I grew up in this mall. Graduating high school in 1984, this was THE place to hang out with your friends. It was always packed. It looked like an 80’s movie come to life. The circular walkway was awesome. Northeast Mall really hurt this place. Also, the closing of Carswell AFB and changing over to a reserve base really hurt their traffic.
I think it was the closing of the base that really did it. NE Mall didn't seem to effect Hulen mall, so I'm not sure why it would have an effect on this one as they are about a 30 minute drive apart. NE mall killed North Hills mall. Either way, this thing is sad and in dire condition.
"The circular walkway was awesome" I worked at Sound Town record store 1978-79 at the top of the circular walkway. An episode of Walker Texas Ranger was filmed there in 1994 or 1995 with Chuck Norris riding a motorcycle up the walkway chasing a bad guy...it was cool.
Breaks my heart what happened to this mall. Used to be the busiest mall ever. Around 2014 Nieman Marcus and Macy’s pulled out to go to clear fork mall in Fort Worth. And then everyone pulled out. The mall is still open with a couple stores.
It is beautiful. I love this mall. Hate seeing it in this shape. Glad you enjoyed. That intro song seems to be a hit. Getting a lot of positive feedback on that.
My senior year I was given $100 for graduation. I wanted to buy a new dress for graduation so my mom and I headed to Ridgmar. I felt like a queen going into one store after another looking for the right dress. I tried on different ones till I found one I liked. All the employees at all the stores were so helpful. I've never had a bad experience there.
I can imagine how nice it must have been back in its heyday when this was the place to be. I really didn't feel any negative vibes here or around here. Just heard from a few people it wasn't the best area anymore but you could have fooled me. I liked the mall and area.
Living in this area all of my life I remember it being built. there was nothing in that area other than Carwell airforce base and General dynamics defense plant now known as Lockheed Martin corporation. which is why all the military planes you hear. My sisters and I shopped this mall often. During the holidays it was beautifully decorated and in spite of its massive parking lot, you had to drive a bit for a space. It also had Luby's Cafeteria, El fenix mexican restaurant, Chick fil a. All before there was a food court. Good ole days so bitter sweet.
@@Terry_Brashier Thank you Terry. YES ! Fun times roller rinks and drive ins. We had the Cowtown and Western. Bah ha! I remember our President JFK and first Lady and motor cade driving through River Oaks on the very last day he would every been seen alive. I was only 6 years old in the first grade. But so real to me today at 64. thanks for the comment. Stay happy, healthy' wealthy and wise.
@@jaysantos536 It was removed before the Rave theatre was built. The original plan was to build the theatre on the roof and they had to remove the spiral ramp to put in the supports for the theatre. And in the end they built it next to the mall and we lost out on a really cool ramp. I think the only other one is in a mall in PA by the same architect.
@@theinfernalcraftsman Thanks. I have fond memories of working at the record store and getting candy at Morrow's Nut House across from the staircase from the sweetest young lady in the world....RIP Stacy....
Nice video, I literally live in the neighborhood and I'm making a comment based on what you said your friends told you okay, 16 Macy's there is no Gang Related activity in this area. Point Blank the mall is suffering because of new development where a lot of the anchor stores actually moved into the developments that were built close by.
This place used to be so alive. I remember coming here as a kid back in the 90s and 2000s. The arcade, the stores, the movie theater (my first job). Man, where does the time go?
Glad you enjoyed. It is amazing in person. Dead... but amazing. I would be a frequent visitor here if I lived in the DFW. Even Kayla was disappointed to see it go downhill further from our previous visit and her lifelong visits here.
I loved the decor before the update in the 90’s (???). It was a dark parquet wood flooring throughout, very classy looking, like a guy’s den. They had premium shops in those days along with the national dept stores as anchors. Neiman Marcus, of course, and high end men’s clothing, like J. Riggs and Florsheim Shoes.
The intro really gave the wibes of how much history this mall have. Everything from families going there to do there big shopping to concerts events and friends meeting.
I live about 3 miles away from the mall. And work down the street from it as well. Thank you for the video, that’s incredible how bad it’s looking at a business point of view. My wife and I use to hang here when we dated nearly ten years ago. I haven’t stepped foot in this mall about a month before the lockdown happened.
Glad you enjoyed the video. Its depressing to see its decline especially in just the last year from my first visit. Kayla even said she couldn't believe how many more tenants left since January 2019. Obviously the virus didnt help. Almost every mall I know of lost a tenant or two or more as a result. Thanks for sharing your story from the mall. Its great to hear of better days when this mall was the place to be.
Also, Some more information about the mall: It originally started with a standalone Neiman-Marcus in the late 60s. You got all of the original anchors right, but there was also a Stripling’s department store where Foley’s/Macy’s building is currently that opened a few years after the mall did. It became Stripling & Cox in 1983. That closed in like 1996. Despite all anchors except for Neimans having 2nd locations a few miles away at Seminary South Mall (later Fort Worth Town Center), Hulen Mall had entirely different anchors and that’s why they coexisted. When Hulen Mall added a Dillard’s in 1995 is when things began to go south. There was now a Dillard’s at all 3 of Fort Worth’s malls (4 if you include the small Tandy Center in downtown). Then, to replace Stripling & Cox, Foley’s renovated the space and opened at Ridgmar in 1998 like you said. Hulen had a Foley’s (formerly Sanger-Harris) as well. Then, when Montgomery Ward closed at Hulen in 2001, it became Sears! Now all of Hulen’s anchors were also at Ridgmar. It was just an overlap of department stores and in-line stores.
Ridgmar Mall opening in 1976 took at least 50-65% of Hulen Mall's business within months as it was far superior in every way. A survey in Wedgwood subdivision (just east of Hulen Mall) showed most folks drove right by Hulen to go to Ridgmar nearly all the time. Hulen Mall was close to bankruptcy in early-mid 80s until it was announced a new "highway" was going to be built parallel to Hulen St from I-30 all the way through Crowley and Burleson to Cleburne. That opened likely residential growth between Granbury Road and Benbrook Lake for 30 miles to the south on open ranch land.
Wonderful video! I was born and raised in Kentucky, but my grandparents were Texas natives. Every summer when my siblings and I would visit for the summer, they'd take us to Ridgmar and Hulen. They had an AWESOME food court at Hulen where they used to have these giant butterflies that would hang from the ceiling. I think they took those down. I'm sure if you ask Kayla about that, I'm sure she will remember!
I like this mall better than the nearby Hulen Mall. Hulen seems so much smaller, but they do have the cool old Sanger-Harris murals still on the Macy's. I was in DFW a couple of weeks ago and filmed all 3 Sears locations, with 2 of those in the final week of business. I also saw the special JCPenney (Penney's) at North East mall. I missed out on this mall this time since our time was limited.
I noticed every mall in the DFW has its own characteristics although the Parks At Arlington and Hulen Mall feel similar to one another. I managed to get all 3 Sears as well and uploaded the Arlington and Hulen locations right away as they were closing but have yet to upload Town East. I agree, Hulen does feel a lot smaller than Ridgmar. High recommend visiting this one next time if you have the chance.
I drive past this mall almost every day since I live close to it. It’s crazy because I used to go to this mall as a kid with my mom and now I’m in my early 20’s and it’s on the verge of closing. There’s nothing in there
Are you sure the El Fenix was two story? I only remember the entrance between Dillards and the record store on ground floor. Maybe the best "mall" restaurant ever!
I moved to Fort Worth area in late 90s from Dallas area and remember the 70s-80s look of the wood paneling on the walls. Stores were leaving and the mall seemed like it would close. Then it was renovated early 2000s and looked so much more bright and cheerful. Later they tried to breathe more life into it bringing in Neiman Marcus and Macy's. Even tried the idea of an aquarium. Just seeing the evolution of the mall over time..it saddens me to see how it is now😞. I just hope the owners find a new way to breathe life into again and have a new reserrection.😁 As for the safety of the area...I live 5min away and it's a safe area.😁
This is the mall i grew up going to as a kid around the the early 2000s and it was doing well until aeound 2009-2010 when things started to go downhill. Its a shame as the mall itself was in a good area but tbh the area around ridgemar have been going through some tough times as of late
That was a great walkthrough video! Sad the mall is losing a lot of stores, and struggling badly. Interesting Neiman Marcus used to anchor this mall, until 2017. I was wondering, did you ever film Southwest Center/Red Bird Mall on any of your DFW area trips?
Thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed it. Im still shocked that this mall at one point had 6 anchors. Not many malls have or had 6 anchors. As for Red Bird Mall, I did in fact film it on our visit in May! I'll be getting to that video soon. Have dozens upon dozens of Texas trip videos and they include a few mall videos. Thats one of them besides this one, Midway Mall, and Abilene Mall and Cincinnati Mills Mall in Ohio from our trek back home.
You showed a picture of the mall from the mid 80's. Ridgmar was at it's best. I work down the road from Ridgmar and you can hear the jets flying over. Irving mall has more gang violence than Ridgmar does. There used to be a lot of outer shops.
I heard stories from Kayla's family about how Ridgmar used to be the best mall to go to. Shame what's happened to it. It's weird but even at Irving Mall I felt just as fine as I did at Ridgmar. Keep in mind I'm not familiar with the area like you and Kayla and her family are. Just sad to see this once great place fall.
For some reason all 3 of the malls built in Fort Worth’s city limits were built in the West part of town. Never understood it. Somehow the mall that was originally the smallest, Hulen Mall, is still thriving. Seminary South (became an enclosed mall in 1987 and renamed Fort Worth Town Center, went into decline in the mid 90s, and was rebranded in 2005 as La Gran Plaza de Fort Worth) and Ridgmar failed even though they were both around 1,000,000 square feet.
Because that is where middle to upper income housing growth was. Hulen area was rapidly growing to south and west and there was always "big money" west side in Ridgmar area. Hell, the Neiman Marcus store was in the mall for awhile! When Ridgmar opened it nearly killed Hulen Mall late 70s early 80s. But that turned around when it became clear there was little new growth to the west and a new highway (Chisholm Trail Toll Road) was going to be built from I-30 to Cleburne right through the Hulen Mall area increasing housing and traffic by 10X.
Seminary South was a cool place right around 1970-1975. Then it started downhill because all the mid to upper middle income folks *that lived in places like Wedgwood started shopping at Hulen and then Ridgmar Malls. Too much petty crime in the Seminary/Berry St./I-35 areas for the upstanding white folks.
Thanks for sharing Wallie It`s sad how a year can change a mall like that My mall in my town is getting a reface lifted in some of the anchor stores now
I haven't been there in over 15 years. It actually looks way nicer than I thought it would. It used to have this spiral ramp between the floors that was kind of neat, at least I thought it was really cool when I was a kid.
Ahh I remember as kid my Mom taking us to Wyatts and Colonial Cafeteria's. The old Seminary Mall also had a Wyatt's. There was one in River Oaks area to. I miss those carefree days, but I was a kid in the 80's so no responsibilities. 😝
Great job on this Wallie! I really enjoyed the older photos and the way you edited it.This looks like a very nice mall,too bad it's slow in business.Mabey it will start to get busy around the holidays.Lets hope so.
Very cool to see someone finally visit this mall. I have a lot of memory’s here and for the past 3 years or so I’ve just slowly watched it die down. The aquarium only did so much for the location.
When you were talking about crime, your source was referring to the Las Vegas Trail area just south of the City of White Settlement. I lived by Las Vegas Trail and Calmont Av. for quite a few years, as I grew up in the city north of that intersection and graduated from Brewer High School class of '01. A lot of good memories during school and a few years after graduation.
Ouch. Honestly it didn't even seem as if there were that many. I know some stores went out of business because of the virus which didn't help. Just sad state of affairs here.
A cool video, Wallie! I'm really enjoying your videos from Texas, as well as your others. What a beautiful mall! It's sad that to see malls close, especially the fact that employees lose their jobs. Hopefully, they can get hired with another employer in the DFW area. Plus, there are other malls in the area that are open.
Hey man... It is Pamela... Been out of the loop myself... Been taking more and more time off the net and avoiding the news... This mall here is nice... Would be a shame to tear it down.. Looks in great shape...
Hope you're doing well. I dont blame you one bit. The news and social media are so negative anymore it can make everyone's stress and anxiety get out of control. I took a couple hiatus from Facebook alone just to help ease my nerves because it was getting so out of hand. It helped a lot.
This mall is about 20 minutes from me, I used to go with my mom all the time when I was little, seeing it so different makes me sad but I’m glad it’s still open
I personally believe the reason Ridgmar died was because of Helen Mall, North East Mall, The Parks at Arlington, and then the openings of The Shops at Clearfork and Tanger Outlets Fort Worth in 2017. Edit: I apologize for the long comments lol
Ridgmar Mall nearly put Hulen Mall out of business in the late 70s. Everyone in that area (Wedgwood) preferred to drive right past it to Ridgmar Mall after it opened in 1976. Hulen was only saved because there was a planned highway (Chisholm Parkway) that was planned ti run from I-30 in downtown parallel to Hulen St all the way to Cleburne.
Northeast Mall on 820 in Hurst is a nice, upscale shopping experience. But of all the malls in the Metroplex, NorthPark Center in Dallas remains the most luxe.
Yeah, this was definitely one of the more popular malls in the DFW area, but NorthPark has been and continues to be the Premiere mall in the Metroplex, hands-down.
The decline of this Mall is really sad, it really started a few years after the modernization and remodel. When Chili's closed down it completely started disintegrating, but Foley's (later Macy's) Dillard's, Sear's and Neiman's kept it going a few more years before it's total demise. We still go occasionally, but it's just depressing now. The one good taco place (Taco Master) in the food court moved of-site behind the Dollar Tree and their service just went downhill after the move. I spoke to some of the vendors and they all stated the ridiculous rent charges drove most of the remaining businesses away.
It’s so sad that the mall has declined so fast. I grew up in Fort Worth and always used to prefer Ridgmar to Hulen because it’s bigger and had more stores, and stores that were at both malls always had more of a selection at Ridgmar since the stores were usually larger than the Hulen locations. I visited often in 2015 and it wasn’t necessarily thriving then, but it was still in much better shape than it is now. At the time it still had all of its anchors, (although Neiman Marcus had already announced that they were moving to Clearfork I believe), and still had a lot of the typical chain stores such as Forever 21, Aeropostale, Victoria Secret, multiple jewelry stores, H&M was newly added, they still had mostly all of the spaces filled in the food court like Chick Fil A and Sonic. Also if you haven’t already, check the mall’s directory on their website because it is alarming. They list “Mall Management” and the service that runs the animals you can ride around as stores in addition to other things that aren’t legitimate retail stores... I’m assuming this is to make it appear that there are more opportunities to shop and more things still operating than there actually are. I haven’t visited in probably the last year due to covid and the fact the mall is more dangerous to explore alone, (especially as a girl) so thank you for this video!
Awesome revisit dude! Loved the saxophone in the opening track. This mall is excellent. Such a shame it looks like it has taken several blows already and the current health emergency will not be kind, I'm sure. Great footage lately, keep it up!
Glad you enjoyed. A lot of people are giving me positive feedback on the opening music. When I was listening around to music that I thought I would like for this video, the moment I heard this one, I knew that was it. It just felt perfect. I love this mall. I can't believe how much worse it got in one year. I know the virus didn't help matters. Even Kayla was in disbelief as to how much worse it got. Considering she's been shopping at this mall her entire life, she was really disappointed to see how bad it got. I fear what it will look like next time we visit. Glad you're enjoying our work. Aside from working, I've been trying my best to put enjoyable videos together more so than before.
I moved from Texas back to California mid 2015 and that mall was still packed for the most part around the JCPenneys till where sears was. Now at 20 I've been wanting to go back to TX to see all the places I used to love as a kid but a lot of them no longer exist or are on their last limb 😕. This mall used to be so cool Idk if it's the rise of online shopping that took it out but I miss it
The best way to save a mall is to have a walmart as an ankor!! San Diego has two malls with walmarts in them and I was blessed to have worked in Parkway plaza mall.
I've seen where a Walmart has definitely help keep a mall alive like the Country Club Mall in Maryland that I filmed awhile back. However I have also seen where Walmart as an anchor has also hurt a mall such as the Fort Steuben Mall in Ohio. Yet it still stays afloat. There is a Walmart and Target not all that far from this mall which I dont know if thats part of the reason for the decline or the fact Hulen Mall (which is thriving) is only 7 or so miles away.
I dont see how a walmart would hurt a mall unless the mall is lacking in theatre, food court, or simply good stores. Its all about having proper balance. Its also an atmospheric feeling that a mall needs to attract people. If a mall has negative energy then that's not good. Typical way to remedy that is proper security and fresh coat of paint. I seen you gone to malls that look dark with ugly low ceiling like you're going through an office building. Malls need to be somewhat luxurious. If only i had the money and business skills I would love to revive the malls.
@@Emilyrosewood87 Often a Walmart or Target won't have a mall entrance. That actually takes customers away from the inside of the mall. In addition, the stores inside a mall often have high prices. Those who shop at discount stores often won't bother with high price stores so the additional foot traffic isn't the target demographic of a mall store.
Sad to see this mall like this, first time ever seeing a storage facility in a mall, funny story one time about 10 years ago I was there with a bunch of friends after church and had passed out on a bench while they where walking around, woke up to a bunch of mall cops circling me on there scooters thinking I was on something lol
Glad you enjoyed. They definitely do keep up with this place. When we were here, maintenance people were working outside along the mall in a couple of places. Its nice that they still care as much as they do with the mall despite its current state.
Worked at Neiman's after I graduated from TCU. Carswell was going strong with Dessert Storm and the jets and B-52's were constantly flying in and out. Ridgmar was very popular and busy. Westover Hills is very close, to the East of Ridgmar, and I am surprised that they would let the area deteriorate. Ft Worth is great and so was Ridgmar in its day. So sad to see it so empty.
The base you are talking about was Carswell Airforce base, however it is now a Naval Reserve base, the planes are Navy and Air Force planes. There are some Marines there, but its mostly Navy and Air Force.
Sadly a shell of it's former self. I grew up in that mall late 70s and through the 80s. I remember sitting at the doors at JC Penney watching the B-52s take off while mom shopped. Sad to see.
Malls haven't been popular in a while. Reason why is that they are not with the times. People are so much into fast pace shopping. Online is the thing now. Progress/convenience and technology has taken jobs and with this virus. It's just made it worse. Why are we such in a hurry?..look at what it has put the world in. Thank you WallieB. You remind people of the past. When things were a little more simpler.
That USMC Joint Reserve base that's nearby, is the former Carswell AFB and was operational, until the military downsizing of the mid 90s, when the Air Force command was relocated, and various other branches now use it, for joint projects.
Great videos! I used to work at the Ridgmar Mall at Lids. 2014-2015. I remember when it was announced when Neiman Marcus announced it would close in 2017. Rumors are true. Mall is sketchy at night. In 2014 or 15, two employees from a Chinese restaurant in the food court, got into an argument over a female and one individual was stabbed to death and died next to Old Navy.
If you ever decide to come to Chicago you could visit some abandoned stores within Ford city mall! Its still thriving but they do have a few abandoned stores such as Sears, an arcade (i used to frequent as a child!), a few restaurants, a few smaller stores, and HHGregs! It does get full but it has gotten competition from Chicago Ridge, and North Riverside mall. If you do come there are other places that are abandoned such as gas stations, Kmarts, sears etc.
Very cool video. That was a nice tour. I've haven't been there since the mid 80's. Appears deserted now. Oh well. Most shopping centers look the same anyway. If you've seen one, you've seen 'em Mall. 😁😁😁😁
Y'know, I never knew the name of the mall until I saw this video. I used to go here often when I was much younger. There used to be this one guy that had a little booth where he would sell bootleg PS1 games. He would even mod the systems for you, too! He introduced me to Japanese games and that was the start of something big. As for the mall itself, it's disappointing to see it so empty. I'm sure the pandemic put a major dent into things but damn, it hurts to see how bad a shape it's in from so far away.
Hey wallie nice video of the ridgmar mall its a shame with whats going on I have a good video suggestion could you film the hulen mall I believe sears and Macy's and a few others are the anchor stores just a thought keep up the great work you and Kayla do
If you happen to be back in the Texas area anytime soon..you should give a small town tour. Like Chillicothe, Quanah, Harrold, Wichita Falls and Vernon, Tx.
Yesterday, i went here, just for a quick shoe shop. Decided to go in Hot topic, whole store was 40% off due to closing. Made me really sad. This use to be the spot back when I was in middle school. The girls and I would go almost every Friday with a budget of $20. 🤣 We would walk around, Hot Topic being our favorite store. Go to rave and hang outside till we get picked up. Many precious memories indeed.
Wow thank you so much I was born in 1973 and raised in Fort Worth is I spent I would say 90% of my teenage years at this place your videos took me down one heck of a Memory Lane and you have a new sub there is one of the mall in Fort Worth you should do a video on originally it was a lake then it was Seminary South which was an open Mall then Town Center and is currently called la gran Plaza
I grew up in River Oaks in the late 60s, 70s and 80s. We went to this mall a lot. As a kid we would go eat there on Sundays after church. There was a Furs or Whites I believe there. That was the only thing open because in the 70s stores were closed on Sundays. In the 80s my friends and I were go there a lot and hang out. I remember the round walkway, we would run up and down that thing. I loved going to this mall.
Good video. The place is even worse than when you were there. I've been going there for 30 years, but the last 6 or so I walk there for exercise only 3 times /week. I've seen it go downhill for years even before the Covid. This week (Jan 24 2021) has seen Foot Locker go and today is the last day for Old Navy - a huge loss. Two weeks before it lost Buckle, $5.99 store, Spencer's, and Hot Topic. It's pretty devastated now. They used to put on a business door a "Lockout Notice" when the owner's left without ending the lease. They'd put a big chain around the doors. I've seen that many times. After a few months they'd take off the chain and remove the signage if they didn't pay back rent. The "Candy World" candy store lady left one day (about two years ago) and I saw her taking a bunch of the candy out to her car, but half of it is still in there after two years! I don't know why they didn't give it away to needy kids. Oh well, we'll see if their plan of bringing in entertainment such as the Military museum and RCCA car racing will work. I don't see how it can keep the doors open. there is too much retail space to fill and it all costs money to light and heat. Thanks for the videos.
So many memories at this mall when I was younger. Unfortunately a lot of weirdos now hang out there. Last time I went there was a fight at the food hall
Hey Wallie thanks for the video. There is a really kinda dead mall in Burton Michigan called Courtland Center. If ur every in Michigan could u check it out. I love ur channel thank u for making my days better by watching ur videos.
Glad you enjoy the videos. It means a lot that they help make your day just a little bit better. I try hard to make them as enjoyable as possible. I definitely want to visit Michigan again. That would be a great idea to check it out. I do have one mall video that will be coming up eventually from a mall I did near Battle Creek. That mall was pretty dead.
When it comes to the environment affecting the business - I can most def say, as someone who lives in the area, that most of the problems likely have to do with it being very close to Las Vegas Trail. 'The Trails' has been the source to A LOT of issues in the area. It's really sad but what can you expect?
I didn’t ever go to Hulen, even before Covid. I think Hulen is actually closer to me and I still went to Ridgmar, but I went for certain things like the eye doctor, H&M and before it closed the the Spa and Tea Garden. It’s always sad going in there, seeing fewer and fewer places in the mall. But, I think malls in general are in decline, more so the department stores, because they are the main draws. I used to walk the mall when I lived closer there, and for the most part I felt safe. I always heard about the crime happening at Hulen rather than Ridgmar.
Seeing this mall like this makes me sad. Me and my mom and sister used to spend the day here shopping. The mall was packed. Every store was filled with people. There was a stabbing in the parking lot awhile back. Also, a lady said a guy jumped out of the bushes when she turned her back to unlock her vehicle. She slammed her to the ground to take her purse and injured her hip.
Sears (closed), Macy's (closed), Nieman-Marcus (moved) which is why its DYING, and the military base is NAVAL AIR STATION, FORT WORTH JOINT RESERVE BASE CARSWELL FIELD.
@@steveludwig4200 Mostly across I-30 from the mall and West of Ridglea is the affordable housing area. The areas along Camp Bowie West and along Las Vegas Trl have become almost solid Section 8 housing.
@@keithwilson6060 I know the area just east of Z Boaz golf course (park) has always been "sketchy" for at least a few blocks until you get into the Ridglea (north) part and Las Vegas Trl neighborhood always has been garbage too...even parts of Western Hills along Camp Bowie have always been crappy. I think the main issue with Ridgmar Mall business declining was the fact that the Hulen Mall area just blew up with development once I-20 was finished from Wedgwood to Benbrook and beyond and then obviously CityView development.
The base is now a joint reserve base not USMC. I have been here since 89 and the mall has had several ups and downs. The addition of Foleys brought a downturn in the mall because the food court was located there. It was a very large food court for any mall because it was the main place in the area to eat as there were few fast food and casual restaurants near by. They moved the food court back to it's original location during the Foleys construction and then to it's present location after the new area was built. It never recovered and mall traffic suffered as a result. There is no gang activity in the area and it is very safe. I think you must be confusing it with the Parks mall in arlington which is a very dangerous place to be. Irving mall isn't any better. If you are ever in the area again shoot me an email and I'll meet you out there to show you where some of the stores used to be etc. I don't remember them all but quite a few of them.
I grew up in this mall. Graduating high school in 1984, this was THE place to hang out with your friends. It was always packed. It looked like an 80’s movie come to life. The circular walkway was awesome.
Northeast Mall really hurt this place. Also, the closing of Carswell AFB and changing over to a reserve base really hurt their traffic.
I think it was the closing of the base that really did it. NE Mall didn't seem to effect Hulen mall, so I'm not sure why it would have an effect on this one as they are about a 30 minute drive apart. NE mall killed North Hills mall. Either way, this thing is sad and in dire condition.
Northeast was too far away to have an effect. Hulen Mall was the main competitor.
"The circular walkway was awesome" I worked at Sound Town record store 1978-79 at the top of the circular walkway. An episode of Walker Texas Ranger was filmed there in 1994 or 1995 with Chuck Norris riding a motorcycle up the walkway chasing a bad guy...it was cool.
Sad just 10 years ago this mall was thriving
Thats what I heard. What a shame.
At one time you would go tot
This mall and most if not all of the parking spots would be taken up so to see it this empty kinda blows my mind
more like 25 years ago back when you could do mall hopping across Tarrant County because they had so many of them.
Longer than 10 years ago. It’s been sliding for at least 20 years.
I miss my ridgmar mall from the 90s Era. IT will never be the same. All we have are the memeories.
Breaks my heart what happened to this mall. Used to be the busiest mall ever. Around 2014 Nieman Marcus and Macy’s pulled out to go to clear fork mall in Fort Worth. And then everyone pulled out. The mall is still open with a couple stores.
One beautiful mall inside. Perfect style not to old and not to modern just right. The music in the beginning is awesome.
It is beautiful. I love this mall. Hate seeing it in this shape. Glad you enjoyed. That intro song seems to be a hit. Getting a lot of positive feedback on that.
This is actually so sad. I cried watching this. I wished time travel was possible just to experience the mall like it once was.
I know right. I want to go back to the 90s so bad
What a nice mall, love the song in the beginning. I hope the best for this mall. Looks so nice.
Glad you enjoyed the mall and the music. Seems a bunch of people enjoyed that intro song.
The mall looked much better around 2005 since it had a running arcade and most of the big chains still were around
Yea I live hear in ftw this mall turned ass around 09
I live in ftw. Ridgmar mall is a shit hole
My senior year I was given $100 for graduation. I wanted to buy a new dress for graduation so my mom and I headed to Ridgmar. I felt like a queen going into one store after another looking for the right dress. I tried on different ones till I found one I liked. All the employees at all the stores were so helpful. I've never had a bad experience there.
I can imagine how nice it must have been back in its heyday when this was the place to be. I really didn't feel any negative vibes here or around here. Just heard from a few people it wasn't the best area anymore but you could have fooled me. I liked the mall and area.
Living in this area all of my life I remember it being built. there was nothing in that area other than Carwell airforce base and General dynamics defense plant now known as Lockheed Martin corporation. which is why all the military planes you hear. My sisters and I shopped this mall often. During the holidays it was beautifully decorated and in spite of its massive parking lot, you had to drive a bit for a space. It also had Luby's Cafeteria, El fenix mexican restaurant, Chick fil a. All before there was a food court. Good ole days so bitter sweet.
@@Terry_Brashier Thank you Terry. YES ! Fun times roller rinks and drive ins. We had the Cowtown and Western. Bah ha! I remember our President JFK and first Lady and motor cade driving through River Oaks on the very last day he would every been seen alive. I was only 6 years old in the first grade. But so real to me today at 64. thanks for the comment. Stay happy, healthy' wealthy and wise.
I remember the spiral ramp in the center of mall kinda went down hill when it was removed
My mom worked at the mall and I remember getting into trouble cause I went down the ramp with my roller blades
I worked at Sound Town in 1979 which was right at the top of the spiral walkway. When was it revoved?
@@jaysantos536 It was removed before the Rave theatre was built. The original plan was to build the theatre on the roof and they had to remove the spiral ramp to put in the supports for the theatre. And in the end they built it next to the mall and we lost out on a really cool ramp. I think the only other one is in a mall in PA by the same architect.
@@theinfernalcraftsman Thanks. I have fond memories of working at the record store and getting candy at Morrow's Nut House across from the staircase from the sweetest young lady in the world....RIP Stacy....
Nice video, I literally live in the neighborhood and I'm making a comment based on what you said your friends told you okay, 16 Macy's there is no Gang Related activity in this area. Point Blank the mall is suffering because of new development where a lot of the anchor stores actually moved into the developments that were built close by.
Exactly i lived in the area for a long time the mall went down cause of the competition around
This place used to be so alive. I remember coming here as a kid back in the 90s and 2000s. The arcade, the stores, the movie theater (my first job). Man, where does the time go?
This mall looks so amazing, so sad if they do decide to tear it down. looks like a pretty solid mall. Thank you for sharing wallie.
Glad you enjoyed. It is amazing in person. Dead... but amazing. I would be a frequent visitor here if I lived in the DFW. Even Kayla was disappointed to see it go downhill further from our previous visit and her lifelong visits here.
I loved the decor before the update in the 90’s (???). It was a dark parquet wood flooring throughout, very classy looking, like a guy’s den. They had premium shops in those days along with the national dept stores as anchors. Neiman Marcus, of course, and high end men’s clothing, like J. Riggs and Florsheim Shoes.
The intro really gave the wibes of how much history this mall have.
Everything from families going there to do there big shopping to concerts events and friends meeting.
Been in fort worth tx all my life, The love of Fort Worth TX I liked that mall
So many memories with my momma at this mall I miss her so so mucj
I'm so sorry to hear about your mother. Im glad you two happened to have a lot of memories from the mall though.
I live about 3 miles away from the mall. And work down the street from it as well. Thank you for the video, that’s incredible how bad it’s looking at a business point of view. My wife and I use to hang here when we dated nearly ten years ago. I haven’t stepped foot in this mall about a month before the lockdown happened.
Glad you enjoyed the video. Its depressing to see its decline especially in just the last year from my first visit. Kayla even said she couldn't believe how many more tenants left since January 2019. Obviously the virus didnt help. Almost every mall I know of lost a tenant or two or more as a result. Thanks for sharing your story from the mall. Its great to hear of better days when this mall was the place to be.
Also, Some more information about the mall: It originally started with a standalone Neiman-Marcus in the late 60s. You got all of the original anchors right, but there was also a Stripling’s department store where Foley’s/Macy’s building is currently that opened a few years after the mall did. It became Stripling & Cox in 1983. That closed in like 1996. Despite all anchors except for Neimans having 2nd locations a few miles away at Seminary South Mall (later Fort Worth Town Center), Hulen Mall had entirely different anchors and that’s why they coexisted. When Hulen Mall added a Dillard’s in 1995 is when things began to go south. There was now a Dillard’s at all 3 of Fort Worth’s malls (4 if you include the small Tandy Center in downtown). Then, to replace Stripling & Cox, Foley’s renovated the space and opened at Ridgmar in 1998 like you said. Hulen had a Foley’s (formerly Sanger-Harris) as well. Then, when Montgomery Ward closed at Hulen in 2001, it became Sears! Now all of Hulen’s anchors were also at Ridgmar. It was just an overlap of department stores and in-line stores.
Ridgmar Mall opening in 1976 took at least 50-65% of Hulen Mall's business within months as it was far superior in every way. A survey in Wedgwood subdivision (just east of Hulen Mall) showed most folks drove right by Hulen to go to Ridgmar nearly all the time. Hulen Mall was close to bankruptcy in early-mid 80s until it was announced a new "highway" was going to be built parallel to Hulen St from I-30 all the way through Crowley and Burleson to Cleburne. That opened likely residential growth between Granbury Road and Benbrook Lake for 30 miles to the south on open ranch land.
What a beautiful mall, sad to see what's happening to it.
I agree. This one is too nice to let it go to waste.
Wonderful video! I was born and raised in Kentucky, but my grandparents were Texas natives. Every summer when my siblings and I would visit for the summer, they'd take us to Ridgmar and Hulen. They had an AWESOME food court at Hulen where they used to have these giant butterflies that would hang from the ceiling. I think they took those down. I'm sure if you ask Kayla about that, I'm sure she will remember!
Hey I remember those giant butterflies at Hulen as well! Forgot all about that.
I like this mall better than the nearby Hulen Mall. Hulen seems so much smaller, but they do have the cool old Sanger-Harris murals still on the Macy's. I was in DFW a couple of weeks ago and filmed all 3 Sears locations, with 2 of those in the final week of business. I also saw the special JCPenney (Penney's) at North East mall. I missed out on this mall this time since our time was limited.
I noticed every mall in the DFW has its own characteristics although the Parks At Arlington and Hulen Mall feel similar to one another. I managed to get all 3 Sears as well and uploaded the Arlington and Hulen locations right away as they were closing but have yet to upload Town East. I agree, Hulen does feel a lot smaller than Ridgmar. High recommend visiting this one next time if you have the chance.
Hulen mall and northeast mall are the more well known malls in the dfw but hulen was known for having more high end clothing options
I drive past this mall almost every day since I live close to it. It’s crazy because I used to go to this mall as a kid with my mom and now I’m in my early 20’s and it’s on the verge of closing. There’s nothing in there
Living in fort worth its crazy to see how this mall has fallen
This mall also had a two story el fenix restaurant on a he second floor bar Dillard’s and a large woolworths on the first floor of the Dillard’s wing.
Are you sure the El Fenix was two story? I only remember the entrance between Dillards and the record store on ground floor. Maybe the best "mall" restaurant ever!
Definitely remember Woolworth's and El Fenix and yes it had a lower level and upper level to dine. I hated the whole remodeling of this Mall.
Woohoo! Love laying down watching a sick Wallieb26 video
Awesome! Thanks for watching! Hope you enjoyed!
The song make me feel sad because of the way things use to be, lost forever and time moves on and never wait for anyone😭😭
I moved to Fort Worth area in late 90s from Dallas area and remember the 70s-80s look of the wood paneling on the walls. Stores were leaving and the mall seemed like it would close. Then it was renovated early 2000s and looked so much more bright and cheerful. Later they tried to breathe more life into it bringing in Neiman Marcus and Macy's. Even tried the idea of an aquarium. Just seeing the evolution of the mall over time..it saddens me to see how it is now😞. I just hope the owners find a new way to breathe life into again and have a new reserrection.😁 As for the safety of the area...I live 5min away and it's a safe area.😁
This is the mall i grew up going to as a kid around the the early 2000s and it was doing well until aeound 2009-2010 when things started to go downhill. Its a shame as the mall itself was in a good area but tbh the area around ridgemar have been going through some tough times as of late
2009 was the last good year once 2010 came is when the decline started
Love the editing! Thank you for sharing💕💜 Precious turtles around the fountain areas🐢🐢 that bridge is absolutely gorgeous
Thank you very much. Im glad you enjoyed. I worked hard to make this as best as i could.
That was a great walkthrough video! Sad the mall is losing a lot of stores, and struggling badly. Interesting Neiman Marcus used to anchor this mall, until 2017.
I was wondering, did you ever film Southwest Center/Red Bird Mall on any of your DFW area trips?
Thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed it. Im still shocked that this mall at one point had 6 anchors. Not many malls have or had 6 anchors. As for Red Bird Mall, I did in fact film it on our visit in May! I'll be getting to that video soon. Have dozens upon dozens of Texas trip videos and they include a few mall videos. Thats one of them besides this one, Midway Mall, and Abilene Mall and Cincinnati Mills Mall in Ohio from our trek back home.
You showed a picture of the mall from the mid 80's. Ridgmar was at it's best. I work down the road from Ridgmar and you can hear the jets flying over.
Irving mall has more gang violence than Ridgmar does. There used to be a lot of outer shops.
I heard stories from Kayla's family about how Ridgmar used to be the best mall to go to. Shame what's happened to it. It's weird but even at Irving Mall I felt just as fine as I did at Ridgmar. Keep in mind I'm not familiar with the area like you and Kayla and her family are. Just sad to see this once great place fall.
Yeah. Irving Mall is still doing okay though.
For some reason all 3 of the malls built in Fort Worth’s city limits were built in the West part of town. Never understood it. Somehow the mall that was originally the smallest, Hulen Mall, is still thriving. Seminary South (became an enclosed mall in 1987 and renamed Fort Worth Town Center, went into decline in the mid 90s, and was rebranded in 2005 as La Gran Plaza de Fort Worth) and Ridgmar failed even though they were both around 1,000,000 square feet.
Because that is where middle to upper income housing growth was. Hulen area was rapidly growing to south and west and there was always "big money" west side in Ridgmar area. Hell, the Neiman Marcus store was in the mall for awhile! When Ridgmar opened it nearly killed Hulen Mall late 70s early 80s. But that turned around when it became clear there was little new growth to the west and a new highway (Chisholm Trail Toll Road) was going to be built from I-30 to Cleburne right through the Hulen Mall area increasing housing and traffic by 10X.
Seminary South was a cool place right around 1970-1975. Then it started downhill because all the mid to upper middle income folks *that lived in places like Wedgwood started shopping at Hulen and then Ridgmar Malls. Too much petty crime in the Seminary/Berry St./I-35 areas for the upstanding white folks.
Thanks for sharing Wallie It`s sad how a year can change a mall like that My mall in my town is getting a reface lifted in some of the anchor stores now
I haven't been there in over 15 years. It actually looks way nicer than I thought it would. It used to have this spiral ramp between the floors that was kind of neat, at least I thought it was really cool when I was a kid.
My favorite at Ridgmar was Wyatts Cafeteria, back in the day.
Far better grub at Whataburger and El Fenix!
Ahh I remember as kid my Mom taking us to Wyatts and Colonial Cafeteria's. The old Seminary Mall also had a Wyatt's. There was one in River Oaks area to. I miss those carefree days, but I was a kid in the 80's so no responsibilities. 😝
Great vid!!! Good job on the narration and music choice.
Thank you very much. Glad you enjoyed! It took me awhile to get this one edited where I was happy with it.
Great job on this Wallie! I really enjoyed the older photos and the way you edited it.This looks like a very nice mall,too bad it's slow in business.Mabey it will start to get busy around the holidays.Lets hope so.
I live in the area and that mall is not very busy during the holidays anymore I give maybe another year before it's gone for good
Very cool to see someone finally visit this mall. I have a lot of memory’s here and for the past 3 years or so I’ve just slowly watched it die down. The aquarium only did so much for the location.
Was in the middle watching one of your other videos when this popped up.😅
What are the odds?! Lol
Many great memories here as a kid. Spencer's Gifts barely visible at 3:08 was always a favorite, as well as Wicks n Sticks
The reserve base used to be a full on Air Force base. Once the base went reserve, the Air Force families went away, and the area went downhill
We appreciate how many videos you put out Wallie
When you were talking about crime, your source was referring to the Las Vegas Trail area just south of the City of White Settlement. I lived by Las Vegas Trail and Calmont Av. for quite a few years, as I grew up in the city north of that intersection and graduated from Brewer High School class of '01. A lot of good memories during school and a few years after graduation.
I called the mall to ask how many stores they had and the manager on the phone said 30
yikes
Ouch. Honestly it didn't even seem as if there were that many. I know some stores went out of business because of the virus which didn't help. Just sad state of affairs here.
Coleman Fink no they didn't but at least they were honest instead of lying about their store count
half the original anchors in that mall are still open
yikes
30 my ass more like 15-30
@Coleman Fink I know that Buckle, Bath & Body Works, The Shoe Dept, Old Navy, and Champs are some of the stores still there.
A cool video, Wallie! I'm really enjoying your videos from Texas, as well as your others. What a beautiful mall! It's sad that to see malls close, especially the fact that employees lose their jobs. Hopefully, they can get hired with another employer in the DFW area. Plus, there are other malls in the area that are open.
Hey man... It is Pamela... Been out of the loop myself... Been taking more and more time off the net and avoiding the news... This mall here is nice... Would be a shame to tear it down.. Looks in great shape...
Hope you're doing well. I dont blame you one bit. The news and social media are so negative anymore it can make everyone's stress and anxiety get out of control. I took a couple hiatus from Facebook alone just to help ease my nerves because it was getting so out of hand. It helped a lot.
This mall is about 20 minutes from me, I used to go with my mom all the time when I was little, seeing it so different makes me sad but I’m glad it’s still open
I personally believe the reason Ridgmar died was because of Helen Mall, North East Mall, The Parks at Arlington, and then the openings of The Shops at Clearfork and Tanger Outlets Fort Worth in 2017.
Edit: I apologize for the long comments lol
Ridgmar Mall nearly put Hulen Mall out of business in the late 70s. Everyone in that area (Wedgwood) preferred to drive right past it to Ridgmar Mall after it opened in 1976. Hulen was only saved because there was a planned highway (Chisholm Parkway) that was planned ti run from I-30 in downtown parallel to Hulen St all the way to Cleburne.
I remember the mall was the mall back in the 70s and 80s everyone in cleburne Texas use go shopping there .
Northeast Mall on 820 in Hurst is a nice, upscale shopping experience. But of all the malls in the Metroplex, NorthPark Center in Dallas remains the most luxe.
Yeah, this was definitely one of the more popular malls in the DFW area, but NorthPark has been and continues to be the Premiere mall in the Metroplex, hands-down.
I've watched just about all the videos you've done in my town!😊 I haven't been to Ridgmar in about 8 years I used go to there a lot in the 90s
The decline of this Mall is really sad, it really started a few years after the modernization and remodel. When Chili's closed down it completely started disintegrating, but Foley's (later Macy's) Dillard's, Sear's and Neiman's kept it going a few more years before it's total demise.
We still go occasionally, but it's just depressing now. The one good taco place (Taco Master) in the food court moved of-site behind the Dollar Tree and their service just went downhill after the move. I spoke to some of the vendors and they all stated the ridiculous rent charges drove most of the remaining businesses away.
It’s so sad that the mall has declined so fast. I grew up in Fort Worth and always used to prefer Ridgmar to Hulen because it’s bigger and had more stores, and stores that were at both malls always had more of a selection at Ridgmar since the stores were usually larger than the Hulen locations. I visited often in 2015 and it wasn’t necessarily thriving then, but it was still in much better shape than it is now. At the time it still had all of its anchors, (although Neiman Marcus had already announced that they were moving to Clearfork I believe), and still had a lot of the typical chain stores such as Forever 21, Aeropostale, Victoria Secret, multiple jewelry stores, H&M was newly added, they still had mostly all of the spaces filled in the food court like Chick Fil A and Sonic. Also if you haven’t already, check the mall’s directory on their website because it is alarming. They list “Mall Management” and the service that runs the animals you can ride around as stores in addition to other things that aren’t legitimate retail stores... I’m assuming this is to make it appear that there are more opportunities to shop and more things still operating than there actually are. I haven’t visited in probably the last year due to covid and the fact the mall is more dangerous to explore alone, (especially as a girl) so thank you for this video!
I see the Auntie Anne's was open, I sure hope you got yourself some pretzel pieces.
Awesome revisit dude! Loved the saxophone in the opening track.
This mall is excellent. Such a shame it looks like it has taken several blows already and the current health emergency will not be kind, I'm sure. Great footage lately, keep it up!
Glad you enjoyed. A lot of people are giving me positive feedback on the opening music. When I was listening around to music that I thought I would like for this video, the moment I heard this one, I knew that was it. It just felt perfect.
I love this mall. I can't believe how much worse it got in one year. I know the virus didn't help matters. Even Kayla was in disbelief as to how much worse it got. Considering she's been shopping at this mall her entire life, she was really disappointed to see how bad it got. I fear what it will look like next time we visit. Glad you're enjoying our work. Aside from working, I've been trying my best to put enjoyable videos together more so than before.
WallieB26 yea unfortunately, the mall has been like this for years. Now the busiest malls in DFW are Grapevine Mills and the Dallas Galleria.
I moved from Texas back to California mid 2015 and that mall was still packed for the most part around the JCPenneys till where sears was. Now at 20 I've been wanting to go back to TX to see all the places I used to love as a kid but a lot of them no longer exist or are on their last limb 😕. This mall used to be so cool Idk if it's the rise of online shopping that took it out but I miss it
The best way to save a mall is to have a walmart as an ankor!! San Diego has two malls with walmarts in them and I was blessed to have worked in Parkway plaza mall.
I've seen where a Walmart has definitely help keep a mall alive like the Country Club Mall in Maryland that I filmed awhile back. However I have also seen where Walmart as an anchor has also hurt a mall such as the Fort Steuben Mall in Ohio. Yet it still stays afloat. There is a Walmart and Target not all that far from this mall which I dont know if thats part of the reason for the decline or the fact Hulen Mall (which is thriving) is only 7 or so miles away.
I dont see how a walmart would hurt a mall unless the mall is lacking in theatre, food court, or simply good stores. Its all about having proper balance. Its also an atmospheric feeling that a mall needs to attract people. If a mall has negative energy then that's not good. Typical way to remedy that is proper security and fresh coat of paint. I seen you gone to malls that look dark with ugly low ceiling like you're going through an office building. Malls need to be somewhat luxurious. If only i had the money and business skills I would love to revive the malls.
I also think for most malls if the food courts go empty then that is s pretty good indocation that the mall is in trouble
@@Emilyrosewood87 Often a Walmart or Target won't have a mall entrance. That actually takes customers away from the inside of the mall. In addition, the stores inside a mall often have high prices. Those who shop at discount stores often won't bother with high price stores so the additional foot traffic isn't the target demographic of a mall store.
Theres a walmart on down the road of the mall xc
Sad to see this mall like this, first time ever seeing a storage facility in a mall, funny story one time about 10 years ago I was there with a bunch of friends after church and had passed out on a bench while they where walking around, woke up to a bunch of mall cops circling me on there scooters thinking I was on something lol
What a gorgeous mall very clean and wl maintained looking place thanks for sharing this ma with us Wallie
Glad you enjoyed. They definitely do keep up with this place. When we were here, maintenance people were working outside along the mall in a couple of places. Its nice that they still care as much as they do with the mall despite its current state.
Worked at Neiman's after I graduated from TCU. Carswell was going strong with Dessert Storm and the jets and B-52's were constantly flying in and out. Ridgmar was very popular and busy. Westover Hills is very close, to the East of Ridgmar, and I am surprised that they would let the area deteriorate. Ft Worth is great and so was Ridgmar in its day. So sad to see it so empty.
The base you are talking about was Carswell Airforce base, however it is now a Naval Reserve base, the planes are Navy and Air Force planes. There are some Marines there, but its mostly Navy and Air Force.
Sadly a shell of it's former self. I grew up in that mall late 70s and through the 80s. I remember sitting at the doors at JC Penney watching the B-52s take off while mom shopped. Sad to see.
Malls haven't been popular in a while. Reason why is that they are not with the times. People are so much into fast pace shopping. Online is the thing now. Progress/convenience and technology has taken jobs and with this virus. It's just made it worse. Why are we such in a hurry?..look at what it has put the world in. Thank you WallieB. You remind people of the past. When things were a little more simpler.
Hulen Mall is a more dangerous mall than Ridgmar Mall.
That USMC Joint Reserve base that's nearby, is the former Carswell AFB and was operational, until the military downsizing of the mid 90s, when the Air Force command was relocated, and various other branches now use it, for joint projects.
Great videos!
I used to work at the Ridgmar Mall at Lids. 2014-2015. I remember when it was announced when Neiman Marcus announced it would close in 2017.
Rumors are true. Mall is sketchy at night. In 2014 or 15, two employees from a Chinese restaurant in the food court, got into an argument over a female and one individual was stabbed to death and died next to Old Navy.
If you ever decide to come to Chicago you could visit some abandoned stores within Ford city mall! Its still thriving but they do have a few abandoned stores such as Sears, an arcade (i used to frequent as a child!), a few restaurants, a few smaller stores, and HHGregs! It does get full but it has gotten competition from Chicago Ridge, and North Riverside mall. If you do come there are other places that are abandoned such as gas stations, Kmarts, sears etc.
I would love to shop in this mall simply bc there are so few people there. Lol. Love it!
Very cool video. That was a nice tour. I've haven't been there since the mid 80's. Appears deserted now. Oh well. Most shopping centers look the same anyway. If you've seen one, you've seen 'em Mall. 😁😁😁😁
Y'know, I never knew the name of the mall until I saw this video. I used to go here often when I was much younger. There used to be this one guy that had a little booth where he would sell bootleg PS1 games. He would even mod the systems for you, too! He introduced me to Japanese games and that was the start of something big.
As for the mall itself, it's disappointing to see it so empty. I'm sure the pandemic put a major dent into things but damn, it hurts to see how bad a shape it's in from so far away.
Hey wallie nice video of the ridgmar mall its a shame with whats going on I have a good video suggestion could you film the hulen mall I believe sears and Macy's and a few others are the anchor stores just a thought keep up the great work you and Kayla do
If you happen to be back in the Texas area anytime soon..you should give a small town tour. Like Chillicothe, Quanah, Harrold, Wichita Falls and Vernon, Tx.
Yesterday, i went here, just for a quick shoe shop. Decided to go in Hot topic, whole store was 40% off due to closing. Made me really sad. This use to be the spot back when I was in middle school. The girls and I would go almost every Friday with a budget of $20. 🤣 We would walk around, Hot Topic being our favorite store. Go to rave and hang outside till we get picked up. Many precious memories indeed.
Awesome video 👌👌
Thank you!
U are making me feel like I live in a movie like mad max i live around this area and see all the ridgemar stuff i r showing every day so sad
The giant columns are beautiful. You don’t see columns much anymore.
Wow thank you so much I was born in 1973 and raised in Fort Worth is I spent I would say 90% of my teenage years at this place your videos took me down one heck of a Memory Lane and you have a new sub there is one of the mall in Fort Worth you should do a video on originally it was a lake then it was Seminary South which was an open Mall then Town Center and is currently called la gran Plaza
Me and my family visited the SeaQuest aquarium a couple years ago and walked around the mall afterwards. We were sad to see so much empty space.
I love this mall. I miss going to the movies there and shopping after. 😔
I grew up in River Oaks in the late 60s, 70s and 80s. We went to this mall a lot. As a kid we would go eat there on Sundays after church. There was a Furs or Whites I believe there. That was the only thing open because in the 70s stores were closed on Sundays. In the 80s my friends and I were go there a lot and hang out. I remember the round walkway, we would run up and down that thing. I loved going to this mall.
" the round walkway" I worked at the Sound Town record store at the top of the "round walkway" in 78 and 79.
Good video. The place is even worse than when you were there. I've been going there for 30 years, but the last 6 or so I walk there for exercise only 3 times /week. I've seen it go downhill for years even before the Covid. This week (Jan 24 2021) has seen Foot Locker go and today is the last day for Old Navy - a huge loss. Two weeks before it lost Buckle, $5.99 store, Spencer's, and Hot Topic. It's pretty devastated now. They used to put on a business door a "Lockout Notice" when the owner's left without ending the lease. They'd put a big chain around the doors. I've seen that many times. After a few months they'd take off the chain and remove the signage if they didn't pay back rent.
The "Candy World" candy store lady left one day (about two years ago) and I saw her taking a bunch of the candy out to her car, but half of it is still in there after two years! I don't know why they didn't give it away to needy kids. Oh well, we'll see if their plan of bringing in entertainment such as the Military museum and RCCA car racing will work. I don't see how it can keep the doors open. there is too much retail space to fill and it all costs money to light and heat. Thanks for the videos.
Last I read the owners are looking into join newer development to update the mall and bring it to the level as the newer developments
So many memories at this mall when I was younger. Unfortunately a lot of weirdos now hang out there. Last time I went there was a fight at the food hall
Hey Wallie thanks for the video. There is a really kinda dead mall in Burton Michigan called Courtland Center. If ur every in Michigan could u check it out. I love ur channel thank u for making my days better by watching ur videos.
Glad you enjoy the videos. It means a lot that they help make your day just a little bit better. I try hard to make them as enjoyable as possible. I definitely want to visit Michigan again. That would be a great idea to check it out. I do have one mall video that will be coming up eventually from a mall I did near Battle Creek. That mall was pretty dead.
When it comes to the environment affecting the business - I can most def say, as someone who lives in the area, that most of the problems likely have to do with it being very close to Las Vegas Trail.
'The Trails' has been the source to A LOT of issues in the area. It's really sad but what can you expect?
I loved this mall. So much to see and do
Nice job
Thank you!
I didn’t ever go to Hulen, even before Covid. I think Hulen is actually closer to me and I still went to Ridgmar, but I went for certain things like the eye doctor, H&M and before it closed the the Spa and Tea Garden. It’s always sad going in there, seeing fewer and fewer places in the mall. But, I think malls in general are in decline, more so the department stores, because they are the main draws. I used to walk the mall when I lived closer there, and for the most part I felt safe. I always heard about the crime happening at Hulen rather than Ridgmar.
Seeing this mall like this makes me sad. Me and my mom and sister used to spend the day here shopping. The mall was packed. Every store was filled with people.
There was a stabbing in the parking lot awhile back. Also, a lady said a guy jumped out of the bushes when she turned her back to unlock her vehicle. She slammed her to the ground to take her purse and injured her hip.
Sears (closed), Macy's (closed), Nieman-Marcus (moved) which is why its DYING, and the military base is NAVAL AIR STATION, FORT WORTH JOINT RESERVE BASE CARSWELL FIELD.
Carswell Air Force Base to most veterans......
Section 8 is the death knell for any area.
Where is Section 8 housing around Ridgmar Mall? The area just east has always been nice with large homes on large lots built mostly 60s and 70s.
@@steveludwig4200
Mostly across I-30 from the mall and West of Ridglea is the affordable housing area. The areas along Camp Bowie West and along Las Vegas Trl have become almost solid Section 8 housing.
@@keithwilson6060 I know the area just east of Z Boaz golf course (park) has always been "sketchy" for at least a few blocks until you get into the Ridglea (north) part and Las Vegas Trl neighborhood always has been garbage too...even parts of Western Hills along Camp Bowie have always been crappy. I think the main issue with Ridgmar Mall business declining was the fact that the Hulen Mall area just blew up with development once I-20 was finished from Wedgwood to Benbrook and beyond and then obviously CityView development.
Wally what was the name of that song in this video ?
It was on the screen.
Waterfront Dining - Top Of The World
Amazing looking mall
Cool
Thank you!
I wonder what building the Stripling's store was in
* it used to be where the Macy's building is, they demolished the old building for this one
The base is now a joint reserve base not USMC. I have been here since 89 and the mall has had several ups and downs. The addition of Foleys brought a downturn in the mall because the food court was located there. It was a very large food court for any mall because it was the main place in the area to eat as there were few fast food and casual restaurants near by. They moved the food court back to it's original location during the Foleys construction and then to it's present location after the new area was built. It never recovered and mall traffic suffered as a result.
There is no gang activity in the area and it is very safe. I think you must be confusing it with the Parks mall in arlington which is a very dangerous place to be. Irving mall isn't any better.
If you are ever in the area again shoot me an email and I'll meet you out there to show you where some of the stores used to be etc. I don't remember them all but quite a few of them.
All the stores aren't even there no more it is so sad to see it go, but I think they are gonna change the look
Memories😍 Anybody remember Club Coconuts@ this mall?
My daughter had her first Santa pictures there just a little over ten years ago.