midway mall

Recently, after the announcement of Dillard's leaving Midway Mall, the Chronicle-Telegram has been printing features on the state of other local malls. No one really knows what the proper road map is or what the new mall owners have in the works, but it's pretty clear that Midway will continue to lose customers if there isn't a compelling, new reason for them to return.

I remember the Midway Mall expansion in the early '90s, and at the time, it filled a need. The addition brought in stores that normally we would have had to drive to Great Northern for. Before Wal*Mart and Target, it seemed Babbage's really was the only place to buy computer games, for example. And Aladdin's Castle still had fun arcade games that couldn't be reproduced on the old Nintendo system. And these days, who's ever heard of a mall without a food court?

But 17 years later, those needs are largely filled elsewhere. I buy my clothes at Target instead of JCPenney, and while I'm there I might stock up on Tylenol, greeting cards, and mac & cheese too instead of hopping over to Kroger -- er, I mean Fazio's -- er, Rini-Rego -- er, Giant Eagle.

I don't know what the answer is for Midway Mall, but I truly believe the "lifestyle centers" like Crocker Park and Legacy Village are merely a fad. Just look at the faces of frustrated shoppers in the bitter December wind and you'll see that all the outdoor latte vendors and 47-foot Christmas trees in the world won't change the realities of Cleveland weather. The novelty wears off quickly, especially after 30 minutes of trying to remember which of the four massive parking garages your car might be in. That's what brings me back to Midway Mall at Christmastime.

It also seems that folks are more willing to drive for their shopping these days. They have no problem driving 20+ minutes to Avon Commons, South Park, or Great Northern. Why? Again, because those places offer retail and restaurants we can't find here in Elyria. Panera? World Market? Olive Garden? Some say we're not middle class enough for those places, but whenever someone says that, I point to the stream of Elyria residents bypassing Cobblestone Square to head east on I-90.