DON'T FORGET TO "LIKE" BEE-OTCH OF THE DAY ON FACEBOOK!
Name: Grand Rapids
Age: 185
Occupation: second-largest city in Michigan
Last Seen: southwest Michigan
Bee-otched For: having one less Big Boy
---
As Chris Rock once said, "every city has at least two malls: the mall white people go to, and the mall the white people used to go to."
Grand Rapids has the distinction of having five malls: the one white people go to (Rivertown), the one whites, blacks, Asians, Hispanics and just about every other ethnicity goes to (Woodland), the one rich snobs go to (Breton Village), the one some people go to (Centerpointe)...
...And yes, the one the white people used to go to, which is Rogers Plaza.
When Rogers Plaza opened in 1960, it was considered Grand Rapids' first modern mall. It had a Kresge's, a two-story Montgomery Ward, a Kroger and right across the street, its anchor, Rogers Department Store.
51 years later, Rogers Plaza is a shadow of its former self. Kresge's and Ward's both closed, Kroger - and their other west Michigan stores - all closed decades ago and even its namesake, Rogers went out of business years ago. Klingman's Furniture even relocated from Centerpointe Mall to the old Rogers store only to shutter a short time later.
At least the plaza still has a supermarket, a Family Fare, which is almost weird since Duthler's is also next door.
True, Rogers Plaza *does* have some stores, like Officemax, Big Lots, MC Sports and AJ Wright, but that's it. I was there a few years ago while my car was being worked on down the street, and I have no reason to return. It was dead and boring. Nothing but lame stores, empty storefronts and a few service-based places like the Secretary of State office and the Post Office. There's even a few places that attract derelicts, like a cash advance outlet and a cut-rate auto insurer called Alf Insurance, perfect for the loser with 10 or more DUIs.
Now, there's one less reason to go to Rogers Plaza: the Big Boy is gone.
After 28 years, the Big Boy at Rogers Plaza shut its doors, citing poor business and the financial decay of the 28th Street corridor in Wyoming. The area is chock-full of abandoned businesses and buildings and an illicit way of life bombarded with drugs and violence.
However, Big Boy's presence is alive and well in the city; they recently opened up a new location on 28th Street across from Woodland.
It's also a reason why the once-innovative Studio 28 - which made headlines in 1988 when it became the first-ever 20-screen megaplex - closed down. Crime is up in that area and people would rather go to Loeks' other theatres in the Grand Rapids area instead of risking life and limb just to see a movie there.
Yeah, I understand. I'm technically talking about Wyoming and not Grand Rapids. But still, it's pathetic that I live in an area that only wants to talk about the good part of town - ie downtown - and film a LipDub video in it while there's crime and corruption everywhere else. Let's not forget where the soon-to-be-demolished GM plant is: yep, Wyoming.
If Grand Rapids and its sister towns like Kentwood and Wyoming can come together to lure business to the area, that's awesome. I'd like to move around. However, nobody's hiring here, and I'm considering moving on.
As for Rogers Plaza, I think if more business came to town, they should remodel it so it doesn't look like shit. Personally, I think they should go the "lifestyle center" route if you ask me. An insurance company that shares its name with a TV alien and the lead singer of Yaz won't make me drive 10 miles to visit.
Yet another reason why I think that Newsweek article's right.
As Chris Rock once said, "every city has at least two malls: the mall white people go to, and the mall the white people used to go to."
Grand Rapids has the distinction of having five malls: the one white people go to (Rivertown), the one whites, blacks, Asians, Hispanics and just about every other ethnicity goes to (Woodland), the one rich snobs go to (Breton Village), the one some people go to (Centerpointe)...
...And yes, the one the white people used to go to, which is Rogers Plaza.
When Rogers Plaza opened in 1960, it was considered Grand Rapids' first modern mall. It had a Kresge's, a two-story Montgomery Ward, a Kroger and right across the street, its anchor, Rogers Department Store.
51 years later, Rogers Plaza is a shadow of its former self. Kresge's and Ward's both closed, Kroger - and their other west Michigan stores - all closed decades ago and even its namesake, Rogers went out of business years ago. Klingman's Furniture even relocated from Centerpointe Mall to the old Rogers store only to shutter a short time later.
At least the plaza still has a supermarket, a Family Fare, which is almost weird since Duthler's is also next door.
True, Rogers Plaza *does* have some stores, like Officemax, Big Lots, MC Sports and AJ Wright, but that's it. I was there a few years ago while my car was being worked on down the street, and I have no reason to return. It was dead and boring. Nothing but lame stores, empty storefronts and a few service-based places like the Secretary of State office and the Post Office. There's even a few places that attract derelicts, like a cash advance outlet and a cut-rate auto insurer called Alf Insurance, perfect for the loser with 10 or more DUIs.
Now, there's one less reason to go to Rogers Plaza: the Big Boy is gone.
After 28 years, the Big Boy at Rogers Plaza shut its doors, citing poor business and the financial decay of the 28th Street corridor in Wyoming. The area is chock-full of abandoned businesses and buildings and an illicit way of life bombarded with drugs and violence.
However, Big Boy's presence is alive and well in the city; they recently opened up a new location on 28th Street across from Woodland.
It's also a reason why the once-innovative Studio 28 - which made headlines in 1988 when it became the first-ever 20-screen megaplex - closed down. Crime is up in that area and people would rather go to Loeks' other theatres in the Grand Rapids area instead of risking life and limb just to see a movie there.
Yeah, I understand. I'm technically talking about Wyoming and not Grand Rapids. But still, it's pathetic that I live in an area that only wants to talk about the good part of town - ie downtown - and film a LipDub video in it while there's crime and corruption everywhere else. Let's not forget where the soon-to-be-demolished GM plant is: yep, Wyoming.
If Grand Rapids and its sister towns like Kentwood and Wyoming can come together to lure business to the area, that's awesome. I'd like to move around. However, nobody's hiring here, and I'm considering moving on.
As for Rogers Plaza, I think if more business came to town, they should remodel it so it doesn't look like shit. Personally, I think they should go the "lifestyle center" route if you ask me. An insurance company that shares its name with a TV alien and the lead singer of Yaz won't make me drive 10 miles to visit.
Yet another reason why I think that Newsweek article's right.
---
Got a Bee-otch to nominate? E-mail us @ chuck69dotcom@gmail.com. All suggestions (except for me) are welcome!Bee-otch of the Day Archives can be seen on http://beeotchoftheday.blogspot.com !
Bee-otch of the Day is a production of Chuck69.com, Grand Rapids' site for Stern, politics and more!
No comments:
Post a Comment