Exploring the Abandoned Diamond Run Mall (2023) 

I am an electrician and worked on this mall ... did most of the lighting throughout the mall including the food court and common areas as well as providing kiosk power. also did the parking lot lighting and pole setting. it breaks my heart to see this space left to rot the way it is. clearly it could be used to home our nations many homeless vets at the very least. we call ALL do better !

As fellow woman, you are very brave, stay safe out there

If someone were to tell me in the 1980's that the average American mall were to be in this condition I would never have believed them and thought them crazy

rutland native here. grew up going to this mall, and it really was a beautiful back in the early aughts. i pretty much watched this mall die over the years before i moved, seeing the state it was in by then broke my heart. it went down hill (pun not intended) fast once sears closed. the last time i went was in like 2017 or something, and my boyfriend at the time and i were able to walk into a closed store and into the back. it was pretty obvious how little they cared about that mall by then. :/

It hurts to see this place in such a state of disrepair and vandalism. I used to come here often with my grandparents and hang out in the food court having Orientaste for lunch & walk around taking in the cozy vibes the place gave off when the place was still open. I was also there when the place was starting to go downhill, stores and kiosks started to leave the mall, including the anchor stores like Sears & Kmart. Thanks for being brave enough to give us a bittersweet stroll through memory lane, and stay safe.

"I wish I had more info on what this was" in the arcade killed me. So many hours spent in this building and it was beautiful at its prime. The fact that the owners wont let it go so it can be used again is heartbreaking. fuck Rutland city for letting this beautiful building rot the way they have. Gods words can not describe the hatred I feel for the people who let this turn out the way it did.

It's so sad how the mall is now. I can reconize a lot of the store fronts even in this state. I spent so much time here in my teens. I drove around it a couple weekends ago and came to tears over the state of the place and that my son will never have the expirence of spending a Saturday afternoon at the mall with his friends.

I used to work at the Kmart there and after I quit I used to bring clients from a different job here to walk around and just get into the community. It’s rumored that the owner of the mall owes Rutland a huge amount of money for taxes and he kept raising businesses rent to try to pay it. There were other rumors that the mall was set to be demolished but clearly it’s still standing. The swamp at the beginning where Kmart was is from a roof leak they had while the mall was still open!

I'm so glad someone made this! Thanks!

Worked in this mall from 2002-2007. Absolutely loved it Miss management ultimately is to blame for its demise. So sad. Also crazy you found foot locker remnants. Foot locker was one of the first if not one of the earliest closest to Diamond Runs opening. Great video. Thank you for sharing.🤙

The mall was never supposed to succeed as a mall. It served its purpose. There was a bypass planned to go around rutland linking route 4 with route 4 in Mendon. The problem with that is was going to imminent domain a shitload of residential property...so they built the mall in the way to block it. If you look at a map of rutland youll see where 4 terminates at 7...it was supposed to keep going up and around and you can see how the mall is smack dab right there in the way.

I can’t believe how beaten up the mall has gotten for being in a small town. I didn’t expect that mall to be in such bad condition. Your brave for going in there as I probably would not 😂. Great video!

Wow. This was one of my favorite places to go to as a kid. It's a shame that it's ended up this way, but I also wasn't very surprised that it closed down as it was struggling for quite a while, especially since Sears closed down over a decade ago. I've been thinking of exploring it for quite a while but I'm sure I wouldn't be alone in there.

Good video! Stay safe.

Great video! Thanks for making this.

I skated throughout that mall when it was open. And then did it when it closed. Gosh I miss the good times in there.

Another native here, naturally went to this mall all the time, and my dad worked there as a security guard back in the mid 2000s. I was just thinking how it would be a trip to go and explore this now, after all the time I spent here. I'm fascinated by how fast it's deteriorated, with how recently it closed, but of course it did. Thanks for sharing this. Rutland does indeed have weird vibes.

This mall got so much controversy for killing Downtown Rutland. Pretty Ironic.

This breaks my heart…. I practically grew up in this mall in the 90’s and early 2000’s. So sad seeing it like this 😢

My family and I would go there so much when I was a kid. Seeing it slowly die over the years was so sad. The city could do something with all that space especially since the Castleton University hockey rink is right next to it but instead, it's become a looted biohazard. Anyhow, thanx for sharing a look at it (and for braving all that broken glass and mold. I could never lol)

This was always a place my family would go to as a part of every Christmas up until maybe 2011? I have many happy memories there and it was hard to come back and see everything boarded up earlier this year. Not surprised but still. It hit hard.

So scary you went in there alone!!!! 😱

It’s sad to see the current state of this mall. I went to it once or twice, while Bath and Body Works, and I think Old Navy, were still there. We passed by the mall a few months ago during a trip to Rutland (also saw that Grand Union has made a comeback) but didn’t drive around or go near the building. While I think it would be neat to explore, I’d have to have someone else with me to be brave enough to do it.

I spent lots of time at the mall after it opened in 95 loved the arcade! Can remember a few major purchases as the Kmart and sears. About ten years ago there was a cool used record shop I got bunch of vinyl. I wish you had check out the Spartans hockey arena was the newer part of the mall I never saw!

I am excited to see more videos, this channel can really work. I wouldn’t explore alone. Especially in rutland, be careful

The 1996 movie Diamond Run, which is on RU-vid, has scenes filmed at this mall, which look like they were done before it actually opened and work was still being done inside the mall. Crazy to see the difference from between when it was brand new and now

Wow that place is creepy! Love the Backrooms speed run portion😭😭

Fantastic video! I've wanted to see the inside of this mall now that it's been abandoned; I used to go to this mall often, while it was still open.

I hung out at the mall as a kid in the 2000s. It's really sad seeing it in this state.

This was my childhood mall I remember every bit about it from the 90s-2000s and until it closed RIP

The space where you saw the non-smoking flyers was originally a Payless shoe but in the malls last couple years that space was designated as a youth hangout.

Definitely brave of you to go into that place like that. Just randomly had this pop up in my recommended videos. I hadn't heard of this place, and I'm probably gonna check it out sometime. Not sure if you plan on doing more exploration videos, but I hope you stay safe if you do.

Was just asking if this had been knocked down yet! We were supposed to have a new strip mall built by now! So said & the memories! My son did his first big run in there when he got his first pair of real sneakers-which was probably where the no smoking pamphlets were near Sears.

The candy store with the rich lady from Middlebury.

My wife and I were there on the last full day of opeation. Have alot of stills of what it looked like beofre the shut down. We have great memories of going there with our family over the years. Went back a couple of months later for the auction of "stuff" looking to a plague with out dauhter's name of it..repestening her her school....got it for free! Thanks for takin us along....now all we here of it is how bad things are up there..mostly true...just readup and see...

Dang this place has really gone downhill since my visit in 2019. Great exploration.

I remember when this places opened. For many years it was the place to be. Shoulder to shoulder we walked through this place. Packed with people. Amazon has changed the way we shop. We lost a sense of togetherness as we went online. There was something about going to the mall and touching and feeling and buying something along with grabbing a hot pretzel to eat as you wandered around. Even if you didn’t buy anything it was a place to hang out with your friends and even groups of people would form work out groups and walk the mall for mind and body. Although online is faster and easier and yes cheaper we all lost memories of trips together. Now we hardly see each other and have lost our sense of how to communicate face to face. The internet killed a lot more than business, it killed the sense of being together. Evolution isn’t always progressive. It’s can be a huge hindrance and a way to bring us farther apart. Something about a mall was exciting to think you might see someone you know there. It was stress relief. And now it’s gone… sad video. That’s not the mall I remember. It’s more like a set for the walking dead….😢

Just went here today with 2 friends for the first time and triggered alarms we booked it out there. We were there for 20 or 30 min before we triggered it 😭. This was the most risky exploration we've done cause of the alarms and the security showing up after. He didnt know it was us tho 😂

It's kind of hard to watch a mall in its early stages of abandonment. Not that it could ever be practically repurposed, but still, just hard to watch.

Very good video, what is that crunch under your shoes when you walk in there lovely sound more of that

I turned 16 a couple weeks ago and this was so nostalgic but so sad at the same time to know my early childhood years were spent in this mall having great times but now it’s sitting in ruins! I feel like my childhood is going by so fast

Oh my , I would love to fly my fpv drone through the inside

The halls of this mall are where I pulled open my Charizard Pokemon card from a pack back in 1999. First time I ever visited this mall. I still remember running back to the card shop to show them and having my picture taken. They were in disbelief. I wish I had that picture. When I got back to school that Monday and word spread what I had, I was the talk of the school that day. That seems like yesterday to me. I went back with a girlfriend in 2008 or 2009 and the mall was already heavily in decline by that point. I remember the American Eagle had just gone out of business, it was the first time we had ever seen an AE go under and that was like shocking to us at that point. There was a womens clothing store that she liked though. I remember the abandoned Kay Bee Toys was still there at the time with the signage still up (It was the weird style that said KAY TOYS BEE on the sign)

I tried to get in, couldn’t squeeze through. Gonna come back with a drill and unscrew one of the plywood sheets

I really enjoyed this. Thank you for sharing.

It's really a shame this mall closed. There are almost zero major shopping center options in Vermont, and this was very central, easily-accessible location for a lot of people in the area. I realize online shopping has killed off a lot of retail businesses, but there are still plenty of successful malls throughout the country. I feel like this one should have had a better shot at being successful.

So sad.

This place really fell into horrible shape, since Doomie Grunt once filmed this mall.

You're good at this. Keep it up, but stay safe!

My friend and I actually saw your video a while back and it inspired us to take a road trip to visit this location. I was just wondering, if it's possible, what was your strategy to avoid the alarms in the building? Love the vid :)

So sad. We loved going to this mall when it was at it's glory. 😞

RIP orientaste 😢 the lady always knew my order

This absolutely breaks my heart😢 I grew up in this mall after the original closed - monkeywards for the fellow genXers.. Then I worked nearly a decade in my adult yrs.. 5 of my kids spent their early years helping me in the store & visiting.. I didn't realize it closed - we escaped VT in 2013 SMH y'all have ruined a once beautiful state🤦🏽‍♀️

Also saw your comment on the “blue mall.” That is in S. Burlington and each store has its own entrance. It’s not enclosed like this one was. There is also the mall on Dorset St called the University mall.

I thought you were going to run into a homeless person while watching. It is unfortunate that the mall in Rutland has deteriorated to the condition it’s in.

Your lucky you didnt find needles there i lived in Vermont. The pick store was once Victoria secrets and you went in the kmart side i believe

How did you not get sick? There’s mold and feces everywhere

Wanted to check this spot out but was already closed when I planned a mini trip there what other malls other than university are open in Vermont?

I will never understand all the vandalism.

I remember when the Diamond Run mall was just about full in the early to mid 2000s. Had a Sears, JcPenney with a salon, and a big Kmart with its own restaurant. Also had Eastern Mountain Sports, Olympia Sports, Foot Locker, Payless, Subway, Sbarro, a bookstore, Claire’s and a bunch of other big-name shops. I spent a lot of time there growing up; went inside there all the way up until it closed. It’s really sad to see the place left to decay and get destroyed by vandals like that. Hopefully one day someone will turn it back into something worthwhile.

I would buy the mall and converted into my home.

3:54=Zamias=The BAD GUY!!!!!

Rutland is not the greatest of places...always had a creepy vibe to me. I mean it's not Detroit, Baltimore or Camden...but the city has its dark side...this unfortunately is a taste of that

great video

I am surprised that you were able to get inside of the mall. I would think it would be close to prevent vandalism.

I visited today the outside and i might go on the inside

Miles?

I really don't like vandals who destroy for no reason.

First!

I bet the place is haunted

I think it’s disgusting with the freaks did to this mall Great goiny Rutland county just letting your county fall apart

that big abandoned mall is real trashy busted glass everywhere and graffiti all over it

Thank you City of Rutland for extorting millions of dollars from the owner in “impact fees”.

I went there with hmy.fiancee a couple weeks ago abd he hewrd a little girls voice