours from Signal Hill. I'd love to drive up there, but I doubt my old truck would make the long trek.
With the state of this mall... being that it opened August 1, 1973, I think it would be fitting for the owners to shut the doors at the end of day, August 1st of this year. 50 years. That's a heck of a run! Only decent way to close the mall in my view.
Kristen, great great video as always
I noticed the RCR reference. I have long thought that your voiceover style reminds me of a cross between RCR and Daria Morgendorffer. I say that as a complement.
And I will absolutely take it that way. I love Daria AND Regular Cars! Thank you!!
How is this place still open?! I genuinely thought it was abandoned before you showed the Jeweler's store. Ive seen abandoned malls in better condition.
Armada held on until sometime between 2012 and 2015 actually. It was closed by the time Dan Bell saw it, but there are pictures I saw taken in 2012 which showed the store still open.
So sad what's happened to the mall. When i first moved here it was a happening place. You know when Chick-fil-A leaves its bad news......
I remember seeing the original Cabbage Patch Dolls (the ones with cloth, painted faces) for sale at a mall when I was a small child. This was back around 1982, they were set up inside a glass case and were for sale for $800 each. The answer of course was NO, when I begged for the brown haired one lol
Holy cow, I live within walking distance of here
Amazing video as per usual Kristin!
Thanks so much!!
You were about an hour from me. I have heard that mall is mold invested. I don't understand why it isn't closed as a health hazard? Keep your eye on Northlake Mall in Charlotte. The Apple store closed there a little over a month ago because of all the gun violence in the mall and it is 30% vacant. I suspect it will sink fast without Apple. It is a fairly new mall. I think it opened in 2006
I know they’re trying to sell it but I have a hard time believing that those two businesses couldn’t find a space nearby to move to. It just seems so dangerous to be in there working for that long every week.
I really want to visit this place over the summer, assuming it lasts that long. It's beautifully vintage, and still has a functional fountain. The hard part will be convincing my friends to come along with me.
it will likely still be there it been nearly vacant for years now i keep hearing they are going to rebuild it.
Hi Kristin!! Great video. I enjoy your video content very much, Your video regarding North Ridge mall in Milwaukee was excellent! Your background music and commentary were on point 100%! The current owners and city representatives return to court next week to discuss the properties future. The judge presiding over the case hasn’t lifted the raze order as of this writing.
I swear Northridge is going to outlive us at this point
I can't wait for those you filmed on this trip! BUT< Don't forget there are a few in Florida too! 👍🏽
So many! Every trip it seems like I’m going further so Florida is probably intevitable at this point.
Sidenote: Eshake was where the green and red walls are and the other part of it was 2 doors from RadioShack. As I was watching I did not expect to get emotional but I did lol. The mall just reminds me of the younger me and how stress-free and happy I was. I am 21 now for reference.
Its so weird to see a video on your hometown in your recommended videos, lol. Very Cool!
It’s funny, that’s actually what got me started doing these! I watched a video about my own hometown mall in Cincinnati and I wanted to make my own.
Main reason I think Belk is cut off is because I believe they technically own their section of the building. It's literally the only reason they'd still be open.
That’s the case with most department stores; I’m sure another part of it is that they’re paying for their heat and air and don’t want it going into the mall where neither is on (I was there in January and it was quite cold inside, I had my coat on the whole time.)
Is that water damage on the ceiling? If so that has to be some of the worst I've ever seen, thanks for braving the mold to get this footage!
It’s pretty bad. It gets addressed in the video but it’s pretty gnarly. My next stop at my visit was to buy some Claritin!
Yeah that mold made me crazy uncomfortable
@@mst3kanita it’s nasty. I know it’s really humid there but my goodness that’s a health hazard
So, Statesville native here, spent many an hour at this mall as a kid/teen, even worked at a couple stores there.
The storefront with the odd checker-patterned grill right before the steps leading down to JC Penney was, as long as I remember it, kind of a 'storage area' for various mall fixtures; the seasonal stuff, etc.
The entry hallway between that and Penney's leads to the maintenence office (there's a door on the left about halfway down), then outside, to the main maintenence area.
Spainhours did NOT close in the 1970s, but in the late 1980s. But you were correct that they almost exclusively carried clothing and very little else (accessories like belts, purses, jewelery). Fun fact: my grandmother had their first-ever credit card (issued from the downtown store), with the number 001, from the early 1950s. ^_^
The "LERNER" storefront was a furntiture store specializing in fairly high-end things. They closed in, IIRC, the 1990s.
Armada/Blockbuster Music was, when I was kid (early 80s) called The Record Barn. At one point they moved down to a storefront between the fountain and Belk (I believe for a remodel) then back to this location.
The Cricket store began life as a Claire's Boutique (remember them LOL), before that as I remember, it had been part of a larger area that got broken up in a remodel.
Right next to it was Chick-Fil-A, up through about the early 200s, and boy was it a sad day for me when they moved across town and shuttered this location.
Beside Chick-Fil-A was Merle Norman cosmetics, who have since moved downtown.
Next on the right was a generic snack shop which sold candy and snacks either by weight or by price. Many's the time I remember only having fifty cents and getting fifty cents worth of malted milk balls or cashews. ^_^
Wooten Jewelers has been there as long as I can remember.
In the 'Belk hallway', the storefront with the chrome-handled glass double doors was, for several years, the seasonal home of an independent shop called The Silver Mine, which sold handcrafted sterling silver jewelry. They were typically only in residence around the winter holidays.
Next to that was a craft store that I no longer remember the name of.
Next to THAT was the bookstore, which was a pretty good one. They were a subsidiary of Books-A-Million toward the end of their time, and had at one point been located in the 'Woolworth hallway'.
The green storefront with red arches, I don't remember what it was.
Damn, I didn't know they'd sealed Belk off LOL.
The 'hut' storefront, I don't remember what it originally was, but when they did that redesign, it became a satellite of the Statesville Children's Museum.
And the Radio Shack was, AFAIK, one of the last in a mall to be open, only closing sometime in the early 2010s.
Last thing in the slot up from it was a Bath and Body Works, which I typically had to go to every year when Christmas shopping.
The next shop down was usually some kind of sporting apparel store, various ones over the years.
Saslow's was always a jewelery store the entire time I was a kid, though I believe it used to be called The Jewel Box before they sold the space.
The empty storefront above Wooten is, I believe, connected to their store and they use it as storage space.
The red storefront beside it was, when I was a kid, called K&K Toys. They were bought out by KayBee in the early 90s, and closed sometime in the late 90s.
The 'Gallery' storefront was the original location of the bookstore before they moved to the 'Belk Hallway'. The blue-bannered storefront next to it was a shoe store, then a pet shop called Pet Pros.
Woolworth had a 'diner' section that had awesome hot dogs and chocolate milkshakes. I worked for Hills doing store setup for six months before they opened and for six months after before I left.
Coming back down that way, on the left...I honestly don't remember what it was when I was a kid, which means I probably didn't care about whatever they were selling. When Sears came in, they used it as a display area for riding lawn mowers and such, then after they closed it became a dollar store. It may have been a dollar store prior to that, come to think of it.
The long wood-framed storefront was a Foot Locker.
The alterations shop was originally down and to the left of that location; during the 80s and 90s that round-windowed location was Feimster's Arcade, I spent way too many hours and way too many quarters there. Also worked there for about a year, easiest money I ever made: $200 a week to basically sit on my ass. ^_^
On the right in the 'IHOP hallway', from the entrance, was a satellite of a local barbeque joint (Little Pigs Too; get it, 'too/two'), a shop don't remember, then the storefront with the grill was a hair salon.
My great grandmother worked at Spainhours! :)
Do you know exactly which store was spainhours where in the video?
@@Pty1980to the left of JC Penney.
Wow! Impressive, you know that like the back of your hand.
When I would visit my daughter in Statesville, we would drive past this mall when we would go out
Haha, Winga Dinga music 😂
This mall literally SCREAMS to be used as a set in some creepy movie
I really feel like it is a few lights and some fake storefronts from being a great movie set
Many dead and dying malls have water damaged ceilings sadly
Do you recall when bands would play at the mall? The mall I grew up going to would have country bands and sometimes metal bands playing on a stage set-up in the middle of the mall.
Yes, actually! You used to see school choirs and bands play at center Court a lot too. My local (busy and thriving) mall has bluegrass and Scots Irish musicians on the weekends sometimes.
If they fix the leaks, it would be an awesome location for an indoor music festival.
hey so I’ve been in that mall a bunch when I was younger and such it always gave me an very idk eery vibe after everything shutdown even the music still plays which is adds to the eery vibe. it’s mind blowing to me that the “city” won’t rebuild a mall since there’s a bunch of housing projects in this town. though I can’t speak since I did grow up after the fact the mall was basically a shutdown 2000s ish early 2010s ppl still use go there. the last time I rmbr there was an ihop, a bath and body works, and a belk now it’s just belk. im wondering at this point when they’ll just tear down the whole building
It’s very likely that with the amount of reconditioning it would need (mold, and I’m gonna guess based on its age it’s got asbestos too), it would have to be torn down.
@@UniCommProductions i still feel like it’s just sad since the mall isn’t even that bad architecturally. w/o the mold and asbestos it would actually be nice
@@hyst3r1cal I agree completely. Vintage architecture like this should be cared for.
I been told by locals that it will be teardown and Belk own this property. Work suppose to be done years ago but Covid delay the plan
The iHop was open a couple of years ago. Did it close?
I remember Dan Bell covering this mall, sad to see it get this bad. Thumbs up on the Regular Car Reviews call out. Winga Dinga indeed!
From what I understand, Mr Regular is a fan of Dan’s so maybe one day he will get to see my joke.
The brick and the hose in the fountain are still there…. Ha
You could smoke in this mall up to the end. It was next door to a cigarette outlet. Its a very old mall. Owned by people in Saudi Arabia, they won't take care of it and all the businesses left
Sweet video while I bake my sweet potatooo YEE HAH!
Mmmm sweet potatoes!
How in the world could that Wootens Jewelry Store continue to stay in business there? Does anyone in that town actually say I've got to run by Wootens today?
Apparently. Oddly enough most of the small town malls I’ve been to have a jeweler just like that, and they make a lot of their money off of repairs
LOL Merle Norman is great makeup though! 😂 My niece runs a studio.
It’s one of those brands like Avon that’s been around so long that it was probably one of the brands your grandmother wore, though, which is actually a really nice thing to see the endurance of certain shades. I personally actually wear the same shade of Revlon lipstick that my grandmother wore all the way back into the 60s. People like your niece are keeping those brands alive so more of us are able to carry around that little memory and I think that’s great.
@@UniCommProductions that’s awesome! My family have all been “Merle Girls” since the 1940s, passed down from my grandma to my mom, then me, and so on. It definitely is a great brand but struggling since many studios that have traditionally been in malls have been forced to close when the malls close. Sadly, MN studios are few and far between and the company still operates on the old business model of “word of mouth,” which doesn’t translate well in the 21st century. (They finally opened e-commerce a couple years ago). Although they do have social media channels through CZcams, IG, FB, etc., if you hadn’t heard of MN, you probably wouldn’t encounter it on social media. Anyway, I love your videos and look forward to each new one! Keep up the great work! 😊
As a 90's kid, I can honestly say seeing these malls fall like this sucks- My favorite record store was Sam Goody.
Great Fountains!!!! F+L, Corey
Yeah, the ceiling IS pretty nasty.
Lol I’m from here we famous 😭🤪🤪 there was a bath and body works I guess it isn’t there anymore 😢
Hey, they still have an operating fountain
Always appreciated and always a surprise!
This cookie cutter malls have closed all over the South,and what's sad is all the small town businesses they replaced,and now they're both gone,plus a huge abandoned piece of land that becomes an eyesore and a bad memory. (For some)
But your coverage of what they were is excellent.
I can tell you every store & restaurant that was in this mall!
This mall used to be great. We loved coming here. I hate that it's like this now. Such a waste ☹️
Did Dan Bell do one of his Dead Mall Videos here?
He did, it was one of his early ones in 2016. There were still TWO fountains back then.
hills use to be there
It was! I mention it in the video.
“Bro” where im from is a saying and slang it don’t mean he or she in some cases
I shopped here often back in the day. Hate to see what has happened to it.
that ceiling at 3:00 is atrocious, definitely not safe to walk let alone work in there for even a couple minutes
whyyyy is this place still open? i'm trying to imagine going to pick up an expensive piece of jewelry and looking up to see that ceiling!
Nothing says luxury like an organic, bespoke ceiling design.
Drove by today and there are people still going into Belk.
@@thevinceberry I stopped going into that Belk this past year. Even with it being walled off the mold is getting to it. The merchandise is starting to smell moldy. As expensive as Belk can be who would pay a lot of money for a moldy smelling dress? I happened to be looking for a dress for a wedding. They had some pretty ones. No way I was purchasing anything from them though. Really sad.
@@big120treez people told me Belk own the building and supposed to tear it down for something else
Cruise director Kristen is the best.if only i could see her face.
There are indeed photos on my Instagram if you’re curious!
Don't know how the owners can justify having just 3 tennants, only one of them an anchor, and still keeping it open
I don’t either. It really baffles me. I was literally at another mall about 20 minutes from here before that, and they had plenty of empty spaces, and much more foot traffic.
I used to go hear years ago when the still had a life ish im 34 and have to say it is sad to see
UN SUBSCRIBING FROM ..U KRISTIN...LATER!!!
Damn this is crazy to see I’m from Iredell county and This mall was always small and had like 5 stores it kinda sucked anyways. Lol statesvile sucks in general. Somehow 80% of the gas station and things like that you pull out of has some damn bushes or something that block your view. It’s better then troutman I guess because troutman has nothing.
This would make a great church for a start over project for the community.
The problem with statesville is mayor Costi Kutteh and all the old money people running the city. There is two major interstates running threw the city it should be bigger and better than Mooresville and hickory but all we have is road construction that actually make it hard for traffic to get off the exits to stop at any stores and spend money you know the money that could keep business' afloat in a mall!!!!! all we have in statesville is drugs and bars and i almost garantee you if you looked at mayor Costi Kutteh and his cronies hard enough there is drug money in there pockets in some way shape or form and thats the only reason statesville is the way it is
Another SCP😿
Imagine fixing this place and allowing local businesses to use the spaces and only charging them affordable rent.
This mall has been dead for years.
Finally gonna take it on down I hear.
It’s for sale. Time will tell what the buyer will do with it once it’s sold.
@@UniCommProductions
Probably apartment complexes
Bro statesville is a falling economy 😂😂😂😂😂😂
Most of the malls I visit for this channel are. I’m not sure how this was unclear at all but I’m a woman.
@@UniCommProductions down south we say bro as saying not a pronoun
Malls in general are dying
Yes, they are, however a lot of us have fond memories of them in their prime so I make these videos to document them before they’re gone.
Statesville is a dead town period
I miss my place
I own the M alteraItion in there
I thought spainhours was still open in the early 90's, judging by video someone took here in 92 - 93 (unless the video dates back further)
You may be correct. That was one thing I had to use context clues to determine because I stopped seeing it mentioned in advertisements around that time.
I kinda feel like you just filmed a class action lawsuit cause being committed.
That ceiling is something else, isn’t it?