I worked in Sears customer service from 81 - 83. Of course, that was back in the day when it was actually SAFE to shop at that Mall. It is currently a sewer and I wouldn't go into that Mall again unless I was armed.
In the late 1970's and I was working at Hudson's Eastland Mall Department Store. I remember when Fairlane Town Center Mall opened up. I remember the anchors. I used to go shopping at Fairlane Town Center Mall whenever I got a chance to and very busy. Those were the good old days. On a recent trip to Fairlane Town Center Mall and I couldn't believe my eyes. The only 2 anchors left are J.C.PENNEY and Macy's. And 6 anchors has closed permanently. The Fairlane Town Center Monorail cars that ran from Fairlane Town Center Mall to The Hyatt Hotel that was located across the parking lot are in a Junk Yard on Gratiot and 24 Mile Road in Chesterfield,Michigan. When Fairlane Town Center Mall opened up in 1976 and The Lakeside Mall also opened up in Sterling Heights,Michigan. Would you go to Lakeside Mall?The only 2 anchors left are J.C.PENNEY and Macy's.
The opening of Fairlane was big news in 1976. So much so that I made ir a point to visit it and it's sister mall Lakeside on opening say. I was closer to Lakeside which closed last week, so I think the only time I was in Fairlane was that opening day visit. I always thought of the big malls as surrogate downtowns, weatherproof against Michigan's fun climate. At my age, I just don't have the energy to walk in from the parking lot, then traipse around a huge mall I'd rather go to a stand alone brick & mortar store for shopping... assuming Amazon hasn't driven them all out of business. 🙂
When malls like this have ways to access them on different levels (as in your photo of HUDSON'S), for some reasons that made them feel a little more sophisticated...as opposed to being just on one flat parking lot. In malls that I grew up with, it seemed like it gave a less crowded way to get into them--almost like a back door.
Back in the early years of the Mall, when The Rolling Stones came to play in Detroit, The Stones stayed at the Hyatt Regency Hotel where Mick Jagger disguised himself to ride the monorail back and forth between the mall and the hotel, never getting off until time to get back to his room at the hotel. Fairlane Town Center was such a high crime shopping mall, even the multi screen movie theater closed because of black gang crime and violence. Now Fairlane Town Center is just a huge parking lot to store unfinished F-150's coming off the nearby assembly plant at the Rouge Plant.
Hudson's winklemens gantos, Alvin's, Lord and Taylor, Saks, Donna Karan, Scott Gregory and the endless supply of shoes stores. Shout-out to Rob at Sundance. I spent countless hours every week at this mail. It was a Saturday ritual with my mother and me then over to Jacobson's and Crowley's sometimes we'd go to English gardens just over to super Kmart. Then over to old country buffet after to Meijer and Kroger's we would be gone all day into the night. We'd bring home burgers or pizza for my dad around 11:00 or so. He said what no more stores open? He was mad but we'd do it again the next Saturday😅 we had so much fun shopping all day. Heck sometimes we'd go to Westland or Southland mall too or even over to Novi or west Bloomfield
I worked at winkleman's in the Pearland Town Center back in 1976 when it first opened the manager was Polly Zafar she was a beautiful short little red-haired Spitfire woman
Yep I remember Fairlane Mall in 1976 Bishop Borgess High School hang out It was nice back then until years later the unruly tribes took over and the mall had to have its own police force there and install cameras in and out of the mall. They need to bull doze that dump and put up housing or commercial office buildings or maybe hotels.
As of May 2024, due to unpaid DTE bills (electricity bills) Fairlane mall may be shifting to something else. Although I was told it is closing down, I don't know how true that is.
Great video, Eric C, i have suggestion for you to do can you do the history of sugarloaf mills in Gwinnett county GA. I like when you do Atlanta based videos, you haven’t done one in a while, plus this mall is my childhood mills mall, and the last mills mall to have it’s food court to be fully colorful ever Spence 2001. ❤
Hey buddy...how about a piece on the old DONALDSON'S Department store in Minneapolis? Its one of the stores seen in the opening sequence for the Mary Tyler Moore show (season one) and that hat toss in front of both Dayton's and Donaldson's.
It surprised me you never mentioned winkleman's that opened right there when the mall open then they were right next to the escalators and JCPenney's and course winkleman's closed poly Zafar was the manager and her husband owned a bar on Schaefer and Michigan Avenue I work back and ready-to-wear and sold the first full-length mink coat it's sold for $1,700 back in 76 I got a commission but unfortunately that was the day the next day was my vacation I almost didn't go on vacation so I can collect that commission but I didn't Ali Zafar died of breast cancer after winkleman's closed she was also an author and wrote books he worked under a ghost named I can't tell you what that was it was our secret
It brings back a lot of old memories for crying out loud I think I was 23 or 24 years old when when that was little nose open 76 so I was 20 years old when I work there holy moly
