Inital Thoughts.

While in the process of gathering information and getting photos together, I figured I'd write a little bit about the mall based on nothing but my widdle feelings.

I was only at Euclid Square a few times, mostly when I was younger (I'm a staggering 25 now). The last time I went to the mall was in 1996 or 1997. We went in, sought out the baseball card shop we were looking for, made our purchases and left quickly. It had a reputation of being dangerous, and when you hear that enough, you really believe it. That's a big reason we avoided the mall. From where I lived, it was six and one half dozen the other to go to either Euclid Square or Great Lakes Mall. We always opted for Great Lakes.

I never gave ESM much of a thought, even after hearing about it going downhill from 1998 on. When I first moved to Euclid in 2003, it was a "I wish the mall was open... it's just down the street" thing. It wasn't until this past August (2005) that I took a real interest in it. It started with a fascination with the empty Toys R Us building on the premises. I took quite a few shots of that store, and got a few of the old Red Lobster. Mall Security was sharking, but never got out of the car to say anything.

I went back after the holidays were out of the way, this time I wanted to concentrate on the freestanding Bank One building. I succeeded in getting some good photos of that, along with some of the outside of the mall and even some building scars (Burger King and Ponderosa).

All these photos on my screen only made me hungrier to know more about this place. I've been in the mall a couple of times, along with Dillard's and Outlets USA. Outlets USA looks very nice inside. The floor is shiny, clean, and maintained. I cannot say the same about the Dillard's outlet store. The old cosmetics counter in still in the store, pushed aside. The wood floor is dull and damaged. The carpeting is stained and worn out.

The mall itself, inside, is in good condition. Paint is peeling, and there's some obvious water damage.. but when you first walk in... you expect to see masses of shoppers paying no attention to you. The fountains are running, the floors are shiny and the ceilings are vast... it even smells like a mall... but it holds nothing but mall walkers and dark, empty stores. The rush of life you initially feel is gone, replaced with a queer sensation. For a moment, it's almost hard to believe you're one of maybe 7 people in the entire mall.

The mall's landscaping is also pretty good, considering there's hardly anyone ever around to appreciate it.

Toys R Us, Red Lobster, and the Fazio's/Super Buffet complex are pretty gnarled and overgrown.

Toys R Us is completely boarded up, and one of the fiberglass colored planks is missing. There must have been attempts at break-ins, as the one door has metal over it, and it's somewhat damaged.

Red Lobster shows obvious signs of attempted entry, as panes of glass are completely broken out, leaving only sharp teeth of glass around it's brown window borders. Lights are falling out of the restaurant's structure and there is quite a bit of trash, especially by the side entrance. The inside, however, looks immaculate.

Fazio's, from what I gather so far closed in 1998, is definitely showing its years of abandonment. The florescent fixtures are speckled with large brown spots of rust. A few tube lights remain, and are covered in blackish dirt. All around the store is general debris. There is a dead branch inside the main entrance doors. Shopping carts branded "Indian Hills Supermarket" are neatly pushed together, collecting cobwebs. A closer look inside reveals several freezer cases.. And I mean several.

I'll wrap this up for now, as I plan to go in-depth on everything I cover individually.

I should have a large photo gallery up in the next day.