Is Northpark becoming the new Metrocenter? (Jackson, Pearl: 2014, apartment complexes, waterpark)

[zblanton1]

Originally Posted by Madeline2121

Do you shop at Northpark? You haven't realized stores are leaving? Just off the top if my head Banana Republic, Gap, Coldwater Creek, Chico's, Lane Bryant, Kirkland's, and Ruby Tuesday have all left for greener pastures. The Belks and Penny's have terrible selections compared to what they have at Dogwood.

No, I don't mean blacks. I'm talking about money. The people that have it to spare to spend on pricey retail items are leaving the area, and the people left are not going to waste their time shopping in a mall that the nice retail stores have pulled out of leaving stores with cheap junk. I'm sorry, but 579 and other stores if the like are not going to draw people with a lot of spending power.

Well both Kirkland's and Ruby Tuesday moved just across the county line to bigger stores in Ridgewood Court & that shopping center is in some decline now as well, so not really greener pastures.

But I do shop at Northpark, I shop at FYE & Gamestop, and also Penney's as I live about 5-8 minutes away from Northpark.

[golden eagles fan]

I went to Northpark today...the exterior could use some work. At the very least, a good pressure washing or fresh coat of paint, though a renovation is what's needed most. It was about 2pm when I went inside and it wasn't crowded. As noted earlier, there are more unconventional mall businesses there, like nail salons, a massage parlor, and a black barbershop. I did see three empty spaces: an old Wet Seal, a space next to Lids, and one next to American Eagle Outfitters. Other than that, there were, still, the typical mall stores. It didn't have the look of a dying mall.

As for the movie theater, there's not as many people who go during the day, so the small number of cars in the parking lot may not tell us a lot. However, it's the least-aesthetically pleasing of all the metro-area cinemas. I'm not ready to drive the nail in the coffin yet, but if it's still around by then, I'd like to see the kind of impact the District of Eastover's cinema will have. But if I'm Northpark's general manager, I'd try to get it revamped into an IMAX theater.

As far as the empty spaces are concerned, I want to see what will eventually fill them before we can tell what kind of direction the mall is going.

[Popquez87]

The Jackson market desperately need an IMAX theater and that would be a great way to keep the Northpark theater competitive with the other theaters in the area. I still hope the Eastover theater is an IMAX, but since the developers have not mentioned it, I fear it is not.

I actually don't understand why Forever 21 chose the outlets in Pearl instead of Northpark for it's metro Jackson location. H&M, Forever 21 and a potential Urban Outfitters would work perfectly at Northpark as they would feed off similar demographics and bring life to the mall. These brands also bring teens/young adults/college students with disposable income into the mall and the surrounding County Line Rd area. Those brands and an IMAX would have been perfect for Northpark.

[madison2013]

Originally Posted by golden eagles fan

But if I'm Northpark's general manager, I'd try to get it revamped into an IMAX theater.

As far as the empty spaces are concerned, I want to see what will eventually fill them before we can tell what kind of direction the mall is going.

The Mall manager can't just go to a theatre and say "make your business a IMAX theatre." Doesn't work that way. Besides, that theatre gets crushed by the Madison theatre.

[golden eagles fan]

Originally Posted by madison2013

The Mall manager can't just go to a theatre and say "make your business a IMAX theatre." Doesn't work that way. Besides, that theatre gets crushed by the Madison theatre.

I know that. If I'm the general manager, I'd meet with AMC to find out what it would take to make it an Imax theatre. It can keep its affiliation with AMC, as there's one in Baton Rouge.

As far as the District's movie theatre, I didn't get the impression that it would be an Imax.

To answer Popquez' other question, isn't Forever 21 already in one of the buildings out of Northpark? Maybe I'm thinking of another store.

[Popquez87]

Golden Eagles, the Forever 21 is located at the outlets in Pearl. Similar to H&M, it is one of the hugely popular - and still growing in popularity - clothing brands that target teens/college students/young adults on a budget with trendy fashions. I just think it would make more sense to put Forever 21, H&M and a potential Urban Outfitters in the same mall or shopping area instead of in completely different counties.

I also think a Dave and Busters or Lucky Strike would be great on the County Line Road area, although I would prefer to see it on the Jackson side if it ever came to fruition.

[zblanton1]

Originally Posted by Popquez87

Golden Eagles, the Forever 21 is located at the outlets in Pearl. Similar to H&M, it is one of the hugely popular - and still growing in popularity - clothing brands that target teens/college students/young adults on a budget with trendy fashions. I just think it would make more sense to put Forever 21, H&M and a potential Urban Outfitters in the same mall or shopping area instead of in completely different counties.

I also think a Dave and Busters or Lucky Strike would be great on the County Line Road area, although I would prefer to see it on the Jackson side if it ever came to fruition.

I think there is a Forever 21 at Northpark! There's something with the name Forever in the mall! I could be wrong though. But anyway, that's another thing that's wrong with Northpark Cinema, it's sound system can't even compete with that of Malco Grandview, Tinseltown, & Parkway Cinema in Flowood! Northpark Cinema was created at a time where it was the ONLY theater around.

In 1985, I believe most movie theaters had closed in Jackson, except for Meadowbrook Cinema 8, so it really did not have much competition, plus Northpark was brand new at the time, and beat both MetroCenter & the Jackson Mall as being the largest mall in the metro area.

I can remember as a child when the Parkway cinema in Flowood was new, my parents wanting to take me there instead of Northpark Cinema because it had a better, newer sound system. It's just been a victim of time & development I guess.

But I know that the theater in the District will hurt the Northpark Cinema more, but like everyone else has said, the new thing is open air malls. Indoor malls aren't being built anymore.

[Popquez87]

Zblanton1, I checked the website, and the only Forever 21 in the Jackson metro is at the Outlets in Pearl. There is another Forever 21 in Hattiesburg. Those are the only two in the state. I actually find it surprising Oxford doesn't have one.

Something I think will help the District theater is that they are going for a much more upscale experience. From their interviews, it seems wine, craft beer and a fancier selection of food will be served. I think that's a great way to differentiate itself from the other theaters in the metro. I haven't been to the Madison Malco since 2006 or 2007, so I'm not sure if they serve wine/craft beer or not.

The District theater should also play living sporting events from interviews released. Personally I would love an theater that played small, independent movies in Fondren or Poindexter. Something like an Alamo Theater would work great for the Jackson area.

[Madeline2121]

Popquez, I love your theater idea for Fondren!

[zblanton1]

Speaking of Poindexter Popquez, the Poindexter area was in a Jackson Free Press article recently along with the redevelopment plan for west Jackson. I believe the article was called Westward Expansion, but it showcased a photograph of several buildings on West Capitol Street just past the Greyhound bus station, that could host a small movie theater that would be great! The area of Poindexter is very unique, and I would love to see Poindexter Park become a focal of a community again.