[24] In October 1990, the mall was sold to a partnership called FFM Limited, headed by a group of banks which had loaned to LJ Hooker most of the $250 million in construction costs. And they dont neglect the obscure ones in smaller metro or even micropolitan areas. So Forest Fair Village was the direct manifestation of a massive error in judgmentperhaps two or three. This Is How Much A New Roof Should Cost In 2023, The Classic Brands You Love Are In Trouble, Royalists are already camping out ahead of King Charles III's coronation, 'A big boom:' TikTok challenge leaves Wake Forest teen with burns on nearly 80% of his body. I cannot even find a website to the mall; just a Facebook page. Only four things remained by 2017 Kohls, Bass Pro Shops, an arcade, and a childrens entertainment complex. Great cliff-hanger at the end. Forest Fair Village, originally known as Forest Fair Mall, opened its doors in 1988, becoming a popular shopping destination for locals and visitors. [71] Officials of both Butler and Hamilton County submitted plans to the state of Ohio in 2022, calling for $9.5 million in funds to demolish the mall. Then again, the interior design may be one of the few good decisions involved in Forest Fair amidst all the bad ones. Forest Fair (formerly Cincinnati Mall, Cincinnati Mills, and Forest Fair Mall) is a shopping mall in the northern suburbs of Cincinnati, Ohio, United States. ", "For sale: One big and mostly empty Forest Fair Mall", "Cincinnati Brokers Explore New Uses For Big, Mostly Empty Forest Fair Mall", "How Ohio's second-biggest mall became an Amazon parking lot", "Former Forest Fair Mall, other buildings will be demolished if funds come through", "Arcade Legacy closing 2 locations, opening new Sharonville location", "Former Forest Fair mall to be demolished along with 825 other vacant, blighted buildings", "Former Forest Fair Mall closed due to fire, safety hazards", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Forest_Fair_Village&oldid=1150149989, Abandoned shopping malls in the United States, Defunct shopping malls in the United States, Short description is different from Wikidata, Infobox mapframe without OSM relation ID on Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Forest Fair Mall, Cincinniati Mills, Cincinnati Mall, This page was last edited on 16 April 2023, at 15:54. If you would like to change your settings or withdraw consent at any time, the link to do so is in our privacy policy accessible from our home page.. Dont be fooled by the cars in the parking lot: most of my photos captured the busier niches within Forest Fair Village. The proximity to both Northgate Mall and Tri-County Mall was also cited as a factor in the mall's struggles, particularly due to the latter undergoing an expansion not long after Forest Fair opened. Apparently it took a long, long time after it opened, suggesting that the management had to lower the price for rent and offer very, very generous leasing agreements. Great Lakes Crossing Outlets has over 25 stores and restaurants that can't be found anywhere else in Michigan, including SEA LIFE Michigan Aquarium, LEGOLAND Discovery Center, Rainforest Cafe, Saks Fifth Avenue Off 5th, Neiman Marcus Last Call Clearance Center, Calvin Klein Company Store, Coach Factory, Michael Kors Oulet and Polo Ralph Lauren Factory Store. It was so sudden, and really sad when it closed. I worked on several security systems over the years from the open through most tenets leaving. The playground up till a certain point was PBS themed and the computers were hooked up to a system the allowed kids to play games from the different PBS shows. Forest Fair Village is located in Ohio, city Cincinnati. The Forest Fair Mall is a shopping mall located in Cincinnati, Ohio. We and our partners use data for Personalised ads and content, ad and content measurement, audience insights and product development. This restroom did not have functioning urinals. It's nearly 60% larger than the region's. It was contained inside as well. Not only is it inordinately largethis was the second biggest mall in Ohio after all (and the. The parking garage was closed by the Fairfield Fire Dept. It is situated on the border between Forest Park and Fairfield, at the junction of Interstate 275 and Winton Road (Exit 39). Forest Fair Mall, Cincinnati Mills, Forest Fair Village . I used to have a store there, and we had a great community of business owners. But Simon Property sold it not even two years later in January 2009 to North Star Realty and renamed it Cincinnati Mall. And these are just two guys; there are many more doing great work. Interestingly, this business has one of the most elaborate ornamentations Ive ever seen to a mall store entrance, let alone a mom-and-pop, whose entrances tend to be visibly economical.While it wasnt crowded, it wasnt empty either, though perhaps one might have expected a gloomy winter afternoon during the holidays to be peak business. But yes, thats a toddler on the playground equipment. I spent a lot of time there, circa 2005. Vibrant colors compliment unique architectural elements decorated by playful items like cards and wavy pianos that hang from the ceiling, or fish that float in one of the many atriums inside the mall. Although its the end of an era for Forest Fair Village, the community eagerly awaits the transformation of the site and the opportunities it will bring. I hope they can salvage those flying pigs! But within 15 years of its opening, and multiple attempts of redevelopment to fight decline, the property was sold, resold and resold again. [57] Under North Star's ownership, Steve & Barry's vacated due to the chain going out of business,[56] while Off 5th, Guess, Lane Bryant, and Dress Barn relocated to a newly built outlet mall in Monroe. It opened with anchor stores like Biggs, Higbees, and Bonwit Teller and quickly attracted a diverse range of tenants, including: Unfortunately, the malls initial success was short-lived. However, the mall struggled with high vacancy rates and changing retail trends. Its rare to see a food court with such low ceilings. Search USA shopping malls near you: Search popular stores in America: Type store name: Do not miss. Comment *document.getElementById("comment").setAttribute( "id", "ae5129945cef3910ee11005f310e7932" );document.getElementById("a985a49296").setAttribute( "id", "comment" ); Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. It seems likely the Forest Fair/Cincinnati Mall will get demolished when it finally closes. It still says Cincinnati Mall, the facilitys official name from 2009 until around 2013. Fairfield to the North is not so much,. Shopping mall has over 21 stores and address is: 600 Cincinnati Mills Dr., Cincinnati, Ohio - OH 45240. Parts of it remind me of the garish Barry Levinson/Robin Williams movie Toys, from approximately the same time period. Its demise is usually attributed to its close proximity to both Tri-County and Northgate malls, as well as being kind of out-of-the-way in a non-favored quarter of the region with weak demographics. Thanks for checking out Architectural Afterlife! Id assume it was made to compete with Segas GameWorks or Dave & Busters, but again this was the only location ever. Each wing offered a different theme of shopping. But all you have to do is drive south on Winton road and see there area has become blighted. The Bomb Shelter located in Akron Ohio, is Northeast Ohios coolest retro antique superstore! The Forest Park Fire Dept. I agree with you its pretty rare for a single mall to host two movie theaters, but it can work both if the mall is big enough (and Forest Fair Village definitely was) and if the theaters offer two non-competing typologies: e.g., one is mainstream films and the other is either art/indie films or second-run budget screenings. The parking lots are unmaintained, windows are broken, and graffiti is inside and outside the mall property. And the directory hasnt been updated for at least a few years; it still shows such long-departed tenants as Burlington Coat Factory and the cinemas. closed the interior of the mall for the same reason. That place holds a special place in my childhood heart! And they are probably less favored because either the location is sub-par, the management isnt as astute (less good at updating amenities or securing good leases for tenants), or there are simply far more malls than there is demand, and many people are willing to travel 5 miles further to the better mall, rather than settle for the mediocre one closer to home. [54] North Star proposed to begin converting portions of the mall to office space, call centers, or other non-retail uses,[56] also renaming the property to Cincinnati Mall in April 2009. 26The city of Fairfield discussed plans this week for what it wants to happen with the former Forest Fair Mall, known currently as Forest Fair Village. Around this same time, the cinema was closed. Contact&Address: 600 Cincinnati Mills Dr., Cincinnati, Ohio - OH 45240, US . Currently, the malls demolition plan is in progress as a component of State Governor Mike DeWines Ohio Building Demolition and Site Revitalization Program. Forest Fair Village. [36] The mall underwent a myriad of changes soon afterward, including three anchor stores that all opened in October 2000: Bass Pro Shops opened in the former Parisian,[37] Burlington Coat Factory (now known as just Burlington) replaced the former "Festival" wing,[35][38] and Stein Mart entered Ohio with a temporary outlet store in the space previously occupied by Dawahares. The pig gazebo and large Q/cards were kitschy ways to represent Cincinnati (Porkopolis and the Queen City). But the new paint, floors and signage didn't help the property as businesses closed or relocated during the company's five-year ownership. Over the years, the mall underwent several ownership and name changes, with varying levels of success. When it was built, Forest Fair Mall became the region's largest shopping center, based on leasable space. At its construction, it was the second-largest mall in Ohio, only behind the now-defunct Randall Park Mall in a suburb of Cleveland. Cincinnati may be one of these cities, and it certainly seems like Forest Fair was unnaturally close to the others, even if it had a different target demographic (a demographic thatyou probably know better than I dois not all that prevalent on the northern Cincy suburbs compared to the eastern ones). [45] Renovations began in January, which included new paint, floors, and signage throughout, along with differently-themed decor for each wing of the mall, typical of properties developed by Mills at the time. Here is the only photo I found, in Bass Pro watching the huge aquarium tank. In other words, its trail running but the wilderness is Willy Wonka. After almost two years, the renovation was complete and the mall reopened in August 2004. And, as of the last few months, Tri-County is slated to close completely in May, while the surrounding city while the surrounding City of Springdale is soliciting proposals for a complete redevelopment.