“So Long Northland Mall!”
(Adios old Friend)
By Glenn Peppers 12-25-2014
"As of today, it is may 15th, 2015. Since the article below first printed back December on christmas day, 2014. Northland mall has since quietly closed its doors for good!
It is presently in the process of selling off store fixtures and the like. I wanted so badly to go up to northland and see her off before she closed, but after a bit of thought, I felt better of it! I felt it best to remember her as she was in my memories!
I want the northland that took care of me as a young man coming along to always stay alive in my heart and mind as I loved her! To see my northland in disarray and total decay would ruin things for me! The northland I want to remember was and will always be the perfect people place for to be for me! Here is that article from december of 2014!"
Glenn Peppers
Imagine, the oldest inside mall in america, closing after just about 60 years! Well, that’s about how old Northland Mall was. Opening March 24, 1954. Northland is America’s first true Shopping Mall! Recent reports are flooding in that Northland Mall is set to close its doors soon! Back in the middle 1990‘s I had my own personal saying about shopping centers. It went like this.
“Any mall worth its salt almost always has at least one bookshop!” If I’m not mistaken, Northland’s bookshop was Dalton's (when it was in business). Dalton’s was Northland’s one and only bookstore at the time. I could be corrected on this, but I think it was Dalton’s (a national bookstore chain) before that chain of bookstore went out of business as a company. Other mall’s had larger bookshops like, Barnes and Noble, etc.
When I knew that Northland Mall was on the worst end of decline was when Hudson's started to die, and when Northland no longer had a viable Bookstore after Dalton Books went out of business! Northland never replaced Dalton’s with any other chain bookshop. And to my knowledge has been without a bookshop since the late 1990’s.
Yes, Northland Mall is facing foreclosure, and will quite possibly close its doors very soon! To be honest about it, I felt this coming eons ago when they closed the bookstore, and some of its longtime signature restaurants moved out!
Dalton’s bookshop was located right across from the the GNC Nutrition health food store, and Mrs. Field's Cookies, and not even 60 feet from the Big Boy restaurant! Inside this bookshop, you had a massive magazine rack along the wall, and a well stocked library of books and novels, and self help yarns of every kind; and the one thing I love more than a fresh new Katana Sword. Office Supplies!
There's nothing like getting cool stationary, and pens and gadgets and drafting tools, even if your drafting skills really really suck! At a time when there was no internet, a bookshop in any mall was a pretty decent place to go, and read, and pick up on current events, and buy a newspaper. You could pick up an Ebony magazine, or a nice coffee table edition of Life or Sepia or Look Magazine. They even had Writers Digest Magazine! One way or another, if you were in any shopping mall bookshop, and you loved books, you were going to walk out of there with at least one book under your arm!... 3D book markers optional!
Northland was the kind of place that (at one time) you could go and have lunch at Olga's Kitchen, or at (again) the Big Boy. No matter where you ate or snacked at Northland, be it at the small food court area, or at the Orange Julius, everyone who worked at those stores recognized you, and treated you well.
To burn some time, you could always stroll through KB Toy's and play with all the genius toys and legos!... Yes, I did that, so stop laughing! Northland even had a Pet Store at one time. I remember all those puppies just waiting for someone to take them home! They were all so cute it would break your heart to leave them there in their cages! I remember they'd let you take them out and sit with them in a play area!
For me, Northland Mall was the place to go and buy some pretty fly Giorgio Brutini (and other Italian) dress shoes, or a suit from Max Green’s, and pick up some good smelling cologne from Hudson's aisle of fragrances!
I haven't been back to Northland Mall in many years due in part to the changes in cliental and patronage at the mall! in recent times, these patron’s are mostly young, gang types, who upon my last visit there some years ago, mainly stalked the mall for prey in order to try and rob, or were just hanging out, being loud, and not buying anything.
They intimidated shoppers, and acted out the last couple of times I was there so badly I just didn't go back! Also there was an incident there at northland where Northland Security killed a patron of whom they had detained. This was an incident that played itself out much like the Eric Garner choking murder case in New York where a young man, 25 years old named McKenzie Cochran was choked, piled upon and peppers sprayed by mall security.
This young man died as he was being restrained by four mall security guards. No charges were filed! McKenzie Cochran also cried out. “I can’t Breathe” as four large white security officers continued to pile upon him, and apply pressure to his arms, neck and sit on his back, restricting his lungs from expanding and contracting. Or in other words, preventing him from taking in air, and exhaling it! He passed away within 7 minutes time as his words faded away!
Sadly because of this, and many other reasons, my visits to Northland were to be no more. Yet somehow I figured one day, Northland would come back to being a thriving, safe mall once again. I practically lived at Northland when I was a younger man, some twenty some odd years ago!
An on the spot local TV news reporter said it well at the end of his live broadcast when he was talking to the anchor person back at the studio desk concerning Northland's possible demise from foreclosure! He said. "As you know, people mainly shop where they feel safe!" Sadly, he told the coldhearted truth! There were a lot of people who did not feel safe shopping at Northland Mall. I know a slew of them!
With a failed economy, and a vicious gentrification process in motion in Detroit, relocating people of color away from the metropolitan Detroit area. I wonder how Northland Mall lasted as long as it has these many years with the city being in such decline! Also with the flow of fashion changing ever so drastically over the years, how did any of those men's shops stay in business with young urban males now days buying and sporting mainly, tennis shoes and baggy jeans, and other sport ware, and Timberland shoes and boots.
There is barely (if at all) any fine men’s shops at Northland Mall anymore! There was a longtime Jeweler and gold dealer and trader located in the basement of northland mall. There is (or was) a longtime beauty salon, and nail parlor located in that basement where the security offices are also located. What will become of all these businesses and people after being there for some many decades?
As I think back on northland mall, I can truly say that even though I am (and have been for a long time) a motorist, I’ll miss catching the bus to Northland like I did way back when I was a pedestrian. Back when you could get around Detroit on mass transit without any real problems; schedule and safety wise!
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| Hudson's (which is now Macy's) at Northland Mall |
I’ll miss getting my concert tickets from the Ticket Master at Hudson’s credit and business area on the third floor. One group of concert ticket's I remember purchasing in particular!... the “Prince Alphabet Street" tour. I took two ladies to the concert with me that night! Back stage passes are incredible Chick Magnet tools!... Hey, stop laughing!
When I think of Northland Mall, I think of Flag Bros. and Florsheim Shoes, and JC Penny’s’ pastel colored business and dress shirts and ties. I think of bargain basement sales, and discount bedding on sale at Hudson’s! I think of Northland’s alway ice cold air conditioning in the summer, and the Frozen Yogurt stand on those really hot days, on the way out of the mall, just before going out of the door into the hot Motown sun. Shopping bags in hand!
I’ll miss the now long gone, Northland Theater. Located across the parking lot! Would you believe I saw the movie, “Back to the Future” and many other matinee films there at that strange piano shaped movie theater! The best hotdogs, yet the worst popcorn in the world, but a cool place none the less!
Most of all what I’ll miss at Northland is, Hudson’s Department Store Bakery! The smell of those chocolates, and those roasted peanuts reminded me of the old Sears and Roebuck on Van Dyke and Gratiot back in the 1960’s, before they tore the building down after the riot.
Northland’s Hudson’s’ Bakery had by far the best pipping hot Chocolate Chip Cookies EVER! There was always fresh cookies available, even up until closing sometimes! They had killer peanut butter cookies, chocolate almond, and coconut swirl cookies. I can’t even tell you how good the oatmeal raisin cookies were.
Somebody in that bakery department loved to make, sugar cookies, and brownies galore! Even white chocolate brownies and malted chocolate balls and chocolate covered raisins!... God how my heart breaks just thinking about it!
And best of all!... Hudson’s won my heart with their cakes! Cakes that would run Sanders Bakery out of town (oh yeah, I forgot. Sanders had left town years before I discovered the Hudson’s Bakery)! My all time favorite, hands down was Hudson’s Germain Chocolate Cake!
Every birthday, I’d buy myself one, no matter what anyone bought me as far as a, birthday cake. For my birthday, I’d always get my own personal German Chocolate Cake from the Hudson’s Bakery, and that would be my treat and celebration for living another year!
Ah yes, fond memories flood my mind when I recall the many places, shops and people I knew who worked at Northland Mall back in the day. All those times spent at the bookshop flirting with the cashier whom I had a crush on.
Meeting up with friends, and then having impromptu shopping excursions, and then dinner with those same friends somewhere within Northland Mall! Hanging out at the record shop there, and buying my first Sony Walkman!
My gosh, where does the time go, huh? There’s an old saying that goes. “Nothing last forever!” Well that may be so. But my question is this. “Why does ‘Nothing’ always have to go away in my lifetime?” Adios Northland! You’re forever in my heart!
Glenn Peppers
