HENRIETTA, N.Y. — The Marketplace Mall in Henrietta is nearing its end, and local residents are reflecting on its legacy. News10NBC’s Declan Stablow visited the mall, where he encountered a few people reminiscing about past visits.
RELATED: End of an era: Marketplace Mall in Henrietta closes for good Wednesday
“In the 80s, being a little kid, my grandpa would bring me here. We go get ice cream at the ice cream place in the seaport. Also, go on the carousel. Even as a kid, my mom would bring us here to go clothes shopping,” DM Johnson said.
Johnson said she visited the mall to take pictures and make final memories.
Mary Meyer recalled the excitement when the mall first opened in 1982. “It was pretty exciting because they had so many stores, and you could come here and just kind of get everything done,” Meyer said.
Meyer expressed sadness over the decline of the mall’s stores, attributing it to online shopping and a lack of local businesses. “I do a lot more online shopping than I ever did. I used to always let them be in the stores and, and also I, I like to support local businesses and general. and here the malls don’t have local business,” Meyer said.
The mall was also a popular spot for walking. “It’s a central place for like, students and all the people who live close by. This was a really safe place and lively place to walk,” Suman Toor said.
Malik Elmas, owner of DS Jewelry & Repair, operated in the mall for five years, attracting customers from across the Finger Lakes region. “Customers coming from all over the place, exit 42, Batavia, coming from Dansville you know, my customers come from all over the place you know,” Elmas said.
Elmas will be relocating his store to Jay Scutti Plaza across the street. The mall’s owner, Wilmorite, is working to relocate some of the other tenants but has not provided specific details yet.
The mall’s anchor stores, such as J.C. Penney, will remain open.
Other related stories:
- Marketplace Mall owner says it’s working to relocate tenants with interior-only entrances
- Dick’s Sporting Goods is moving out of Marketplace Mall
- ‘I’m not happy’: Jewelry store owner among handful of businesses forced to vacate Henrietta’s Marketplace Mall by New Year’s Eve
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