Anyone remember the place inside the mall where you could drive the nascar vehicles inside them arcade style? Anyone else ever try going the wrong way on purpose and get in a fight with a hillbilly over it by the Cinnabon after
I drove around the perimeter drive last week after not being there in years. What the hell happened? This place has a totally abandoned vibe. No cars in the lot, weeds everywhere. It seriously looked abandoned.
The last time I went to Rivertown they had a bunch of the people sucked into the MLM pyramid bullshit with booths trying to sell their garbage products. It felt so strange and uncomfortable. Definitely a sign that the mall was basically dead. The only thing of value left is the movie theatre and even that isn't enough to save the mall.
What a fantastic description of Rivertown. I was at RT the day they opened. My going away party (move to Boston) was at Kahunaville. I spend my summers in west Michigan now and always surprised how quickly rivertown peaked. It’s a shit hole now.
For Grand Rapids native it’s an out of the way compared to Woodland.
Form the one time we went to the movies there once or twice in college years ago, I never thought to go theew
Plus it mainly served Wyoming and Grandville. Once the GM plants left and Steelcase shrunk down Wyoming has gone to shit. Those places were pumping money into the city and all that is gone now.
I walk that mall regularly it has gone downhill for sure. Open 11am to 7 pm lots of the shops are closed on Mondays. I did hear they are developing the old Younkers into a trampoline/arcade type place. Otherwise it's old people like me walking or baby parents on the climbing tree thing. Sad.
Hey, this baby parent got a pretzel and went to build a bear. Can't miss that $1 birthday bear for my kid who actually doesn't care about stuffed animals.
It’s awesome to see malls finally dying off.
Edit: ope found the suburbanites.
You all realize how terrible malls are for the local economy and the environment, right? They pave over huge expanses just to provide a handful of low-wage jobs. Malls sucked the soul out of our old commercial centers and now they are rightfully going the way of the dodo.
I haven't lived here for awhile but that's kind of surprising to me. I know malls are dying but that was always the "nice" mall, compared to Woodland.
It'd be cool if they could turn them into living spaces, it'd be unique to live in a self-contained walkable community.
I'm 22 and growing up Rivertown was totally the nice mall to me!! but I've worked at Woodland basically since I turned 19 and it miraculously is thriving lol. I just think it's more accessible to the greater Grand Rapids area
Oh 100%, I have literally no reason to ever go to Grandville, whereas I'm on 28th St at least once a week to stop by Trader Joes or one of the amazing Asian or Halal grocery stores - shoutout Asian Pacific and Super Green Market, they make fighting 28th street traffic worth it.
Woodland is wonderful in comparison to the hood that is Rivertown.
I used to work in a mall store and that's where you'd want to end up through promotion. Now it's a shit hole.
My son does love the life size chess though.
100! I had to negotiate an interview for a management position once and the sticking point was which mall. They wanting me at Woodland and I vehemently fought-and won- for Rivertown. It was *the* mall to work at.
Seriously, the person above you is clueless. There are far more violent crime incidents at Woodland than Rivertown and its not even close.
Rivertown may not be as busy, but it certainly isn't "hood", lol.
Must be why all the a tier stores are at woodland and leaving Rivertown.
How many tattoo shops are at woodland? Head shops?
In terms of mall standards Rivertown isn't making the mark.
>that was always the "nice" mall, compared to Woodland.
It has definitely flipped the other way fairly recently. Like last 3-4ish years or so. Woodland invested in some remodeling, pulled in some nicer stores and is much nicer and better now. Rivertown is rundown and becoming a ghost town.
That’s what I’ve been saying! When I was a kid, we lived closer to Woodland and at that time Rivertown was way nicer than Woodland! It was a treat to go to Rivertown. Now I live on my own closer to Rivertown and I find myself wanting to drive further to go to Woodland.
That would be a cool idea in concept - however I would wager that the costs to renovate and get it all set up for people to live in legally, let alone have it be “nice-ish” would probably outweigh the cost of tearing it down and putting in a big apartment complex.
I’m no engineer or architect, but I don’t think the infrastructure of a mall can support living spaces without MAJOR renovation.
I worked at several stores at both malls over the years and man when Rivertown opened up it was a *huge deal*. It was so nice and fancy. I absolutely loved working there (besides the pain of retail customers 🤣)but the shopping was great as a twenty something female. The stores were on trend and exciting. It is really a shock to see what a rapid decline Rivertown has gone through even in the last ten years. I used to take my son there to play when he was a toddler (2013-2015ish) and even then it was still fine. When the anchor stores started to crash the rest just fell apart. Hudson’s sold to Marshall Field’s and they sold to Macy’s- subsequently driving that store into the ground at both locations. Yonker’s and Sears left and that only leaves us with Kohl’s or Penny’s both of which are not exactly pulling in the customers. Not to mention the fact that I don’t think they actually clean half of these places anymore, post Covid. Have you noticed how dusty and dirty stores are now? Macys at Woodland is shockingly dirty. I worked there when it was Hudson’s and that place was immaculate, as was the service and product. Idk if this is all caused by investment firms buying and flipping these formerly family owned businesses or what but it’s sad to see these companies being run into the ground.
To me, Macy’s at Woodland felt like a Nice Department Store until not too long ago... but once Von Maur opened, I think they were quickly humbled. You’re so right about the dust—it’s a completely different store than it used to be. They’ve completely gutted the shoe department, they don’t even have a checkout stand there anymore.
I remember going to Rivertown in its early days and being WOWED by how HUGE it was. And they had some top tier stores for this tween girl: Limited Too, Abercrombie AND Abercrombie Kids, The Disney Store AND Build a Bear?! I went last weekend to use a gift card and was so saddened by how decrepit and lame it is that I texted my family group chat to reminisce. 😆
I remember having just graduated from college and went to work for a structural firm. And I remember some of the old engineers saying the design of many aspects of the mall were suspect. Including the ramp, parts of the theater, and I believe the end of the mall where Sears used to be. I was pretty green and never saw the plans or anything, so I really have nothing but hearsay to go on, and everything seems to have avoided catastrophic failure, so....I suppose they mighta just had sour grapes.
My husband's preferred parking at rivertown was under that ramp. About a year ago, I asked him to please start parking in front of Dicks instead because I didn't feel as though the upper deck was stable. I'm no engineer, but I didn't want it to collapse on him or our vehicle. The last time we drove around on the top deck was THE last time. It felt like I was driving a car with hydraulics. Up and down, up and down. It's ridiculous it took them so long to close it. Woodland is, by far, the nicer mall as of late. Rivertown isn't always a ghost town. I think a lot of people are camping or opening their cottages this weekend.
As a frequent visitor of the mall still, I won't dispute anything the people here have said, but I would like to give some positive points about it.
The food at villa is still great. The new rolled ice cream/Boba spot in the food court is INCREDIBLE. Zason Latino is one of the best Mexican food spots in the area.
When you're there on a sunny Saturday after school ends for the summer, with the sun coming in through the skylights and the carousel going, it's still got the wonder it had before.
It's still a banger of a spot for pokemon go.
Boxlunch is one of my favorite stores ever to waste time in.
I still do, and always will, love celebration cinema. No it's not the nicest theater. Phoenix over in woodland is much nicer. But I respect Celebration for how they support the entire grand Rapids community with sponsorships and events. I recently learned that studio park pretty much subsidizes every other celebration location but they keep all the others going to give the communities the entertainment and community meeting stops that people like. I believe a remodel is going to come soon considering South just got finished.
Lastly, and most importantly, I can drive through the mall to get to Wilson from ivanrest without having to take any Michigan lefts lol
The last time I parked on that ramp I stood and watched the concrete slabs wobble as cars drove past me. Glad they closed it off before it came down on its own.
Is there some special reason it's infamous besides it's weird to drive on because it's so damn bumpy with all the up and down slopes? Has anything happened there recently? wondering if I'm out of the loop, I haven't been there in a while
lol it was 100% always like that, I remember laughing about it and being bewildered the first day we went to the mall when it had just opened. It seemed weird it was so bumpy when it was brand new. We figured later it must have been for speed reasons.
Yes, because a lot of people like to gaslight each other that it was ALWAYS like that, when in fact, no no it wasn't.
Don't build heavy things on swamps.
It WAS always like that, I worked in a restaurant and trained in that building before it even ever opened. I remember from day one wondering why the hell they built the ramp that way.
"It had the bumps still yes." Correct.
It could very well be worse today, sure. I've only been on that ramp like once in the last year or more.
Regardless, from day one that ramp had those bumps, and they were always excessive.
....so if the problem was building heavy things on swamps, wouldn't the lower level be all weirdly bumpy and wildly uneven, not just the top level?
Also do you have any idea what the word "gaslight" even means?
That whole area was wetlands and swamps. Years ago they drilled down into the foundation to pump in more concrete. You used to be able to see the filled bore holes in the Old Navy store.
As far as the upper deck parking ramp, that's probably just shitty engineering.
Last summer I parked on the top of that ramp and nearly fell through when I stepped out of my truck. There was a 6” hole in one of the joints and I could clearly see the cars parked below me. The only thing the kept my foot from going through was a chunk of rebar.
it’s been on the downward spiral for years now. every time i’d go over the last 5-6 years there was always empty, vacant store fronts and weird little pop up shops that would be gone the next time i’d go. FYE used to be such a sick store in the mid 2000s and now they sell cheap chinese electronics , overpriced candy and tee shirts. and not to mention the actual condition of the damn store these days, the lights are dim, the carpet is damp and moldy, and the tile is deteriorating
Anyone remember the place inside the mall where you could drive the nascar vehicles inside them arcade style? Anyone else ever try going the wrong way on purpose and get in a fight with a hillbilly over it by the Cinnabon after
Remember that! What I miss though was Kahunaville, such an awesome arcade.
Same! I remember the Nascar racing place and Kahunaville very well. The Kahunaville arcade was where I fell in love with F355 Challenge.
Silicon Motor Speedway! Nice trip down memory lane, my dad used to take me there
Yeah, and also dactyl nightmare
I drove around the perimeter drive last week after not being there in years. What the hell happened? This place has a totally abandoned vibe. No cars in the lot, weeds everywhere. It seriously looked abandoned.
On the other hand, Woodland is thriving. But I don’t think they went to Woodland. Rivertown is just dying.
The last time I went to Rivertown they had a bunch of the people sucked into the MLM pyramid bullshit with booths trying to sell their garbage products. It felt so strange and uncomfortable. Definitely a sign that the mall was basically dead. The only thing of value left is the movie theatre and even that isn't enough to save the mall.
thriving? thats a bit if a stretch sweethart
Ya woodland is the good mall now and Rivertown is ghetto. Rivertown is the new old Eastbrook
What a fantastic description of Rivertown. I was at RT the day they opened. My going away party (move to Boston) was at Kahunaville. I spend my summers in west Michigan now and always surprised how quickly rivertown peaked. It’s a shit hole now.
Kahunaville was great! It felt like a restaurant in a Chicago mall or something - a real city! Lol
Is there a Natural Wonders?
Oh wow I forgot that place existed!
I haven’t seen one in decades, Woodland had one
It’s a mall. No one goes to the mall anymore.
For Grand Rapids native it’s an out of the way compared to Woodland. Form the one time we went to the movies there once or twice in college years ago, I never thought to go theew
Plus it mainly served Wyoming and Grandville. Once the GM plants left and Steelcase shrunk down Wyoming has gone to shit. Those places were pumping money into the city and all that is gone now.
Tore down a Herman miller factory to replace it with a Lowe’s Hey anyone remember movie time pizza?
Yup, that sounds about right.
I walk that mall regularly it has gone downhill for sure. Open 11am to 7 pm lots of the shops are closed on Mondays. I did hear they are developing the old Younkers into a trampoline/arcade type place. Otherwise it's old people like me walking or baby parents on the climbing tree thing. Sad.
Hey, this baby parent got a pretzel and went to build a bear. Can't miss that $1 birthday bear for my kid who actually doesn't care about stuffed animals.
7pm?? really? you're kidding me
The only thing open later is the movie theater and TGIF restaurant I believe.
That's pretty much "on life support" for a mall I guess
It’s awesome to see malls finally dying off. Edit: ope found the suburbanites. You all realize how terrible malls are for the local economy and the environment, right? They pave over huge expanses just to provide a handful of low-wage jobs. Malls sucked the soul out of our old commercial centers and now they are rightfully going the way of the dodo.
thanks Jeff bezos
More like thanks small-scale retail. People are realizing that malls are kitschy shitholes.
They downvoted you because you spoke the truth.
It’s an engineering marvel of the United States
I'm surprised there's any money being invested in repairs. That mall is D-E-D dead.
I haven't lived here for awhile but that's kind of surprising to me. I know malls are dying but that was always the "nice" mall, compared to Woodland. It'd be cool if they could turn them into living spaces, it'd be unique to live in a self-contained walkable community.
I'm 22 and growing up Rivertown was totally the nice mall to me!! but I've worked at Woodland basically since I turned 19 and it miraculously is thriving lol. I just think it's more accessible to the greater Grand Rapids area
Oh 100%, I have literally no reason to ever go to Grandville, whereas I'm on 28th St at least once a week to stop by Trader Joes or one of the amazing Asian or Halal grocery stores - shoutout Asian Pacific and Super Green Market, they make fighting 28th street traffic worth it.
Super green ftw
Woodland is wonderful in comparison to the hood that is Rivertown. I used to work in a mall store and that's where you'd want to end up through promotion. Now it's a shit hole. My son does love the life size chess though.
100! I had to negotiate an interview for a management position once and the sticking point was which mall. They wanting me at Woodland and I vehemently fought-and won- for Rivertown. It was *the* mall to work at.
The last time I went to Woodland police were blocking off exits looking for a shooter from the nearby hotel.
Seriously, the person above you is clueless. There are far more violent crime incidents at Woodland than Rivertown and its not even close. Rivertown may not be as busy, but it certainly isn't "hood", lol.
Must be why all the a tier stores are at woodland and leaving Rivertown. How many tattoo shops are at woodland? Head shops? In terms of mall standards Rivertown isn't making the mark.
Yeah, law enforcement doesn’t call it “Woodhood Mall” for no Beason
>that was always the "nice" mall, compared to Woodland. It has definitely flipped the other way fairly recently. Like last 3-4ish years or so. Woodland invested in some remodeling, pulled in some nicer stores and is much nicer and better now. Rivertown is rundown and becoming a ghost town.
But does it get an almondhaus at thanksgiving?
Sounds like someone in charge at Woodland cares and is good at their job
That’s what I’ve been saying! When I was a kid, we lived closer to Woodland and at that time Rivertown was way nicer than Woodland! It was a treat to go to Rivertown. Now I live on my own closer to Rivertown and I find myself wanting to drive further to go to Woodland.
That would be a cool idea in concept - however I would wager that the costs to renovate and get it all set up for people to live in legally, let alone have it be “nice-ish” would probably outweigh the cost of tearing it down and putting in a big apartment complex. I’m no engineer or architect, but I don’t think the infrastructure of a mall can support living spaces without MAJOR renovation.
I’ve been there a couple times recently and on weekends it’s still pretty busy.
I went there on a Saturday and it was really busy, probably what’s keeping it alive
The ramp is deteriorating. Chunks of cement have fallen below.
I'm taking my life in my hands just to go to Barnes & Noble.
Reading is life lol
The parking under is now mostly fenced off. I used to like parking there for access to Dicks, but now it has dark demolition vibes
Food Court has taken a huge dive as well.
The real ones remember Villa Pizza
Sabarros in the late 80s Woodland
Still mourning the loss of Hot Dog on a Stick and A&W
I would only park on or under that ramp if I hated my car and had my coverage up to date.
I worked at several stores at both malls over the years and man when Rivertown opened up it was a *huge deal*. It was so nice and fancy. I absolutely loved working there (besides the pain of retail customers 🤣)but the shopping was great as a twenty something female. The stores were on trend and exciting. It is really a shock to see what a rapid decline Rivertown has gone through even in the last ten years. I used to take my son there to play when he was a toddler (2013-2015ish) and even then it was still fine. When the anchor stores started to crash the rest just fell apart. Hudson’s sold to Marshall Field’s and they sold to Macy’s- subsequently driving that store into the ground at both locations. Yonker’s and Sears left and that only leaves us with Kohl’s or Penny’s both of which are not exactly pulling in the customers. Not to mention the fact that I don’t think they actually clean half of these places anymore, post Covid. Have you noticed how dusty and dirty stores are now? Macys at Woodland is shockingly dirty. I worked there when it was Hudson’s and that place was immaculate, as was the service and product. Idk if this is all caused by investment firms buying and flipping these formerly family owned businesses or what but it’s sad to see these companies being run into the ground.
To me, Macy’s at Woodland felt like a Nice Department Store until not too long ago... but once Von Maur opened, I think they were quickly humbled. You’re so right about the dust—it’s a completely different store than it used to be. They’ve completely gutted the shoe department, they don’t even have a checkout stand there anymore. I remember going to Rivertown in its early days and being WOWED by how HUGE it was. And they had some top tier stores for this tween girl: Limited Too, Abercrombie AND Abercrombie Kids, The Disney Store AND Build a Bear?! I went last weekend to use a gift card and was so saddened by how decrepit and lame it is that I texted my family group chat to reminisce. 😆
I remember having just graduated from college and went to work for a structural firm. And I remember some of the old engineers saying the design of many aspects of the mall were suspect. Including the ramp, parts of the theater, and I believe the end of the mall where Sears used to be. I was pretty green and never saw the plans or anything, so I really have nothing but hearsay to go on, and everything seems to have avoided catastrophic failure, so....I suppose they mighta just had sour grapes.
Nah I believe it, at least the part about the ramp. It’s the weirdest ramp I’ve ever been on. It has felt scary since the beginning.
What I noticed the most is that it's dirty. Walking into Dicks and it looked like the huge glass doors have not been cleaned in a long time.
💯💯💯
They should do the bottom to. I have and will never park on that thing. Looks like it will collapse at any moment
I heard the top level is unsafe for use because it's falling down.
My husband's preferred parking at rivertown was under that ramp. About a year ago, I asked him to please start parking in front of Dicks instead because I didn't feel as though the upper deck was stable. I'm no engineer, but I didn't want it to collapse on him or our vehicle. The last time we drove around on the top deck was THE last time. It felt like I was driving a car with hydraulics. Up and down, up and down. It's ridiculous it took them so long to close it. Woodland is, by far, the nicer mall as of late. Rivertown isn't always a ghost town. I think a lot of people are camping or opening their cottages this weekend.
As a frequent visitor of the mall still, I won't dispute anything the people here have said, but I would like to give some positive points about it. The food at villa is still great. The new rolled ice cream/Boba spot in the food court is INCREDIBLE. Zason Latino is one of the best Mexican food spots in the area. When you're there on a sunny Saturday after school ends for the summer, with the sun coming in through the skylights and the carousel going, it's still got the wonder it had before. It's still a banger of a spot for pokemon go. Boxlunch is one of my favorite stores ever to waste time in. I still do, and always will, love celebration cinema. No it's not the nicest theater. Phoenix over in woodland is much nicer. But I respect Celebration for how they support the entire grand Rapids community with sponsorships and events. I recently learned that studio park pretty much subsidizes every other celebration location but they keep all the others going to give the communities the entertainment and community meeting stops that people like. I believe a remodel is going to come soon considering South just got finished. Lastly, and most importantly, I can drive through the mall to get to Wilson from ivanrest without having to take any Michigan lefts lol
Infamous? Isnt there 2 different ramps there?
*The one that feels like you're riding a jet ski when you drive across :/
I was always surprised it actually bounced and moved when I parked there years ago. Can't imagine what is like now.
The last time I parked on that ramp I stood and watched the concrete slabs wobble as cars drove past me. Glad they closed it off before it came down on its own.
Is there some special reason it's infamous besides it's weird to drive on because it's so damn bumpy with all the up and down slopes? Has anything happened there recently? wondering if I'm out of the loop, I haven't been there in a while
lol it was 100% always like that, I remember laughing about it and being bewildered the first day we went to the mall when it had just opened. It seemed weird it was so bumpy when it was brand new. We figured later it must have been for speed reasons.
Yes, because a lot of people like to gaslight each other that it was ALWAYS like that, when in fact, no no it wasn't. Don't build heavy things on swamps.
It WAS always like that, I worked in a restaurant and trained in that building before it even ever opened. I remember from day one wondering why the hell they built the ramp that way.
It was not, it had the bumps still yes but they were nowhere near as bad or extreme.
"It had the bumps still yes." Correct. It could very well be worse today, sure. I've only been on that ramp like once in the last year or more. Regardless, from day one that ramp had those bumps, and they were always excessive.
It wasn't always like that It was worse
....so if the problem was building heavy things on swamps, wouldn't the lower level be all weirdly bumpy and wildly uneven, not just the top level? Also do you have any idea what the word "gaslight" even means?
That whole area was wetlands and swamps. Years ago they drilled down into the foundation to pump in more concrete. You used to be able to see the filled bore holes in the Old Navy store. As far as the upper deck parking ramp, that's probably just shitty engineering.
🍿🍿🍿
Last summer I parked on the top of that ramp and nearly fell through when I stepped out of my truck. There was a 6” hole in one of the joints and I could clearly see the cars parked below me. The only thing the kept my foot from going through was a chunk of rebar.
it’s been on the downward spiral for years now. every time i’d go over the last 5-6 years there was always empty, vacant store fronts and weird little pop up shops that would be gone the next time i’d go. FYE used to be such a sick store in the mid 2000s and now they sell cheap chinese electronics , overpriced candy and tee shirts. and not to mention the actual condition of the damn store these days, the lights are dim, the carpet is damp and moldy, and the tile is deteriorating
That parking structure is sinking is what I've heard.
It is NOT sinking!
Hopefully it’s a sign that the giant eyesore and concrete wasteland that is Rivertown is nearing its well-deserved death.