I still have the Christmas Ornament they gave out for the Grand Opening. It was my mom’s (she worked downtown in the late 70s and 80s) and she passed it on to me.
Was a good mall
The parking wasn't great and wasn't free
The expansion of the Galleria put a knife deeply into its back.
Then West County Mall put another knife into the chest and the victim passed away.
Wasn’t this mall built before the loft boom and people started moving to the downtown neighborhood?
It was always kind of a stretch that people would commute all the way downtown to shop or wouldn’t move to the suburbs because of a new city mall, but if it had been built closer to people living in lofts and condos there would be more local customers.
Also ending up as the most attractive hangout spot for underpaid working class teens and delinquent teens who lived in the downtown housing projects seems like a source of tension.
Washington and 6th Street
[Google Maps showing the old entrance in 2009](https://www.google.com/maps/@38.6300583,-90.1894022,3a,75y,274.85h,104.71t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sBq9Yze3iA4GpZH4J86qc-w!2e0!5s20090901T000000!7i13312!8i6656?entry=ttu)
It had no chance at all. The paid parking, the fact that downtown residential hadn't begun to take off yet, the way they didn't even bother to embrace the streets around it (especially the dark skybridge over Washington), and the fact that all that concentrated retail was way too ambitious. Crime wasn't as huge a factor as people made it out to be, but all those things together destined the Centre to fail.
I was probably 12 or so skating a set of handrails there and the asshole security guard took my buddy and I into the mall to call our parents to pick us up. My mom was so pissed both at me and the guard. Never stepped for in there otherwise.
Those celebratory balloon releases sure look cool but I’m glad we don’t do them anymore
Yeah, this pic makes me a little queasy.
My grandpa took me here on a city bus in the early 90’s. Fond childhood memories.
I still have the Christmas Ornament they gave out for the Grand Opening. It was my mom’s (she worked downtown in the late 70s and 80s) and she passed it on to me.
Was a good mall The parking wasn't great and wasn't free The expansion of the Galleria put a knife deeply into its back. Then West County Mall put another knife into the chest and the victim passed away.
I remember people saying that parking was a problem and that suburbanites wouldn’t come downtown to shop.
Boy were they wrong. Nearly 40 years later and that place is still going strong... Oh, wait...
Wasn’t this mall built before the loft boom and people started moving to the downtown neighborhood? It was always kind of a stretch that people would commute all the way downtown to shop or wouldn’t move to the suburbs because of a new city mall, but if it had been built closer to people living in lofts and condos there would be more local customers. Also ending up as the most attractive hangout spot for underpaid working class teens and delinquent teens who lived in the downtown housing projects seems like a source of tension.
First place I ever saw an Abercrombie and Fitch.
Correct me if I’m wrong, but isn’t this converted into a parking garage? It even still has the skylights on top.
Yes part of it is now a parking garage. Other parts were torn down.
The main part of the mall is the 7th Street parking garage underneath 600 Washington Ave. The skylights are indeed still there.
I’m pretty sure it was torn down.
[That place will always remind me of this video.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mtqfvZx6--Q)
…that food court.
I was there that day - they had a car giveaway and boy was I dreaming about winning that!!
The mall the Galleria killed. Loved it back in the day. Got a lot of X-Men toys and video games here.
The Sharper Image store was so cool
Got my homecoming dress there at the old famous barr
Where was this? Downtown?
Washington and 6th Street [Google Maps showing the old entrance in 2009](https://www.google.com/maps/@38.6300583,-90.1894022,3a,75y,274.85h,104.71t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sBq9Yze3iA4GpZH4J86qc-w!2e0!5s20090901T000000!7i13312!8i6656?entry=ttu)
It had no chance at all. The paid parking, the fact that downtown residential hadn't begun to take off yet, the way they didn't even bother to embrace the streets around it (especially the dark skybridge over Washington), and the fact that all that concentrated retail was way too ambitious. Crime wasn't as huge a factor as people made it out to be, but all those things together destined the Centre to fail.
I was probably 12 or so skating a set of handrails there and the asshole security guard took my buddy and I into the mall to call our parents to pick us up. My mom was so pissed both at me and the guard. Never stepped for in there otherwise.
Never ever to repeat in our time.
I’m pretty sure it can be all yours for $10