the outlet mall issue

[j]

i just want to know if anyone has discovered the mall YET. i can't believe everyone i meet has no clue about the best place to shop in the entire area. people come from new york, pennsylvania, new hampshire, etc. JUST FOR vf factory outlet. call me crazy, but i think everyone who has never even checked it out is spending way too much for clothes. do me a favor, and JUST GO. prove me wrong, publically, on this message board, if you find fault with this awesome place.

[mrdave1]

 The mall will close at the end of January. Where to go now.  

[elbow]

I think it would be dreamy to stand on the site of the former outlet mall one day - grab some tea and a pastry and sit next to a big fountain and people-watch as everyone darts in and out of eclectic stores.  maybe there would be a  cooking store with all those funky gadgets and an expansive used book and music store (with records) and with big comfy chairs.   A sporting goods store with employees who really know how the gear works (unlike Dick's) and where the Tornadoes'  mascot could come and hang out with the kids.  A store with imported gifts and goods from all over the world that not only caters to the "Pier 1" type customer but also to our diverse population of Worcester.  A reincarnation of the Bijou theater! An  H&M clothing store to satisfy Worcester's lust for cheapy things - and provide a magnet for the elusive student population. A place that sells real Gelatto and real espresso.  An arts supply store and photo development place. Maybe Bike Alley would be there, too, so you could rent bikes to take down that fabled Worcester to Providence trail. A volunteer temp agency where people who don't work anymore or who are between jobs could come and find meaningful volunteer work.  Maybe a store with video games and skateboards for the young -ins.  And that's just the stores. Of course there would be really nice plants everywhere and the aforementioned fountain and music. So many possibilities....

What would you want?

[ChuckyG]

Let's hope the destruction of the mall, and restructuring the downtown to look a little more like it used to, will bring some life back into the retail section of the city.  Downtown is so close to becoming so much more now.  The Centrum is one of the most successful conference centers in the country, and yet the retail around it so deserted due to that elephant of a mall.  The city really didn't move quickly enough once the mall began to fail, to pump life back into it.

[regis79]

I think it would be dreamy to stand on the site of the former outlet mall one day - grab some tea and a pastry and sit next to a big fountain and people-watch as everyone darts in and out of eclectic stores.  maybe there would be a  cooking store with all those funky gadgets and an expansive used book and music store (with records) and with big comfy chairs.   A sporting goods store with employees who really know how the gear works (unlike Dick's) and where the Tornadoes'  mascot could come and hang out with the kids.  A store with imported gifts and goods from all over the world that not only caters to the "Pier 1" type customer but also to our diverse population of Worcester.  A reincarnation of the Bijou theater! An  H&M clothing store to satisfy Worcester's lust for cheapy things - and provide a magnet for the elusive student population. A place that sells real Gelatto and real espresso.  An arts supply store and photo development place. Maybe Bike Alley would be there, too, so you could rent bikes to take down that fabled Worcester to Providence trail. A volunteer temp agency where people who don't work anymore or who are between jobs could come and find meaningful volunteer work.  Maybe a store with video games and skateboards for the young -ins.  And that's just the stores. Of course there would be really nice plants everywhere and the aforementioned fountain and music. So many possibilities....

What would you want?

I think you have described the ideal downtown!  Maybe a yarn and needlework shop.  And of course, Kate Toomey elected in November for City Council At Large!

[Piggy Malone]

Thank God that Kate Toomey has been elected to the Worcester City Council and that moronic imbecile (Juan Gomez) was defeated !

Piggy Malone