This is what the Steamtown Mall replaced (Philadelphia, Scranton: apartments, lofts)

[bobconan]

Looks like a bunch of ugly worn down building to me. They should have knocked down both sides of the street all the way up and down.Rather something new then something rotting.

[blip]

Originally Posted by bobconan

Looks like a bunch of ugly worn down building to me. They should have knocked down both sides of the street all the way up and down.Rather something new then something rotting.

I guess you're being a little facetious , but still that kind of thinking will get the whole world looking like
http://www.cpmra.muohio.edu/marketstudy/Strip%20Mall.JPG (broken link)

Not the world I want, for one. A mixture of buildings of different ages is a healthy thing. The other side of Lackawanna seems to have a pretty healthy building stock today, and decent mix of building types and ages.

More important is what the mall did to the streetscape, essentially making a 3-block long forebidding wall, which I'd guess has kept the other side of the street depopulated as well.

While this may have been a ghost town before, it continues to be so even as other streets like Spruce, Linden, and Adams have pretty healthy retails stretches.

I don't know much about the mall's financial prospects, and whether it's actually bringing many people in and generating jobs and tax revenues for the city. But from an urban planning perspective, it's a nightmare. Sure, tear down some individual buildings if they're in irreparable shape, but this kind of massive superblock project really disrupts the urban fabric.

Or just scrap all this, strip mine the entire Wyoming Valley, and then use the coal moneys to rebuild a vast modern suburb with cookie-cutter houses and strip malls. Most people might prefer that.

[Mr Yuk]

Originally Posted by NYRangers 2008

Knock the thing down already. I guarantee no one would miss it. I sure wouldn't. I can't even remember the last time I was there. An outdoor walking mall would have been so much better.

In a few more years, the old Sugerman's will have competition from the Steamtown Mall when it also becomes an indoor flea market.....it might already be a flea market.

[scrantonluna]

Haven't we fully exhausted this already? I thought the last discussion was very thorough and covered all viewpoints. The only thing I might add is a modification to my suggestion of revamping the existing mall structure to create false storefronts, which is all the Shoppes is; rather, I say knock down the whole front side and modify the now-street-side of the rear half. This would instantly create a 'court' of sorts, probably the only way to achieve the same feel of a closed-off city block as we have seen in other locations. Trees, fountains, do what you want.

As for the implosion, I am never happy to see architecture be lost, but those buildings did not truly seem to be suited to retail in the same way that the 500 of Lackawanna is. Nobody wanted them then, otherwise they would still be standing.

Who thinks Piccolino is kicking himself now? His pizza place is going to wind up looking like a FEMA trailer in Mount Margaret.

[weluvpa]

Originally Posted by scrantonluna

Who thinks Piccolino is kicking himself now? His pizza place is going to wind up looking like a FEMA trailer in Mount Margaret.

That project is not done yet.......It will sit empty JUST LIKE THE REST OF THE DOWNTOWN and its "specialty", niche shops will bring nothing to the downtown of any significance..

I actually think that Coney Island and Buonas deserve some respect for standing their ground and not buying into this mess.....

They were going to have pay heavily into the developer to stay were they are but have THEIR BUSINESS'S LOOK HIS WAY even though they actually OWN THEIR buildings... The city ILLEGALLY tried the condemnation and emient domain route and they still stayed and they could NOT FORCE THEM OUT.

Those business's especially Buonas have stayed thru think and thin with this city and have faithfully paid their taxes only to have a Doherty CRONY LEG HUMPER like Rinaldi come in and pull this crap on them with Doherty's help...

Ya thats the way to foster the support of two of the longest running places downtown.....Typical Doherty politics and your comment is typical from the Doherty flock.

Only a good sheep would think that trying to force two long standing business's to close was a good thing....

NOT TO MENTION THAT RINALDI DIDN'T PUT DIDDLY INTO THAT PROJECT.....$29,000,000 of TAXPAYER DOLLARS to build a PRIVATE BUSINESS for PRIVATE PROFIT....

Typical sheep response.

[scrantonluna]

Mayor bashing belongs in the political sticky thread.

[SteelCityRising]

Originally Posted by scrantonluna

Mayor bashing belongs in the political sticky thread.

Agreed. I actually solicited responses to ten fresh questions regarding the city's political climate on that thread, yet only one member thus far has responded. Interesting.

[weluvpa]

Agreed

Paul your mother goose syndrome is getting old....

Luna thats funny because I was pretty much bashing the project and developer. Its not my fault that the ONLY WAY that the project was getting off the ground was with Rinaldi's buddy Doherty.

The two are one in the same....Another useless project that thumbs its nose at the long standing residents of the city while being paid for by tax dollars for private profit and its a KOZ to boot.

Alas it will sit empty like a monument to all that is wrong with this picture..

Crime going up, police force going down......but wait lets dump a hundred million into the downtown on useless projects.

[blip]

Originally Posted by scrantonluna

Haven't we fully exhausted this already? I thought the last discussion was very thorough and covered all viewpoints.

Well, I missed it last time around, so I'm glad for the redundancy.

Complaining about topics resurfacing on message boards seems to me like complaining about people talking about the weather. It's just going to happen again and again. Searching past discussions is only useful if you're looking for some specific info-- it's no encyclopedia. New people will come in and out, and similar conversations will recur.

That reminds me, I had some leftover Old Forge Pizza for lunch, and it was TASTY. I think I'll start a thread about its merits.

[Mr Yuk]

the Mall at Steamtown:
http://www.colourlovers.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2007/08/white-elephant-statue.jpg (broken link)
A white elephant!