21 May 2013

Mall of America, Bloomington, MN

An extant asset


It was late in the winter of 1994 and I was attending Saint John's University just outside of Saint Cloud, Minnesota as a freshman. It was just before we were discharged for spring break, however temperatures in that Arctic wasteland had yet to break the melting point even during the midday.





-UPDATE- 1- The main Mall of America entrance located between the JW Marriott Hotel and Huntingdon Bank offices leads to the North Garden.  2 to 4- Just inside the entrance.  5 to 7- The north food court just past the entrance.  8- The central wing area.

I had just awoken from the coldest night of sleep in my life after snoozing on the sub-zero floor of my buddy's pad. How I got into that position, I'm not entirely clear. But I'm pretty sure that alcohol had something to do with it. Despite this discomfort, I awoke chipper and excited; hypothermia and hangover be damned! That day, we would be road tripping to The Cities so that I could get my first ever look inside of The Mall of America.


The Mall of America Mallmanac ca. 1994. View the full PDF version here.

Obviously, I've always had an affinity for shopping malls. Another indulgence with which I've had a long standing relationship is the roller coaster. The Mall of America was both of those pleasures all rolled into one.




-UPDATE- The North Garden concourse.

My excitement was nearing its peak as we approached the city of Bloomington driving eastbound on I-494. Just around a bend, there it was. She spread herself out on the horizon with her beige and amber smile, while the corner anchors of Nordstrom and Sears resembled outstretched arms, ready to welcome me.




-UPDATE- The North Garden concourse.

We entered the cavernous interior on the East Broadway wing with its flashing neon, shiny chrome and black trimmed elements. The overwhelming facility extended vertically another three tiers above my head while a band played nearby on the ground level stage. Every sense was being tastefully stimulated. The Mall of America was almost everything I expected it to be.


Then I heard the low rumble of something racing by on a steel track, and my joy was complete. I looked ahead to Knott's Camp Snoopy and the Ripsaw Roller Coaster, both located just under an immense expanse of clear glass, bathing every square inch of the amusement park in soothing, warming natural light. The temperature was still in the teens outside, but I was feeling a heated rush of excitement within myself.




-UPDATE- The Nordstrom exterior and court.

Man, we did so much on that trip to The Mall of America. I left Planet Hollywood full of greasy Cap'n Crunch and disappointment for the first time. I enjoyed the rather mild Ripsaw coaster for several circuits. I discovered one of the finest timber-flume runs I'd ever had the pleasure of riding with the Log Chute. I even got my initial ear piercing with some tacky gold and faux diamond stud at one of the five or so Claire's Boutiques. And even after spending several hours within those tourist filled corridors, we may have covered one-third of the place.




-UPDATE- The West Market concourse.

Working for Northwest Airlink during the early 2000s, I found myself in the Twin Cities quite often on business. They'd almost always arrange for our accommodation at the Holiday Inn location in Bloomington that was in close proximity to The Mall of America. After visiting countless times just to grab a quick bite to eat or to pick up a new toothbrush, the place eventually lost all of its novelty. But I still couldn't help but stare upward and be amazed every time I walked into the four million square foot wonder.









-UPDATE- Mall of America Mallmanac, ca. 2017. View the full PDF version here.

The Mall of America was conceptualized by the Triple Five Group, owned by the Ghermezian family of West Edmonton Mall fame, and was built in conjunction with their partner Indianapolis-based Simon. Opened in 1992, it was constructed on the site of the razed Met Stadium just south of the Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport.




-UPDATE- The West Garden leading to the Macy’s Court.

Mall of America was a hit from the moment the doors were open and brought Nordstrom and Bloomingdale's to the state. To this day, it maintains yearly visitor counts of around forty million, while the owners' plans for a Phase II that will nearly double the size of the complex have been on the drawing board for years.




-UPDATE- 1 to 6- the darker confines of the third level of South Avenue, hosting a variety of full service restaurants.  7 & 8- Views from the second level of South Avenue.

A few things have changed since that original visit of mine. Knott's Camp Snoopy is now branded as Nickelodeon Universe, theme restaurants have fallen out of favor leading to Planet Hollywood's closure in 2003 and Bloomingdale's, citing the location's disappointing performance, closed in 2012.




-UPDATE- 1- More restaurants on the east end of South Avenue’s third level.  2 to 5- The lower tiers of South Avenue.  6 & 7- Lego!  8- The South Avenue food court on the second level.

Presently, the 210,000 square foot building is being subdivided into space for several junior anchors. A marine exhibit, SEA LIFE Minnesota Aquarium, now occupies space on the basement level, allowing visitors to traverse a 300 foot tunnel where over 4,500 organisms can be viewed. 




-UPDATE- The South Avenue food court with the B&B Theaters above on the fourth floor and great views of Nickelodeon Universe to the north.


-UPDATE-

-14 December 2024


On my first visit back to the Mall of America in two decades, I was hoping for better.  I’ve come to terms with the homogenization of just about all locally focused shopping malls in the US, but I thought that this one would be different.  Not surprisingly, I was wrong.




The Nickelodeon Universe amusement park occupies Mall of America’s central area.

I entered on the eastern corridor, once labeled as East Broadway.  This was my favorite of the four themed main concourses of the original Mall of America.  It was dark yet inviting, with neon lights leading the way to the Rotunda with its crisscrossing, glass covered escalators.




Mall of America lease plan, ca. 2020. View the full PDF version here.

There was a moodiness to the décor, like New York’s Times Square after the New Years ball had dropped and everyone had headed home.  What greeted my eyes in 2024, however, was a travesty.  The Goth nature of what was once called East Broadway had devolved into a suburban HOA.





Nickelodeon Universe featuring a Dora wheel as well as SpongeBob’s house and a lonely Squidward.

The formerly tinted mirror covered escalators now served as billboards for Huntington Bank, with the elevator across the rotunda apparently sponsored by the same corporation as their logo hung over an LED screen above the empty and silent stage.




1 to 7- Some of Nickelodeon Universe’s thrill rides.  8- The east exit of the park leading to the Rotunda.

The other four main directional corridors, once labeled as North Garden for its greenery, West Market and South Avenue had all been assimilated into something reminiscent of an urgent care exam room with the only color emanating from the various LED screens flashing their targeted ads.




1- The east entrance to Nickelodeon Universe.  2- The Sea Life Aquarium.  3 to 8- The east Broadway concourse.

Sorry to be such a downer, but I really dislike how the interior décor of, really, any public space has become so predictable.  Though I will offer the caveat that there were a few places that still made me smile.



The Rotunda at the mid-point of East Broadway.

The third level of the southern wing flanking either side of the south food court was still giving me some emo realness.  The old school water features mainly just outside of Nordstrom and in the north concourse made me feel nostalgic.   Unfortunately, there wasn’t a whole lot else.




Mall of America’s fourth level just above the Rotunda.  The deadest part of the entire complex, there didn’t seem to be any open stores at the time of my visit.

Nickelodeon Universe, formerly Knott’s Camp Snoopy, really upped their game and added several new rides including two roller coasters, the looping SpongeBob SquarePants Rock Bottom Plunge and the spinning crazy mouse Fairly Odd Coaster.







Mall of America Mallmanac, ca. 2024. View the full PDF version here.

I was also enamored with the darkened Sears anchor on the mall’s northeastern corner.  The Chicago based retailer, which had shuttered their outlet in 2018, still leases the space at a ridiculously low ten dollars annually for the period of a century.  Their departure had led to years of legal wrangling over this agreement.





The Sears court and exterior, still showing their logo on the outside despite being closed for six years.

Because of this, the anchor has remained untouched and boarded up, still displaying both its nineties and 2000s logos on the outside.  The mall wants the lease to be voided after Sears was sold to Eddie Lampert and this limbo had inadvertently led to somewhat of a time capsule on this forgotten corner.





1 to 4- The court in front of the former Bloomingdale’s store.  5- A haunted house.  Spooky...  6- Forever 21’s exterior entrance.  The clothier occupies a portion of the former Bloomingdale’s anchor.  7- LL Bean and Crayola occupy another portion of the luxury retailer’s former spot.  8- The southwestern façade of Bloomingdale’s remains untouched.  9 & 10- The Mall of America’s south entrance as well as the connected Radisson hotel, one of two in the facility.

The rest of the Mall of America is just a hulking mass of retail indecipherable from the Lynnhavens and Kingsways of the world.  But, despite my disappointment in the conformance, I’ll definitely make another visit on my next trip to the Twin Cities.


3 comments:

  1. People who are looking to space out from their hectic schedules and relax can definitely look up to Mall of America. There is something for everyone at the Largest Shopping and Entertainment Destination mall of america stores. Know Mall of America Hours in advance so that you can shop for brand new clothes, get to see the Aquarium, Walk around and explore the stores. In addition, you will even find information about holiday list of MOA, What time does Mall of America Close Today.

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  2. Thank you for archiving so much mall information! I've been looking for years for some of the old mall maps and wishing I had the foresight to record some of it. Your site is extremely helpful and I hope you keep it up for years to come.

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  3. Do you have any recollection of a there being a gold mine attraction in Camp Snoopy?

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