Comments on: Tucson Mall; Tucson, Arizona

By: Nathan Bush

Nathan Bush — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 22:57:54 +0000

BELIEVE ME guys I feel your pain…I’ve been told by security guards and management teams to not take pictures…generally I stop after they tell me…but sometimes I take a few afterwards because I see something I like.

At Wal-Mart on Elmore Ave in Davenport, Iowa was the worst chew out I’ve ever received, and that was on March 9. 2010. She was WAAAAAY pissed off believe me! I’d go more into it, but I don’t feel comfortable putting the story online…for ethical reasons. But there are times when I haven’t been bothered…like at King of Prussia Mall in Philadelphia, The Gallery in Philadelphia, among other malls and stores. I’ve never got yelled at for taking pictures at a Target store, but there’s a first time for everything. ANYWAYS…

@Jason and Ross: PLEASE email me or call me! My cell is 515-227-0846. I’d like to talk to you guys about mall profiling and the such, whenever you have time. Thanks!

Nathan Bush

By: ak3437

ak3437 — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 08:06:45 +0000

@Fred,
yes, I remember the fountain by The Broadway that shot all the way to the ceiling. Do you remember how they would turn it into a huge tree at Christmas time? I am sad to see so many people on this forum, who have never been to Tucson, or who have only lived in Tucson for a few years, speaking so negatively about the Tucson Mall. Like Fred, the mall holds so many memories of growing up in Tucson and I remember life there during a time that most on this forum don’t understand.

By: Phil

Phil — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 01:25:06 +0000

When Tucson Mall first opened, there was an oyster/seafood restaurant bar that was located where Red Robin currently is. There was always an awful stench right in the entrance area during the time the oyster bar was there. Does anyone else remember that? I also remember merry go round and walgreens were in the mall during its early years

By: Fred

Fred — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 21:14:46 +0000

A bit late to the party but if you’d like to see some of the Tucson Mall as it originally was check out “Can’t Buy Me Love” with Patrick Dempsey.

Lots of memories in that mall for me. They used to have a fountain in there right in the middle by the food court that shot all the way to the ceiling.

By: funky-rat

funky-rat — Sun, 24 May 2009 06:14:00 +0000

Simon is bad with the mall cops. They have a stake in the Lehigh Valley Mall, and a few years back I was floored to see their mall cops riding around on Segues.

Seriously?

Paul Blart: Mall Cop was dead-on for a Simon mall.

By: Stuart

Stuart — Sun, 24 May 2009 01:55:08 +0000

You mentioned about the surly mall cops. My sister works for a TV station in a city whose mall is owned by Simon. And she said that the mall cops had frequent bouts of asshole behavior. She said that one time they were conducting an interview with chief of police and mall security tried to kick them (including the Police chief) out.

By: Horatio

Horatio — Fri, 01 May 2009 04:29:13 +0000

I hate security guards that harrass people! It’s like take a chill pill!

I took like 3 pictures inside Macy’s at El Centro’s Imperial Valley Mall and some jerk is like “excuse me, you can’t do that” all smug, luckily I know some Italian so i started talking in Italian and told him in broken English “I came to USA on vacation, didnt know” (I lied, i live in San Diego)

And he just left looking all stupid! Ha! I mean sure, they do their duty but they should worry about actual criminals, people that steal your freaking socks without taking your shoes off or something! Is like back off, is not like we’re killing people with the flash or something! God!

By: frank

frank — Sat, 25 Apr 2009 01:15:01 +0000

Lived in Tucson for the last five years. The mall with GGP(General Growth Properties) in bankruptcy. It is business as usual going on.

New tenants including The Chesse Cake Factory is coming but, Opening has been delayed until further notice.

Also Park Place and Foothill is business as usual with El Con(El Conquistador) mall will be on the closure list.

By: Jonah Norason

Jonah Norason — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 22:34:26 +0000

Once the retailing industry starts to bounce back, I think I see serious retractions for Forever 21.

By: SEAN

SEAN — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 13:34:51 +0000

Shoppers shouldn’t notice bankruptcy of malls’ owner, but some retailers will

Dale Quinn

April 17, 2009

Shoppers shouldn’t notice any difference at Tucson Mall and Park Place, even as owner General Growth Properties Inc. works to restructure $27 billion in debt under bankruptcy protection.

But some retailers ready to move to Tucson have said the mall owner’s financial woes have caused delays.

Chicago-based General Growth, which counts the malls among more than 200 properties it owns or manages in 44 states, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Thursday. Under Chapter 11, a debtor is protected from legal action while it works out a plan to repay creditors.

The company said day-to-day operations at its shopping centers and other properties would continue as usual.

General Growth’s president and chief operating officer, Tom Nolan, said during a conference call Thursday that the collapse of the real estate and financial markets — not property performance — kept the company from being able to restructure its debt.

“Our properties are desirable and performing well,” Nolan said.

The company is not looking at selling a major number of its properties, Nolan said.

The move by General Growth had been anticipated since the fall, when the company warned it might have to seek bankruptcy protection if it couldn’t get lenders to rework its debt term. Negotiations with creditors fell short late last month.

A General Growth spokesman, David Keating, told the Star in December the company had no plans to sell either Tucson Mall, 4500 N. Oracle Road, or Park Place, 5870 E. Broadway.

Craig Finfrock, a broker with Commercial Real Estate Advisors, said the two Tucson malls are core assets General Growth would want to hold onto through the bankruptcy.

“Both the Tucson Mall and Park Place are regional malls and they are high-performing assets,” Finfrock said.

If it sells anything, General Growth would be more likely to sell peripheral assets like strip centers adjacent to major malls, he said.

Officials at the Tucson Mall have been tight-lipped about whether General Growth’s financial woes have delayed an expansion there that includes popular outdoor retailer Recreational Equipment Inc. — or REI.

Also included in the development on the south-facing side of the mall is a Cheesecake Factory. Representatives from both REI and the Cheesecake Factory have said they’re ready to move into the Tucson market, but development delays have forced them to postpone their opening dates.

Seattle-based REI had planned to open at the mall this spring but has now pushed that date back to fall 2010.

Construction of the Cheesecake Factory appears largely complete and the company has obtained a liquor license from the state of Arizona.

But Cheesecake Factory Inc. won’t open the restaurant until the property is completed, said company spokesman Mark Mears.

“We are very far along with the development of the Cheesecake Factory restaurant,” Mears said. “Unfortunately our landlord (General Growth) is not as far along. We’re essentially waiting on them to complete the property.”

Mears could not provide an estimated date of when the restaurant would open.

“We’re in a bit of a holding pattern ourselves,” Mears said.

Shares for General Growth, which trades on the New York Stock Exchange, closed at $1.05 Thursday, down from its 52-week high of $44.23.

The Associated Press contributed to this article. To see more of The Arizona Daily Star, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.azstarnet.com. Copyright (c) 2009, The Arizona Daily Star, Tucson Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.