[Nanuet Mall in the 1970s. Photo courtesy Malls of America]

The Nanuet Mall is closing.

If you're not from Rockland (or from there and under the age of 18), you probably don't think this is very sad at all. The Nanuet Mall, as it currently stands, is a wasteland. A walk through there today sends you past empty storefront after empty storefront, where you point and say, "Sam Goody used to be there." The last time I was there, I remember noticing that almost nothing was where it used to be, and that most of the empty storefronts were being used to advertise real estate or test blood pressure. Not being in the market for a house and well within the normal range on the systolic/diastolic scale, I couldn't help but think that it was just about the last place that I wanted to be.

I also couldn't help but think how 20 years ago, there was no other place to be in Rockland County. That was a different time though. We actually had to leave the house to play video games, which we did at Aladdin's Castle. And when we saw a movie, which we did at the movie theater on the second floor (before the food court took its place), it was the only movie playing at the theater because there was only one screen. And that's the only purpose the Nanuet Mall serves right now. It's a relic. It's a stark reminder of a different time.

It wasn't a special mall or anything. It wasn't really that big, even after they expanded and built the new wing in the late 80s/early 90s. It was probably exactly like the mall in your town. It probably even had most of the same stores. But this mall was our mall. It was a looming presence in your pre-teen/teen life. It was a great place to spend a rainy Saturday, but also a great place to spend a sunny Sunday.

To be fair, the Nanuet Mall's glory years are long gone. When the Palisades Center opened down the road, it kicked off the slow, steady decline that we all knew would eventually end at this day. And frankly, after having been there recently, this is more of a mercy killing. It's just hard to watch a piece of your childhood go. And as stupid as it sounds, it feels like losing a relative. There was comfort in it's familiarity, in the Waldenbooks at the end of the first floor and the Disney Store that anchored the middle of the second floor.

It'll be weird driving by there and not seeing it standing there, but almost nothing in Rockland is where it once was anymore. And to be honest, I'm not really up there all that much these days. It's where I grew up, but it's not my home. Still, I'm going to miss it, because now when I have kids, it'll be harder to show them what I did and who I was when I was their age.

Labels: fun (no), Nanuet Mall, Rockland County