Charleston Town Center Opening and Black Friday - 1983 

And now it’s a ghost town. Like the rest of the town, sadly. It used to be AMAZING! I am only 27, but I remember getting pictures taken at The Picture place, getting a hair cut there, the pet store, getting good food at the food court on top, and just shopping for HOURS. It was a beauty. Oh, the nostalgia!

Knowing the older ones aren’t alive anymore yet it wasn’t that long ago kind of hurts 😭

Had no idea it was the biggest in th country when it opened.

After billions of dollars, displacing hundreds of Charleston citizens from their homes, ruining local stores downtown, the town center now stands as a testimony to shortsightedness and greed. It destroyed downtown businesses. And not even 40 years later it sets mostly empty.

“Traffic backed up all the way to the interstate” definitely will not see that again.

I grew up in Charleston and was in high school when the mall opened. It of course was the place to go and pretty nice at the time. I think they made a big error in judgment however putting such a large mall in a city the size of Charleston. Inevitably it was going to dry up the businesses downtown that were not in the mall - and that’s exactly what happened. It took years for any sort of comeback. I live out of state now and still have family there and it’s sad to hear how much the mall has gone downhill since that time . I do think things would have been different had it been scaled back to about half the size they originally built it at. On a smaller note I hated seeing the waterfall being removed. I thought that was very unique and not something you typically see in any mall, or now

40 short years

Jack is the only original news anchor left.

It makes me feel like I'm an episode of stranger things The mall episode

I was there when it opened!! Both of my sons would work there during the summers but one became a manager for quite a few years. I miss the mall!

Well, this didn’t age well. Charleston Town Center is currently one of the most depressing places to visit. Most stores are dry walled over. So sad.

Ever since my granny and mamamw died the mall just keeps going down hill, I hate the way it looks like now I remember when the mall was still the mall.

This takes me back

We use to walk across the bridge from Liberty Hill and go there in the 80's as kids.

Sadly it’s a natural evolution of what shoppers want. First it’s a nice downtown, then a mall, next free parking at Southridge and all along the empty chair in the room, online shopping. Plus the existing debt cannot be sustained if income drops at these places. It will eventually come to a somewhat level plane between online shopping and big box discount stores in free parking centers boardered by food stores. If the country goes into a long serious recession there will be more fallout. The government is printing money to sustain spending just like consumers due to inflation are spending savings and maxing out credit cards. At some point the government and the individual consumers will come to a halt with their increasing spending due to the payments on interest and the debt. Then you will really see some banking and commercial store fall off. Sounds a bit gloomy eh? Reduce it to this. How long can a family keep spending before they cut back or start shedding assets? My advice: reduce debt now by reducing spending. Make advance principle payments if you can. Shed assets that are a drag on income with debt. Trying living with less. See what works for your personal situation. Do your best to reduce and get out of debt. Not easy and not fun but in the end you with survive.

It's really odd seeing such a grand opening for this mall considering the really bad state it is in now. I was there just a few weeks ago and they've begun building new walls over empty storefronts, so it's clear this mall isn't going to survive much longer. And don't even think about using the parking lot elevators. Got to the bottom and started shaking and making this loud banging sound. Thought the doors would never open

Me n my girl Wanda loved going there bsck in the day😊

Let's be clear.. Charleston will never be restored to this level of greatness. Thanks to the politicians you voted for

It's a disgrace it was let go for the damn Civic Center!

Didn't even last 20 years. So sad.😔

Well it closed the mom & pop shops then the rent for shops in the mall got unaffordable then the tax payers are paying for this blunder… they should have never built this.