White Flint: Night of the Living Dead Mall?

[Anonymous]

But how will anyone walk there without being roadkill on Rockville Pike?
1. They should build some high-end low-rise condos on the land across from G'town Prep.

2. Everything low-rise--nothing over 6 stories. GET A WHOLE FOODS IN THE COMPLEX.

3. Put in an independent films oriented movie theater. Hello, Loews family--are you listening?

4. GET A FIVE GUYS IN THERE.

5. Create little side streets off the Pike next to White Flint and PUT AN APPLE STORE IN THERE.

6. Also high end children's toy's store--no plastic allowed ONLY WOODEN NEUTRAL GENDERED TOYS.

7. Sushi on conveyer belts should be everywhere as there are plenty of asians around there who would set a high bar for asian fare. GET A HUGE AWESOME DIM SUM RESTAURANT IN THERE.

Who's with me?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think Pottery Barn is still open. They will be knocking the mall down and replacing it with an outdoor mall (probably another strip mall, like all of VA is) in the near future. Not sure of the timeline.

It's actually being replaced with a town center like downtown Bethesda. Should actually be nice.

But I don't think anyone actually likes the town center concept, do they?

If you knew what a hell of banality Bethesda was 20 years ago, you'd understand why the Town Center model has been revolutionary for Bethesda. Yeah, it's pseudo whatever, but so is Times Square in NYC. No one actually has the patience for gritty realism anymore.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We live in white flint and that was the worst mall ever. We would go to wheaton mall before we went to white flint mall, that's how bad it was. The only thing that kept that mall alive was Dave and busters, cheese cake factory and pf changs. The stores inside the mall didn't appeal to the every day people. So glad they are taking it down but I wonder what stores they will put there. Anyone know if the Dave and busters will go? That's the only one around here and I hate chuck e cheese.

When we were at a birthday party at Dave and Busters last May, they told us that they would be staying in place as long as possible, and then moving to a new location in the front of the new mall there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Many of the stores closed already including the pottery barns and I believe Banana Republic. They were staying open only through the holidays. Below is a link to the website that covers all the planning development for the entire White Flint Plan.
http://www.whiteflint.org

That's a very interesting site; thanks for the link.

I loved going to White Flint because it was so uncrowded but, duh, that's why they couldn't survive. We will keep going to the movie theater until the walls come down. I remember being in high school when White Flint opened, and it was a big deal, especially the Eatery, which was a new concept then. Nothing makes you feel older than watching the entire lifespan of something like a shopping mall!

Seriously. It's like the witnessing the innovation and death of linoleum.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think Pottery Barn is still open. They will be knocking the mall down and replacing it with an outdoor mall (probably another strip mall, like all of VA is) in the near future. Not sure of the timeline.

It's actually being replaced with a town center like downtown Bethesda. Should actually be nice.

But I don't think anyone actually likes the town center concept, do they?

That concept has been very popular a few miles up the road in downtown Rockville.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We live in white flint and that was the worst mall ever. We would go to wheaton mall before we went to white flint mall, that's how bad it was. The only thing that kept that mall alive was Dave and busters, cheese cake factory and pf changs. The stores inside the mall didn't appeal to the every day people. So glad they are taking it down but I wonder what stores they will put there. Anyone know if the Dave and busters will go? That's the only one around here and I hate chuck e cheese.

When we were at a birthday party at Dave and Busters last May, they told us that they would be staying in place as long as possible, and then moving to a new location in the front of the new mall there.

IIIIIIIIIIIIII am every day people, yeah, yuh. And I would go to a Richard Linklater or Coen Brothers Film Festival there and shop at a Whole Foods afterwards.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:But how will anyone walk there without being roadkill on Rockville Pike?
1. They should build some high-end low-rise condos on the land across from G'town Prep.

2. Everything low-rise--nothing over 6 stories. GET A WHOLE FOODS IN THE COMPLEX.

3. Put in an independent films oriented movie theater. Hello, Loews family--are you listening?

4. GET A FIVE GUYS IN THERE.

5. Create little side streets off the Pike next to White Flint and PUT AN APPLE STORE IN THERE.

6. Also high end children's toy's store--no plastic allowed ONLY WOODEN NEUTRAL GENDERED TOYS.

7. Sushi on conveyer belts should be everywhere as there are plenty of asians around there who would set a high bar for asian fare. GET A HUGE AWESOME DIM SUM RESTAURANT IN THERE.

Who's with me?

There is already a whole foods across the street.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think Pottery Barn is still open. They will be knocking the mall down and replacing it with an outdoor mall (probably another strip mall, like all of VA is) in the near future. Not sure of the timeline.

It's actually being replaced with a town center like downtown Bethesda. Should actually be nice.

But I don't think anyone actually likes the town center concept, do they?

That concept has been very popular a few miles up the road in downtown Rockville.

Agree I like it--but it is too far away from Bethesda and upper NW DC. No one is going from Friendship Heights/Spring Valley to downtown Rockville to grab dinner with the family . But White Flint would be a great option if done in a similar model.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:But how will anyone walk there without being roadkill on Rockville Pike?
1. They should build some high-end low-rise condos on the land across from G'town Prep.

2. Everything low-rise--nothing over 6 stories. GET A WHOLE FOODS IN THE COMPLEX.

3. Put in an independent films oriented movie theater. Hello, Loews family--are you listening?

4. GET A FIVE GUYS IN THERE.

5. Create little side streets off the Pike next to White Flint and PUT AN APPLE STORE IN THERE.

6. Also high end children's toy's store--no plastic allowed ONLY WOODEN NEUTRAL GENDERED TOYS.

7. Sushi on conveyer belts should be everywhere as there are plenty of asians around there who would set a high bar for asian fare. GET A HUGE AWESOME DIM SUM RESTAURANT IN THERE.

Who's with me?

There is already a whole foods across the street.

Well, that was stupid. They should have put it on the same side of the high speed street as the Mall, stupid urban planners.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:But how will anyone walk there without being roadkill on Rockville Pike?
1. They should build some high-end low-rise condos on the land across from G'town Prep.

2. Everything low-rise--nothing over 6 stories. GET A WHOLE FOODS IN THE COMPLEX.

3. Put in an independent films oriented movie theater. Hello, Loews family--are you listening?

4. GET A FIVE GUYS IN THERE.

5. Create little side streets off the Pike next to White Flint and PUT AN APPLE STORE IN THERE.

6. Also high end children's toy's store--no plastic allowed ONLY WOODEN NEUTRAL GENDERED TOYS.

7. Sushi on conveyer belts should be everywhere as there are plenty of asians around there who would set a high bar for asian fare. GET A HUGE AWESOME DIM SUM RESTAURANT IN THERE.

Who's with me?

There is already a whole foods across the street.

Well, that was stupid. They should have put it on the same side of the high speed street as the Mall, stupid urban planners.

Hell, WF is like Starbucks anyway--they could put in another one more conveniently located across the street and still profit.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:But how will anyone walk there without being roadkill on Rockville Pike?
1. They should build some high-end low-rise condos on the land across from G'town Prep.

2. Everything low-rise--nothing over 6 stories. GET A WHOLE FOODS IN THE COMPLEX.

3. Put in an independent films oriented movie theater. Hello, Loews family--are you listening?

4. GET A FIVE GUYS IN THERE.

5. Create little side streets off the Pike next to White Flint and PUT AN APPLE STORE IN THERE.

6. Also high end children's toy's store--no plastic allowed ONLY WOODEN NEUTRAL GENDERED TOYS.

7. Sushi on conveyer belts should be everywhere as there are plenty of asians around there who would set a high bar for asian fare. GET A HUGE AWESOME DIM SUM RESTAURANT IN THERE.

Who's with me?

*polite applause, awkward coughing*

[Anonymous]

There is a ton of stuff going in there and not just retail. And I don't know why PP needs a Five Guys there so badly - those places are freaking everywhere. And what goes there is NOT going to just be low-rise - it is right next to a Metro station!

From Wikipedia - citing a Gazette article no longer available online -

"In November 2011, Lerner Enterprises announced plans to deconstruct the 850,000-square-foot mall and its large parking deck and replace it with four office buildings, a 300-room hotel, 1 million square feet of retail and restaurant space, and 12 apartment buildings consisting of a total of 2,500 residences. The developers expected construction to begin two years following approval. The project would take approximately 25 years to be fully completed."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We live in white flint and that was the worst mall ever. We would go to wheaton mall before we went to white flint mall, that's how bad it was. The only thing that kept that mall alive was Dave and busters, cheese cake factory and pf changs. The stores inside the mall didn't appeal to the every day people. So glad they are taking it down but I wonder what stores they will put there. Anyone know if the Dave and busters will go? That's the only one around here and I hate chuck e cheese.

When we were at a birthday party at Dave and Busters last May, they told us that they would be staying in place as long as possible, and then moving to a new location in the front of the new mall there.

IIIIIIIIIIIIII am every day people, yeah, yuh. And I would go to a Richard Linklater or Coen Brothers Film Festival there and shop at a Whole Foods afterwards.

IIIIIIIIIIIIII am every day people also, and although I was never much of a Bloomingdales person, I shopped at Pottery Barn, PBK, Lord & Taylor (still do), Gap, Nine West, Talbots and Williams Sonoma frequently. I'm not sure what PP thinks was there that was so snooty.

[Anonymous]

I miss the Borders that was there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I miss the Borders that was there.

Brick and Mortar bookstores are a dying breed.