New Face on an Old Problem

Last night we had dinner at an Indian place we first tried several months ago. Just took us awhile to get back to it. It sits on the edges of what used to be prime retail space. You know the type. A major mall gets built and then around the edges pop up all sorts of smaller strip malls. These typically have the stores that didn’t make it into the mall but still want to be where the shoppers are and a few restaurants if you feel like something different than the food court.

It is no secret that malls are no longer what they used to be and these little outposts surrounding the malls often take bigger hits. Well some years ago, they decided to “refresh” the look so they redid the outside with some splashy exteriors and I guess that was enough to attract this restaurant (probably got a big break on rent). So they built a really nice place that claims to be more “fusion” than traditional Indian.

And I don’t think this place is totally dying. I did check reviews and there were several recent ones which is typically a sign of a place that still attracts people. But we were the only ones there last night which is always awkward. Now that could have been because it was Sunday and crowds are typically lower on Sunday. Still, it feels a bit out of place trying to be more upscale in an area that is really losing that cache. Wouldn’t shock me if it just faded away someday.

I doubt they will ever fill all the empty spaces. There are only so many temporary firework and halloween stores we need. Plus there are several more big stores that are closing which will leave more gaps in the area. And the mall still has the empty Sears space that will likely never get used. All of that just adds to the slightly run down feel of the area. And when you go slightly north, they are putting up all these bright, shiny new buildings for living space, retail and office. Not sure any of that is needed but it is clear where the growth is and it isn’t in this area even with the shiny new facades.

I think I mentioned the other day that we went to a new Korean fried chicken place for dinner. Well, driving back from the studio, I saw a billboard for a new location of another chain that just sells chicken tenders. Raising Cane’s if you must know. Is the new location in this area? Of course not, it is far to the north where they have created newer retail spots so the people who live even farther north don’t have to go as far to get their fast food fixes. Now, I’ve never been to this other place but I’m pretty sure it wouldn’t be as good as the Korean place.

And this isn’t a new problem and it probably can’t be rolled back. All of this was already built when we moved here but I know it used to be farmland way back in the day. They we paved it all over put up all the buildings and then had to expand the roads to handle the cars – eating up even more land in the process. As it starts to fade, it seems like such a waste.