The city hired a non-union contractor to demolish the mall as of right now. The union contractors are outside this mall protesting. My sister was in charge of the downtown Grand Avenue Mall security, and my ex-boss was in charge of this north side mall in this video.
My Grandparents had a hobby shop here on the second floor. I used to do word search puzzles with my Ma while she tended the counter on the weekends. Good memories. RIP Grandpa
I'm 42 and live in West Bend. I remember being 5 years old to see the Easter Bunny and Santa at North Ridge. My Aunt was the Bunny hahaha. My mom took me to Babbages on the 2nd floor to get a Sega Saturn and later on an N64 with James Bond Golden Eye. The low income housing on both sides is the reason the Mall went to shit and became full of crime.
This video really just depresses me, because Northridge was my favorite mall. There's some video of Christmas shopping at Northridge that you should check out though. (Not only does the mall look beautiful, but all the people too.)
it was my favorite place on earth too. I remember the arcade everything about it.. between that and toys r us closing down across the street.. its just not the same
@@Mzwilder2238 Yeah, I was young, so my memory is spotty, but I loved Brown Deer in general... the combination of North Ridge/Best Buy/Toys R Us, then right down the road Target/Funcoland/ Discovery Zone and across the street Half Price Books/Animal Crackers... The Exclusive Company, Old Country Buffet... so many awesome places, and all just gone
A Milwaukee born girl here….Moved to NYC in 1987. My heart hurts knowing a part of my childhood/teen years and my 20’s were spent at Northridge Mall. Special times shopping with my Mom when I was younger, Birthday parties at Farrell’s Ice Cream Parlor with The Zoo ice-cream massive sundae… then hanging at the mall with friends as I got older, worked at Casual Corner for 1 year from 1985-1986 on the first floor near the fountain. Went on many dates to the Northridge Mall Movie Theaters and dinner at Shakey’s Pizza! So many incredible memories at that mall. And now, so sad to watch the steady decline over the past 20 years. It was such a safe-haven for us all growing up. I know my mom loved going there too by herself to shop, as did I. Too bad they couldn’t revitalize that amazing property, but the crime that arose in the area over the years, from what I heard, overrode the gentrification of. Mall life as we once knew it. 😢 Goodbye Old friend. Thank you Northridge Mall for all the decades of incredible memories you brought us. You will be missed by many! ❤️🖤💔
@@gamingbrothers1890There are still malls here except the city ignores and gives up on the North side . They need better roads etc.. don't give up . I know a lot of good people there . They deserve better to do better .
I worked at Northridge mall for years. I absolutely loved it there. And the whole area in General on the northwest side of Milwaukee back in those days, was wonderful! I had so many friends who lived in that area, and the bars, and the restaurants, and just the the activities in general. And then, everything went straight to hell. It's really a shame. The late seventies and through the 80s was the Heyday of that area, and it was wonderful! Wonderful memories.......
It’s really a shame. I was born in 2001 about 15 min west of Milwaukee and I always hear stories of how great the city used to be and how bad it’s become. What happened with the city? Is it just politics that turned Milwaukee and many others into cesspools?
This was my favorite mall to go to, besides Forest Mall (Fond Du Lac) and Paradise Mall (the original walk thru mall in West Bend). Such a shame to see our malls go
Yes! Forest Mall in Fon du Lac was great! I live in Sheboygan Falls, and we would drive there all the time to shop. It was like, a 30 min drive. The mall here in Sheboygan was torn down too, so we have nothing now. We drive to Appleton now if we want to go to a good mall. It's so sad to see what's happening to most of them. They were a huge staple in our childhood.
I’ve airsofted in this mall. It was fucking epic. Pretty much everything you see in this video is a no man’s land, all the play is in the individual department stores and the never ending backrooms that are dark as hell. It was amazing.
All liberals are responsible for this sad decline…. When the stop snitching campaign and the criminals were made heroes, our city leaders went right along with it…
For many of us who grew up in the 90s and early 2000s malls were a great place to hang out with friends, meet girls, go to the arcade, get a snack at the food court. I miss those days. Still remember going into stores and they would always play good house or eurodance music while you were shopping. It is sad what is happening to malls. Im surprised that this mall is still in the condition it is after being abandoned for 20 years.
I grew up in the late 50s and we had nothing like malls! Loved the idea and the many things you could do at malls other than shop! Some malls even had ice skating rinks! Shame that the malls were so abused by thrill seeking, bored teens!
What a tragedy and a waste of such a beautiful building. There is something so special about malls from this time period anytime I find myself in a town that has a mall I've tried to stop and walk around.
@@cyanimation1605no one cares for Southridge it’s literally on the brink of elimination Goto Mayfair or Bayshore Idk other malls in Milwaukee County outside of those two
I live in Milwaukee, WI. it was closed down for crime rate and there still is high crime rate there. You got balls of titanium to be exploring there. edit: I forgot to mention that someone in the replies did say they are safe in the day, so just watch out for squatters in the day.
@@joshlondre5198 And stayed out the ally way. "Minding your own business" isn't enough sometimes, people will flip at you for accidentally looking in their general direction while your obviously in a moving car. It's cliche to say but the only part of Milwaukee that isn't this bad is the introvert side, or a place with alot of people present and good security.
@@XxLilsosaSouthridge for me is such an odd place, because it's the twin mall to northridge but it looks like it's been cut through with a parallel dimension, since it's mashed up with modern updates and stuff but still have some of the northridge outdated features. Also it's the only mall I've been to in the city that feels like a mall from when I was younger, Mayfair, Bayshore, and Brookfield are just so calm. Southridge is noisy as hell and went I went there were people everywhere.
This makes me want to cry. I spent so many days in my childhood & teenage years there. I met my first boyfriend there when I was 19 & had my first baby a year later. I was 21 the last time I was in there 🥺
Another sad nostalgic story. I go around the comments to read people's stories and experiences, and all the good times they've had in what is now abandoned and demolished. It just seems things are going south. I really do have so many ideas for these Mall's. Hell, if i was rich, i'd invest into saving and restoring these places into there glory day's. I'd give it a nice little gimmick, "C'mon down to a mall from the past", or something along the lines to recapture that attention. Buy out all the rights to stores that went out of business. Resurrect them, and place them there. Increase security. People will have job's. Build an entertainment spot unlike anything else. The mall would be successful, due to everything it has to offer, and keeping the attention of everyone. I'd market it to high heaven. My goal would be to bring back those good times again. So everyone has a place to go, hang out, have fun, enjoy themselves, feel good, feel safe, and of course, buy stuff.
@@jacobhawley60 this is cuz of capitalism, its not cuz of socialism, not everything bad is socialism. The lack of money leading it to close is capitalism, cuz it needs capital to run, which it doesnt have. America doesnt have enough socialism to even cause a collapse of a huge privately owned mall lol, in socialism this wld be rebuilt into something else like a library or still operating cuz its publicly owned and not private property at whims with its owner.
It wasn't maintained after it was closed. The problem was the abandoned mall was left. And the crime narrative kind of sidesteps the fact it was built with the assumption an interstate would be constructed, but that was cancelled.
It had nothing to do with a planned interstate connector that was shelved before this mall was built in the first place. The issue was that the city zoned tons of low income housing adjacent to the mall, which then cascaded into the older luxury apartments east of the mall as people fled. There WERE lots of big box stores and restaurants nearby, but completely unaffiliated with the mall that All closed up: Best Buy, Target, Marshalls, even Wal-Mart and Walgreens. There were a dozen well-known chain restaurants that thrive elsewhere, all gone. Crime killed this mall and the several square miles of nearly everything commercial surrounding it.
@@radon360 Interesting. I've seen it blamed on a false perception of crime furthered by a man blaming fictional black people when he murdered his wife, but it looks like that happened over a decade before the mall closed. Honestly, I had no idea the mall was around that long. The entire ordeal was a much longer timespan than I knew. It was open long enough I'm sure the advent of internet shopping helped finish it off too. Having never been there, I didn't realize it was such a sister mall to Southridge.
@@zunnoabthey’re on the verge of closing Southridge if not closed already… not due to crime rate but due to less shoppers and ppl like myself going to Bayshore or Mayfair which is BY FARRRRR the best mall in MKE(Mayfair mall)
I really hate online shopping The mall is like an opportunity to really engage in the act of living So it's sad to see malls close Bc life online isn't really life
@@sfneurosurgeon tbh just blame capitalism, especially the very pure form we have in America compared pre-reagan. There’s a reason we had regulations and limited corporate ownership of media and markets before Reagan This is what happens We become more isolated and more addicted to technology I was addicted before the social media craze but seeing “normal” people who aren’t nerdy so addicted to tech is so wierd and sad, it’s not natural.
@@V555Vendetta I agree that Reagan started the decline of America and the neoconservatives continued it. He increased the wealth gap and kicked out the mentally ill onto the streets resulting in the homeless situation as well as destroyed unions that protected the gains for the working class. Worst of all he allowed big pharma to control media so they control the narrative on our healthcare…opioids.
Not only from there, still here. I’m teary, so many many sweet memories! I wouldn’t trade my childhood for anything! We miss you North Ridge, Grand Avenue, Capital Court🫶🏽🫶🏽🫶🏽
You're downplaying the "economic failure," part by a lot. If high crime rate was the sole, or even just the biggest reason, Detriot, Chicago, LA, Miami, NY, and even my smaller city of Toledo, would have absolutely nothing. People living in high crime rates still need to buy things. They still go see movies and buy new clothes. They only don't and can't when their jobs starts closing down, and layoffs are given out like candy.
@@rachel5399All of the high crime cities were the backbone of America. The golden cities that were the best places on earth to live. Political greed and democrat policies caused the crime rate.
@@rachel5399conservatives don’t care about that It’s boring They want to talk about doomsday shit like it’s a movie Economic collapses cause crime spikes
Milwaukee native here. The downfall of this mall began after Jessie Anderson killed his wife there and blamed it on a random black man. This scared away the white folks and the black folks stopped going after being profiled by mall security and the police.
Milwaukee native here. The downfall of this mall began after Jessie Anderson killed his wife there and blamed it on a random black man. This scared away the white folks and the black folks stopped going after being profiled by mall security and the police.
The reputation of Northridge was already falling before Anderson. He made up a story to fit with people's perception of the area. His act merely accelerated the decline.
Spent many days at this mall up till it closed. We still have southridge but that’s become just a few name brand stores surrounded by pop up bullshit shops selling junk. Mayfair isn’t much better. The real problem is crime and theft, stores don’t want to deal with that shit. Milwaukee fucking sucks.
@@Jpansta I'm in Brookfield now, but old enough to remember when both Northridge and Southridge opened. Spent more time at Southridge, but as I teach CCW & Home Defense I have students from all over MKE. Working with one student now who was shot 3 times in attempted car jacking. I formerly produced big concerts at Arena, Pabst/Riverside... now I won't even go to big shows with free frontrow seats. I've had at least 5 students who were robbed after leaving FiServ Forum. One friend was carjacked at 3 in the afternoon in 3rd Ward. The WHOLE city is thuglife. A couple of punks told a friend who's a Tosa cop "No man, we don't go to Brookfield. Them people got guns and radios and shit." (and he's right).
Crime escalated when they relocated low income housing to that area. They saw what people who don't want anything did to Capitol Court. They did the same to Northridge Mall. They tried to do it to Mayfair. Except Wauwatosa isn't having it.
I grew up about 3 miles from Northridge. It was a great area during the late 60s and 70s up until it started going downhill around the mid-80s......Crime was on the rise. Most of the nails were already in the Northridge "coffin" by the time the Jesse Anderson imbroglio took place in 1992. That pretty much hastened the pace of the closing of the Mall. But make no mistake.....the mall was on its way out due to crime by that time. But when I was growing up the far northwest side of Milwaukee was as great a place to grow up as you could find....I have such great memories....had great friends...we had so much fun back then....Time sure flies...I'm 64 now....Still feeling good....but I do miss those days....
i’m from milwaukee and that mall was such a huge thing for high schoolers to explore and stuff ! i was really sad to hear they are demolishing it, it really is a beautiful mall too
That's happening everywhere it seems like the signs were there all along we just have been kept in the dark about it that's why I'm so glad that you and others are showing us the truth about what's been going on.
I used to go to Northridge all the time as a teenager. The squandering side of town robbed it to death. Hood shit. North meadows projects, northridge lakes apts, and just down the road, green tree projects… The same thing happened to Capitol Court, which turned to Mid-town… which now, once again, is dead. The decay of the mid-west.
This is all because corporations sent all the good paying jobs overseas. The people who had those jobs are the ones who lived and shopped in these areas.
Green tree isn’t ghetto like that anymore lol that area by the old Sam’s club Building(Now Sellars I believe) the only thing happens most out them ways is stolen cars majority of Milwaukee crime rate is inner city nowadays… Brown deer is still a rough area to live tho but it’s not like living on 19th center 34th Hadley 33rd 27th street(anywhere) 19th Capitol hell even 60th Keefe all worse areas now 41st Loyd just to give a few lol
My grandmother often took me to North Ridge Mall circa 1980 or 1981. We would go to the McDonald’s on the first floor by one of the entrances, and she would always get a hamburger, fries, and Diet Coke. She died two years ago. I miss her every day.
I miss Walden, but I miss Half Price Books even more. It's crazy just how much crappier Brown Deer is than it was in the 90s and early 2000s. There's basically no reason for me to even go there anymore.
I really think this mall couldve had a big revival if it was like an 80s themed mall using stores old logos and having the stuff people actually liked before malls got boring
When I was there for the Airsoft events you mentioned. The boys and I found some rooms in the back that still had the blueprints from this place. We took some of em for the memories.
@@kthanks8045it’ll never be apart of MKE since it has its own damn Jurisdiction there’s a higher chance Tosa can become apart of MKE brown deer is too far North closer to Mequon literally lol
@@kartierowten191nah I’m from Milwaukee and the north side is a shit show that whole area is the reason Milwaukee has one of the highest crime rates in the country
I got so many memories in this mall growing up in the 90s. This was my teenage hangout spot with friends. And at 16 I worked at Boston Store. The good days ❤
I used to work in this mall in the 90's. I regretted every single day. I was working there when New Jack City was playing in the mall at the theater. I felt like a piece of popcorn in a raisin bowl.
Very fortunate to have good friends and explored it in 2021 pretty dangerous place and people have died there. The fact its getting destroyed makes the experience that much more unique. A surreal feeling thats for sure
I grew up in Milwaukee, It was in a predominantly black area and remember everyone talking bad about Northridge Mall. There was another Mall called Southridge on the white side of town which was in the suburbs. Lol now its predominantly latino Mall and has gone down hill as not a lot of people go to malls.
@@elizabethw4706 Lmao, Rumors and lies doesn’t shut down a money generating business like that, people not going there anymore because they don’t feel safe does. I remember hearing about the fights in the mall and the shootings in the parking lot on the news
Malls were in their heyday in the 70s and 80s. I was fortunate enough to be a teen through the 80s and have many great memories of hanging out with my peeps and getting our asses kicked out by security. Those were some of the best days of my life.
I never went to Northridge, as it was closed, and my dad knew the area wasn't a good place around the time. But it's crazy to see this and comparing it to Southridge Mall in Greendale, especially now.
My mom’s first job was at a store that sold men’s ties at this mall in 1975. We went there all the time when I was a kid in the mid 90s. Then one time (the last time we went there), there was a shooting in the food court while we were eating. I’ll never forget it. I was maybe 8 years old and all I could hear was BANG BANG BANG. Never went back. My parents said that prettt much signified the end of Northridge.
Southridge is going the same way as northridge. Mayfair I would say is the main mall here now but there’s so much theft and crime there it’s only a matter of time before that goes away too.
So what really happened is the mall used to be a prosperous area. UNTIL they built affordable housing units nearby, shortly after you would see increase in robberies and crime - causing all of those businesses to close down. 🤷♂️ if you look at housing over in that neighborhood- 4+bedroom units going for $150k cause that area is ghetto and nobody trying to live there.
No joke, I had a college teacher whose sister got murdered there. Also had a friend living down the street from it(many years later after it closed)and he heard gun shots on the regular. Brown deer is a sucky trash heap nowadays.
I would disagree, but I can't. When you look at the prime example of the MPS scandal we have in milwaukee right now, and the leadership, smh. I can't do anything but agree. 😢
It’s actually crazy that the mall has been sitting there empty as long as I’ve been alive . I went there in middle school and i never would have guessed it was abandoned that long
I was 18 and white, and got chased out of there 28 years ago. Gang of kids wanted my jersey i had on. Nothing but trouble there, theft, robberies, shootings ect.
I remember hearing about this as a kid going into high school a few years after it closed. I'm honestly not surprised it closed down knowing how Milwaukee is sadly. I'm honestly surprised it's taken 20 some years to finally get approval to knock it all down if it was shut down for safety concerns.
I bought my prom dress at this mall in 1993! This mall was the place to be, back in the day, they had all the cool stores and I used to love going there.
Actually it was on the northwest side of Milwaukee. It wasn’t that bad of an area! It was a nice area with shopping, good schools, and plenty of activities. As more middle class minorities/homeowners moved to the area, others ran for the hills. The mall was closed along with other businesses. Although some parts of the area look a little different, Walmart, restaurants, churches, homeowners and schools are still in the area.
The Northridge Lakes property next to the Northridge Mall used to be a high-end Complex. It also went downhill fast. It is strange because the neighborhoods between this area and the city are nice. Usually the farther you go out of Milwaukee the better but not in this case.
It's crazy seeing this bc I live close to Milwaukee and there's a Southridge Mall and it's crazy that after all these years it looks very similar. I know it's probably not uncommon, it's just got that eerie vibe. It's like I'm seeing the mall after years of decay and abandon, but I was there yesterday
I visited Milwaukee in 1993 and went to that Mall. I remember getting this huge Gyro that tasted so good. I hate that Malls have become a haven for Crime. It should be a place to get away and see other people, find a date or be with your mate or friends. By them closing down, that's why you have teen takeovers in some parts of the country
I haven't been to Northridge since I was a kid. It is very reminiscent of Southridge before they renovated it. I remember the waterfall walls in the food court. Good times.
Oh wow, flashbacks of going here around Christmas time when I was a kid. I always wondered why we seemed to have just never came back to such an amazing looking mall. Well now I know, damn.
Let's not forget it was Herb Kohl who helped land us in that situation. Given his irresponsible selling of this property to Chinese investors who had no intention on investing in the community our communities have suffered for decades and will continue to suffer. Consider it part of Herb Kohl's legacy and a large middle finger to city of Milwaukee.
I remember visiting there as a kid. Tried to stick my head through the banister on the second level lol. The pink and blue tones, so 80s/90s, just how I remember it.
I used to go here as a kid when we lived on the north side of milwaukee. I loved going to Rocky Roccoco's lol . Crazy to have such vivid memories of a place and then seeing it like this.. crazy
I live in Milwaukee, WI. That mall was beautiful at one time, had a lot of really nice stores in it and it was a cool place for people to hang out. It shut down due to the rampant theft & crime which that part of town is infamous for. It was built on the wrong side of town. Nothing nice, and I mean NOTHING nice can survive very long on the north side of Milwaukee. It's sad.
The layout kinda reminds me of Southridge but bigger. Such a shame that malls have faded in popularity, I know 2 malls semi close that are rumored to being shut down. I’m to young to have ever gone here, but oh man, I wish it was handled better because that layout is just beautiful-
It's in a pretty good area but the scum have been flocking there. They do that up north. They travel upwards to commit crime so even the quiet areas of Wi are getting less safe.
Malls use to be so fun and chill to go to it’s a shame a lot of them are closed and fading away
Yeah
@@brotherhood11111what?
The city hired a non-union contractor to demolish the mall as of right now. The union contractors are outside this mall protesting.
My sister was in charge of the downtown Grand Avenue Mall security, and my ex-boss was in charge of this north side mall in this video.
Really? I had no idea! I thought they were redoing the whole mall????
Because when COVID hit, online shopping grew more popular.
My Grandparents had a hobby shop here on the second floor. I used to do word search puzzles with my Ma while she tended the counter on the weekends. Good memories. RIP Grandpa
So sweet I have fond memories as well
I'm 42 and live in West Bend. I remember being 5 years old to see the Easter Bunny and Santa at North Ridge. My Aunt was the Bunny hahaha. My mom took me to Babbages on the 2nd floor to get a Sega Saturn and later on an N64 with James Bond Golden Eye. The low income housing on both sides is the reason the Mall went to shit and became full of crime.
I remember going here as a kid, too. So sad and kinda disturbing to see it the way it is!
I know you're telling the truth because you said "ma" that's exactly how we pronounce mom here lol
Yeah, I remember going with my grandma as a kid. A few years ago, an electrician died trying to fix something there, and he got electrocuted.
I used to work at Northridge Mall in my early twenties. I'm 47 now! This video brought back a lot of good memories!
This video really just depresses me, because Northridge was my favorite mall. There's some video of Christmas shopping at Northridge that you should check out though. (Not only does the mall look beautiful, but all the people too.)
I worked at original cookie in 1993
Yep it was a great place back in the 80s and early 90s.
it was my favorite place on earth too. I remember the arcade everything about it.. between that and toys r us closing down across the street.. its just not the same
@@Mzwilder2238 Yeah, I was young, so my memory is spotty, but I loved Brown Deer in general... the combination of North Ridge/Best Buy/Toys R Us, then right down the road Target/Funcoland/ Discovery Zone and across the street Half Price Books/Animal Crackers... The Exclusive Company, Old Country Buffet... so many awesome places, and all just gone
A Milwaukee born girl here….Moved to NYC in 1987. My heart hurts knowing a part of my childhood/teen years and my 20’s were spent at Northridge Mall. Special times shopping with my Mom when I was younger, Birthday parties at Farrell’s Ice Cream Parlor with The Zoo ice-cream massive sundae… then hanging at the mall with friends as I got older, worked at Casual Corner for 1 year from 1985-1986 on the first floor near the fountain. Went on many dates to the Northridge Mall Movie Theaters and dinner at Shakey’s Pizza! So many incredible memories at that mall. And now, so sad to watch the steady decline over the past 20 years. It was such a safe-haven for us all growing up. I know my mom loved going there too by herself to shop, as did I. Too bad they couldn’t revitalize that amazing property, but the crime that arose in the area over the years, from what I heard, overrode the gentrification of. Mall life as we once knew it. 😢 Goodbye Old friend. Thank you Northridge Mall for all the decades of incredible memories you brought us. You will be missed by many! ❤️🖤💔
Same! I used to live within walking distance.
South ridge mall is still open
@@gamingbrothers1890There are still malls here except the city ignores and gives up on the North side . They need better roads etc.. don't give up . I know a lot of good people there . They deserve better to do better .
Same. So sad😢
I worked at Northridge mall for years. I absolutely loved it there. And the whole area in General on the northwest side of Milwaukee back in those days, was wonderful! I had so many friends who lived in that area, and the bars, and the restaurants, and just the the activities in general. And then, everything went straight to hell. It's really a shame. The late seventies and through the 80s was the Heyday of that area, and it was wonderful! Wonderful memories.......
Remember Orange Julius? I had a friend that worked there!😊
I’m really sorry that happened to your community.
The northwest side turned into the hoof. Nobody gave a fuk.
Remember Captains Steak House?
It’s really a shame. I was born in 2001 about 15 min west of Milwaukee and I always hear stories of how great the city used to be and how bad it’s become. What happened with the city? Is it just politics that turned Milwaukee and many others into cesspools?
This was my favorite mall to go to, besides Forest Mall (Fond Du Lac) and Paradise Mall (the original walk thru mall in West Bend). Such a shame to see our malls go
Yes! Forest Mall in Fon du Lac was great! I live in Sheboygan Falls, and we would drive there all the time to shop. It was like, a 30 min drive. The mall here in Sheboygan was torn down too, so we have nothing now. We drive to Appleton now if we want to go to a good mall. It's so sad to see what's happening to most of them. They were a huge staple in our childhood.
An air-soft tournament in an abandoned mall would be epic though
There's a lot of footage of them on CZcams.
I’ve airsofted in this mall. It was fucking epic. Pretty much everything you see in this video is a no man’s land, all the play is in the individual department stores and the never ending backrooms that are dark as hell. It was amazing.
It was paintballing but close enough
Straight out of Tarkov
@@Basketball_is_Life66 It was airsoft not paintball
Crime and Social decline is a serious issue.
Herb Kohl helped to do this to us.
How is that? @@brianagee2790
All liberals are responsible for this sad decline…. When the stop snitching campaign and the criminals were made heroes, our city leaders went right along with it…
For many of us who grew up in the 90s and early 2000s malls were a great place to hang out with friends, meet girls, go to the arcade, get a snack at the food court. I miss those days. Still remember going into stores and they would always play good house or eurodance music while you were shopping. It is sad what is happening to malls. Im surprised that this mall is still in the condition it is after being abandoned for 20 years.
Back then and even mid 2000s there was shit to do or neat stores now it's just 90% clothing stores, 5% tech and 5% miscellaneous
Still hangout in Mayfair lol
@The-Fool1212 I remember when I skipped school to see the movie Juice at the movie theater there. And played video games down stairs.
I grew up in the late 50s and we had nothing like malls! Loved the idea and the many things you could do at malls other than shop! Some malls even had ice skating rinks! Shame that the malls were so abused by thrill seeking, bored teens!
This has gotta be some older footage because the place was pretty trashed before they started demolition
I used to go to Northridge mall during my high school years and into my 20s, it was such a nice place back in the 80s and 90s, what a shame. 😢
What a tragedy and a waste of such a beautiful building. There is something so special about malls from this time period anytime I find myself in a town that has a mall I've tried to stop and walk around.
It's fine. There's an identical mall called Southridge like 15 miles away, and 4 other malls in the county.
@@cyanimation1605no one cares for Southridge it’s literally on the brink of elimination Goto Mayfair or Bayshore Idk other malls in Milwaukee County outside of those two
I live in Milwaukee, WI. it was closed down for crime rate and there still is high crime rate there. You got balls of titanium to be exploring there.
edit: I forgot to mention that someone in the replies did say they are safe in the day, so just watch out for squatters in the day.
When the teeth illuminate in the night
Almost Nowhere in Milwaukee is that bad as long as you mind your business. People are just so shit at that they always get hurt in places like that.
Republican liars blaming the blacks for them not being able to pay their bills because all them stores are money laundering fronts.
@@joshlondre5198 And stayed out the ally way. "Minding your own business" isn't enough sometimes, people will flip at you for accidentally looking in their general direction while your obviously in a moving car. It's cliche to say but the only part of Milwaukee that isn't this bad is the introvert side, or a place with alot of people present and good security.
@@smakajo400 yeah you got me with the alleys but that’s just common sense or should be at least
That’s really sad about the mall going into disrepair deteriorating
Yea I’m the youngest of three they always told me they used to go there but there’s a south ridge mall
They're reading it down now
@@XxLilsosaSouthridge for me is such an odd place, because it's the twin mall to northridge but it looks like it's been cut through with a parallel dimension, since it's mashed up with modern updates and stuff but still have some of the northridge outdated features. Also it's the only mall I've been to in the city that feels like a mall from when I was younger, Mayfair, Bayshore, and Brookfield are just so calm. Southridge is noisy as hell and went I went there were people everywhere.
Not really. Southridge is a 30mins away, Identical Mall.
I’m from Milwaukee.. thank the gods they shut this mall down. The north side is a cesspool here!
Bring back the grand avenue mall lol
It's a cesspool everywhere., Because people don't have respect for people or property.
Yup. I avoid killwaukee at all costs
Ngl I wasn’t even born when they closed sortjridge down but I’m a proud Milwaukee citizen
@@ElidagoatyyyyMilwaukee sucks!
This makes me want to cry. I spent so many days in my childhood & teenage years there. I met my first boyfriend there when I was 19 & had my first baby a year later. I was 21 the last time I was in there 🥺
It's a shame. That's what "Sewer Socialism" gets them. I am from Milwaukee and this city just keeps shanking itself over and over.
Another sad nostalgic story.
I go around the comments to read people's stories and experiences, and all the good times they've had in what is now abandoned and demolished.
It just seems things are going south.
I really do have so many ideas for these Mall's. Hell, if i was rich, i'd invest into saving and restoring these places into there glory day's.
I'd give it a nice little gimmick, "C'mon down to a mall from the past", or something along the lines to recapture that attention.
Buy out all the rights to stores that went out of business. Resurrect them, and place them there.
Increase security. People will have job's. Build an entertainment spot unlike anything else.
The mall would be successful, due to everything it has to offer, and keeping the attention of everyone. I'd market it to high heaven.
My goal would be to bring back those good times again. So everyone has a place to go, hang out, have fun, enjoy themselves, feel good, feel safe, and of course, buy stuff.
@@jacobhawley60 this is cuz of capitalism, its not cuz of socialism, not everything bad is socialism. The lack of money leading it to close is capitalism, cuz it needs capital to run, which it doesnt have. America doesnt have enough socialism to even cause a collapse of a huge privately owned mall lol, in socialism this wld be rebuilt into something else like a library or still operating cuz its publicly owned and not private property at whims with its owner.
Southridge mall was awesome too ! Still there but not much left
@@espeon871it closed because people with capital would get robbed and stabbed there. I grew up near there and watched it go down the tubes.
It wasn’t that the mall stopped being maintained, it’s that crime in that area went to hell to such a degree that women weren’t safe using bathrooms.
Exactly! City of Milwaukee will blame the Chinese investor instead of fixing the crime and theft problems
It wasn't maintained after it was closed. The problem was the abandoned mall was left. And the crime narrative kind of sidesteps the fact it was built with the assumption an interstate would be constructed, but that was cancelled.
It had nothing to do with a planned interstate connector that was shelved before this mall was built in the first place. The issue was that the city zoned tons of low income housing adjacent to the mall, which then cascaded into the older luxury apartments east of the mall as people fled. There WERE lots of big box stores and restaurants nearby, but completely unaffiliated with the mall that All closed up: Best Buy, Target, Marshalls, even Wal-Mart and Walgreens. There were a dozen well-known chain restaurants that thrive elsewhere, all gone. Crime killed this mall and the several square miles of nearly everything commercial surrounding it.
@@radon360 Interesting. I've seen it blamed on a false perception of crime furthered by a man blaming fictional black people when he murdered his wife, but it looks like that happened over a decade before the mall closed. Honestly, I had no idea the mall was around that long. The entire ordeal was a much longer timespan than I knew. It was open long enough I'm sure the advent of internet shopping helped finish it off too. Having never been there, I didn't realize it was such a sister mall to Southridge.
@@zunnoabthey’re on the verge of closing Southridge if not closed already… not due to crime rate but due to less shoppers and ppl like myself going to Bayshore or Mayfair which is BY FARRRRR the best mall in MKE(Mayfair mall)
I really hate online shopping
The mall is like an opportunity to really engage in the act of living
So it's sad to see malls close
Bc life online isn't really life
Well said
Yeah but people are blaming homeless people and moral decay but in reality online shopping killed malls
Kids today may never appreciate the concept of window shopping and discovering new things at the mall. Sad.
@@sfneurosurgeon tbh just blame capitalism, especially the very pure form we have in America compared pre-reagan.
There’s a reason we had regulations and limited corporate ownership of media and markets before Reagan
This is what happens
We become more isolated and more addicted to technology
I was addicted before the social media craze but seeing “normal” people who aren’t nerdy so addicted to tech is so wierd and sad, it’s not natural.
@@V555Vendetta I agree that Reagan started the decline of America and the neoconservatives continued it. He increased the wealth gap and kicked out the mentally ill onto the streets resulting in the homeless situation as well as destroyed unions that protected the gains for the working class. Worst of all he allowed big pharma to control media so they control the narrative on our healthcare…opioids.
Not only from there, still here. I’m teary, so many many sweet memories! I wouldn’t trade my childhood for anything! We miss you North Ridge, Grand Avenue, Capital Court🫶🏽🫶🏽🫶🏽
@@BatGirlGee Southgate mall too and lots of other places and stores now gone 🥲almost forgot Goldmans Johnny walker too
It's crazy how inappropiate human behaviors can cause places or cities to rapidly go downhill.
You're downplaying the "economic failure," part by a lot. If high crime rate was the sole, or even just the biggest reason, Detriot, Chicago, LA, Miami, NY, and even my smaller city of Toledo, would have absolutely nothing. People living in high crime rates still need to buy things. They still go see movies and buy new clothes. They only don't and can't when their jobs starts closing down, and layoffs are given out like candy.
@@rachel5399All of the high crime cities were the backbone of America. The golden cities that were the best places on earth to live. Political greed and democrat policies caused the crime rate.
That's how Milwaukee is
@@rachel5399conservatives don’t care about that
It’s boring
They want to talk about doomsday shit like it’s a movie
Economic collapses cause crime spikes
Milwaukee native here. The downfall of this mall began after Jessie Anderson killed his wife there and blamed it on a random black man. This scared away the white folks and the black folks stopped going after being profiled by mall security and the police.
Milwaukee native here. The downfall of this mall began after Jessie Anderson killed his wife there and blamed it on a random black man. This scared away the white folks and the black folks stopped going after being profiled by mall security and the police.
Fortunately that piece of crap got justice in jail, inmates took care of him...
Oh wow, I remember that!😢
Facts.
The reputation of Northridge was already falling before Anderson. He made up a story to fit with people's perception of the area. His act merely accelerated the decline.
Oooooo really that's what happened 😮
Spent many days at this mall up till it closed. We still have southridge but that’s become just a few name brand stores surrounded by pop up bullshit shops selling junk. Mayfair isn’t much better. The real problem is crime and theft, stores don’t want to deal with that shit. Milwaukee fucking sucks.
Agreed. I won't do business or spend time or money in MKE any longer. I-43 closed weekly to search for bullets and casings.. Soft DA & Judges...
@@TomRolfson lol I’m a life long resident. More towards miller park these days but yeah it’s thug life living here lol.
It's not just Milwaukee. It's black people everywhere.
@@Jpansta I'm in Brookfield now, but old enough to remember when both Northridge and Southridge opened. Spent more time at Southridge, but as I teach CCW & Home Defense I have students from all over MKE. Working with one student now who was shot 3 times in attempted car jacking. I formerly produced big concerts at Arena, Pabst/Riverside... now I won't even go to big shows with free frontrow seats. I've had at least 5 students who were robbed after leaving FiServ Forum. One friend was carjacked at 3 in the afternoon in 3rd Ward. The WHOLE city is thuglife. A couple of punks told a friend who's a Tosa cop "No man, we don't go to Brookfield. Them people got guns and radios and shit." (and he's right).
@@TomRolfsonsadly Brookfield Square is also almost empty. Was there last month. Couldn’t believe it. No more Food Court venders!
Economic failure? Nope. CRIME PERIOD!! Such a shame.
Yes, South Ridge is still alive and well....
Crime escalated when they relocated low income housing to that area. They saw what people who don't want anything did to Capitol Court. They did the same to Northridge Mall. They tried to do it to Mayfair. Except Wauwatosa isn't having it.
This is Northridge Mall, it opened in 1972. It was a great place to shop or browse. Last time I was there was 1998. Such a waste.
Agree
Agreed. When I went there in 1993 it was a really good place to be. I visited from another state so I didn't know what to expect
This mall was everything back in the day. It had a movie theater as well and was thriving. So unfortunate.
Should used it for skate comps
Fck yea
It totally looks like a thps level
or parcour..
@@king_kong_guru definitely
like milwaukee would do anything that cool
I lived near here and still frequent the area. The whole area is going downhill. Glad I moved.
Is going downhill? It went downhill decades ago. We're on our way underground to hell now
Yup pretty much. There’s a Walmart near there that’s gonna close soon. You know the area is fucked when even a Walmart leaves.
They could turn these places into homeless shelters they are already equipped with what they would need
For the illegals right.
lol so they can trash it even more?
yes give it for people as reward for do nothing, cuz of them place close and thier crime that happen when you refuse accept social standards
My first thought. How do we have a housing crisis with so many vacant buildings
And who’s gonna pay to maintain it?
They are tearing this down as we speak. Thank god!
I grew up about 3 miles from Northridge. It was a great area during the late 60s and 70s up until it started going downhill around the mid-80s......Crime was on the rise. Most of the nails were already in the Northridge "coffin" by the time the Jesse Anderson imbroglio took place in 1992. That pretty much hastened the pace of the closing of the Mall. But make no mistake.....the mall was on its way out due to crime by that time. But when I was growing up the far northwest side of Milwaukee was as great a place to grow up as you could find....I have such great memories....had great friends...we had so much fun back then....Time sure flies...I'm 64 now....Still feeling good....but I do miss those days....
That’s so sad. You know someone’s life is full of memories Christmas shopping there and hanging with friends and family. Crazy how things can change
It’s always high crime. That’s why malls are only in upscale areas now a days
i’m from milwaukee and that mall was such a huge thing for high schoolers to explore and stuff ! i was really sad to hear they are demolishing it, it really is a beautiful mall too
That's happening everywhere it seems like the signs were there all along we just have been kept in the dark about it that's why I'm so glad that you and others are showing us the truth about what's been going on.
I grew up in this mall. SO MANY WONDERFUL MEMORIES…it crushes my heart seeing this.
I used to go to Northridge all the time as a teenager.
The squandering side of town robbed it to death.
Hood shit.
North meadows projects, northridge lakes apts, and just down the road, green tree projects…
The same thing happened to Capitol Court, which turned to Mid-town… which now, once again, is dead.
The decay of the mid-west.
This is all because corporations sent all the good paying jobs overseas. The people who had those jobs are the ones who lived and shopped in these areas.
@@COJones43the politicians sent those jobs overseas, by making economically unfeasible to keep them here.
Green tree isn’t ghetto like that anymore lol that area by the old Sam’s club Building(Now Sellars I believe) the only thing happens most out them ways is stolen cars majority of Milwaukee crime rate is inner city nowadays… Brown deer is still a rough area to live tho but it’s not like living on 19th center 34th Hadley 33rd 27th street(anywhere) 19th Capitol hell even 60th Keefe all worse areas now 41st Loyd just to give a few lol
Economic failure was caused by high crime rate. There I fixed it for you.
My grandmother often took me to North Ridge Mall circa 1980 or 1981. We would go to the McDonald’s on the first floor by one of the entrances, and she would always get a hamburger, fries, and Diet Coke. She died two years ago. I miss her every day.
$2.99 value meals. 😂
@@N.WI.Homestead 😄❤️
Looks like the mall from stranger things
Was thinking the same thing.
I was thinking the same thing . And I think it is the mall from stranger things
@@user-nw7rm6sk8qIt is not unfortunately
I was looking for this comment . It absolutely looks like exact same mall setup showed in stranger things.
I live near there. It is terrible all that comes from that place is problems.
My car was stolen while I worked there. But my store never got robbed...probably because it was a bookstore😂
Walden’s?
@@N.WI.Homestead Yes!
I miss Walden, but I miss Half Price Books even more. It's crazy just how much crappier Brown Deer is than it was in the 90s and early 2000s. There's basically no reason for me to even go there anymore.
I really think this mall couldve had a big revival if it was like an 80s themed mall using stores old logos and having the stuff people actually liked before malls got boring
I live in Brookfield, not too far from Milwaukee, nowhere close to the city though. What kind of dystopia has this country become?
Brookfield pretty close to the city, its only about a 15 minute drive.
@@KingFades Far away if you’re walking, and dangerous, there isn’t really a convenient footpath to use.
@@luigimrlgaming9484 Very true
When I was there for the Airsoft events you mentioned. The boys and I found some rooms in the back that still had the blueprints from this place. We took some of em for the memories.
The entire northside of Milwaukee is a dump. This mall was shut down due to high crime. Thank the criminals for the closure of this entire mall.
must be nice.
😂😂😂 shut it crybaby y'all don't even b from Milwaukee actually
@@kartierowten191brown deer is hardly Milwaukee but if ppl keep trying real hard it’ll get there
@@kthanks8045it’ll never be apart of MKE since it has its own damn Jurisdiction there’s a higher chance Tosa can become apart of MKE brown deer is too far North closer to Mequon literally lol
@@kartierowten191nah I’m from Milwaukee and the north side is a shit show that whole area is the reason Milwaukee has one of the highest crime rates in the country
I got so many memories in this mall growing up in the 90s. This was my teenage hangout spot with friends. And at 16 I worked at Boston Store. The good days ❤
What a waste. So very sad.
I used to work in this mall in the 90's. I regretted every single day. I was working there when New Jack City was playing in the mall at the theater. I felt like a piece of popcorn in a raisin bowl.
More like a P.O.S in a to 🚽!
WHAT?
@@tonishajohnson367 Meaning a single white guy in a all black mall.
Very fortunate to have good friends and explored it in 2021 pretty dangerous place and people have died there. The fact its getting destroyed makes the experience that much more unique. A surreal feeling thats for sure
The future of america.
I grew up in Milwaukee, It was in a predominantly black area and remember everyone talking bad about Northridge Mall. There was another Mall called Southridge on the white side of town which was in the suburbs.
Lol now its predominantly latino Mall and has gone down hill as not a lot of people go to malls.
Sounds like a pattern to me
There was Northridge and Southridge (still operating) malls in Milwaukee. Northridge just got too dangerous and that pretty much ended its life.
It actually wasn't. It was a rumor and lies about danger.
@@elizabethw4706 Lmao, Rumors and lies doesn’t shut down a money generating business like that, people not going there anymore because they don’t feel safe does. I remember hearing about the fights in the mall and the shootings in the parking lot on the news
@@elizabethw4706brown deer resident here, not lies at all
Malls were in their heyday in the 70s and 80s. I was fortunate enough to be a teen through the 80s and have many great memories of hanging out with my peeps and getting our asses kicked out by security.
Those were some of the best days of my life.
Way to go, city of Milwaukee!
I never went to Northridge, as it was closed, and my dad knew the area wasn't a good place around the time. But it's crazy to see this and comparing it to Southridge Mall in Greendale, especially now.
That would make an awesome apartment building.
Not in that neighborhood
Nahh not in that neighborhood lmaooo
My mom’s first job was at a store that sold men’s ties at this mall in 1975. We went there all the time when I was a kid in the mid 90s. Then one time (the last time we went there), there was a shooting in the food court while we were eating. I’ll never forget it. I was maybe 8 years old and all I could hear was BANG BANG BANG. Never went back. My parents said that prettt much signified the end of Northridge.
Did your mom work at The Tie Rack?
The funny thing is it's counterpart, Southridge Mall, is (im pretty sure) one of the biggest shopping malls in the state 💀
Southridge is going the same way as northridge. Mayfair I would say is the main mall here now but there’s so much theft and crime there it’s only a matter of time before that goes away too.
I was born and raised in Milwaukee and loved this mall. Such a shame it had to be shut down.
Capitol Court was fun also.
@@studentstylist yes it was 😊
Ngl that place would be a great place for paintball.
I’ve been there. That was in a bad neighborhood, while a mall just like it on the other side of town flourished. I wonder why.
So what really happened is the mall used to be a prosperous area. UNTIL they built affordable housing units nearby, shortly after you would see increase in robberies and crime - causing all of those businesses to close down. 🤷♂️ if you look at housing over in that neighborhood- 4+bedroom units going for $150k cause that area is ghetto and nobody trying to live there.
The ceilings are beautiful amazing drywall work 😍
Bro why T Roy tagged on the wall
☠️😂😂😭
😢
The reason it’s getting demolished or smth it’s because there was a crime scene somebody died there in the parking lot
No joke, I had a college teacher whose sister got murdered there. Also had a friend living down the street from it(many years later after it closed)and he heard gun shots on the regular. Brown deer is a sucky trash heap nowadays.
everything black people touches, it goes downhill really fast.
I blame the Democratic Party for the fall of society. I live in Milwaukee and know many good black folks who live here.
I would disagree, but I can't. When you look at the prime example of the MPS scandal we have in milwaukee right now, and the leadership, smh. I can't do anything but agree. 😢
It’s actually crazy that the mall has been sitting there empty as long as I’ve been alive . I went there in middle school and i never would have guessed it was abandoned that long
First of all, no enemy country should be able to buy USA property.
It was the cities fault
I remember going there as a kid, crazy to see the difference from then until now! Glad they’re finally tearing it down tho.
The fact that it's in Milwaukee explains everything
the fact that Milwaukee has 4 other malls including one identical to this one explains everything
Born & raised in Milwaukee. This was my neighborhood mall. Memories.
Demographics are destiny.
High crime rates. That's what did it in.
As always, there was a small subset responsible for 99% of the crime.
Statistically not True
@@TamiaLeslie-ix5qnOkay, the subset only commits 90-99%.
This breaks my heart...😢 I used to go to Northridge all the time! Such good memories... 💔 😢
I was 18 and white, and got chased out of there 28 years ago. Gang of kids wanted my jersey i had on. Nothing but trouble there, theft, robberies, shootings ect.
I remember hearing about this as a kid going into high school a few years after it closed. I'm honestly not surprised it closed down knowing how Milwaukee is sadly. I'm honestly surprised it's taken 20 some years to finally get approval to knock it all down if it was shut down for safety concerns.
I bought my prom dress at this mall in 1993! This mall was the place to be, back in the day, they had all the cool stores and I used to love going there.
Actually it was on the northwest side of Milwaukee. It wasn’t that bad of an area! It was a nice area with shopping, good schools, and plenty of activities. As more middle class minorities/homeowners moved to the area, others ran for the hills. The mall was closed along with other businesses. Although some parts of the area look a little different, Walmart, restaurants, churches, homeowners and schools are still in the area.
It’s brown deer, hardly the city of Milwaukee by any stretch of the immagination
The Medows turned into the ghettos.
@@N.WI.Homestead I used to work for a public utility. Our techs that worked in the area all called that apartment development North Ghettos.
bro it sucks that these places go abandoned. Legit remember going to these places😔
A lot of memories in that mall with my cuz and I. We basically lived there. Sad to see it like this. I really miss it.
The mall of my childhood.. We loved hanging out at this place.
I went here for Christmas concerts as a kid. It was sad to see it abandoned for all these years.
The Northridge Lakes property next to the Northridge Mall used to be a high-end Complex. It also went downhill fast. It is strange because the neighborhoods between this area and the city are nice. Usually the farther you go out of Milwaukee the better but not in this case.
It's crazy seeing this bc I live close to Milwaukee and there's a Southridge Mall and it's crazy that after all these years it looks very similar. I know it's probably not uncommon, it's just got that eerie vibe. It's like I'm seeing the mall after years of decay and abandon, but I was there yesterday
I visited Milwaukee in 1993 and went to that Mall. I remember getting this huge Gyro that tasted so good.
I hate that Malls have become a haven for Crime. It should be a place to get away and see other people, find a date or be with your mate or friends.
By them closing down, that's why you have teen takeovers in some parts of the country
I haven't been to Northridge since I was a kid. It is very reminiscent of Southridge before they renovated it. I remember the waterfall walls in the food court. Good times.
Oh wow, flashbacks of going here around Christmas time when I was a kid. I always wondered why we seemed to have just never came back to such an amazing looking mall. Well now I know, damn.
Let's not forget it was Herb Kohl who helped land us in that situation. Given his irresponsible selling of this property to Chinese investors who had no intention on investing in the community our communities have suffered for decades and will continue to suffer. Consider it part of Herb Kohl's legacy and a large middle finger to city of Milwaukee.
This is a great example of "we can't have nice shyt in our citys, because "some people" don't know how to act smh smh smh smh.
I remember visiting there as a kid. Tried to stick my head through the banister on the second level lol. The pink and blue tones, so 80s/90s, just how I remember it.
I used to go here as a kid when we lived on the north side of milwaukee. I loved going to Rocky Roccoco's lol . Crazy to have such vivid memories of a place and then seeing it like this.. crazy
Being a teenager in the 90s and going to this mall was some of the best times of my life 😢😢
I loved Northridge Mall for many years! This is a very sad moment!
I live in Milwaukee, WI. That mall was beautiful at one time, had a lot of really nice stores in it and it was a cool place for people to hang out. It shut down due to the rampant theft & crime which that part of town is infamous for. It was built on the wrong side of town. Nothing nice, and I mean NOTHING nice can survive very long on the north side of Milwaukee. It's sad.
I use to love this mall when I was a teenager! It was so nice I’m 61 now❤
Prime example why the US should not allow foreign investors
The layout kinda reminds me of Southridge but bigger. Such a shame that malls have faded in popularity, I know 2 malls semi close that are rumored to being shut down. I’m to young to have ever gone here, but oh man, I wish it was handled better because that layout is just beautiful-
Fun fact: there’s also a Southridge and it looks kinda like this but is almost on set to become another northeidge
It's in a pretty good area but the scum have been flocking there. They do that up north. They travel upwards to commit crime so even the quiet areas of Wi are getting less safe.
I have so many great memories there in the late 70's, early 80's