Some shoppers are ready to see the Shenango Valley Mall torn down
It’s the end of an era in the City of Hermitage. The Shenango Valley Mall will officially be closing its doors next month and some shoppers say they’re ready to see it put out of its misery.
“I just kinda hate to see it go out of business but maybe it’s best that they tear it down and build a new store,” one shopper said.
“I’m not too surprised but that doesn’t mean I’m still not bummed out about it,” Leon McKinley, a Hermitage resident said about the mall shutting down.
With half empty parking lots and boarded up storefronts, shoppers say there's not a lot to miss.
“It’s sorta sad that, not just this one, but quite a few of them have had multiple stores closing inside,” McKinley said about malls across the nation. “When you walk in they’re just shells of what they used to be.”
“It’s uh, it’s depressing,” Jim Pitts, another Hermitage resident said about walking through the mall with only a few stores left.
Pitts said he remembers the good old days when the mall was the place to be and there wasn’t a single empty spot in the parking lot.
“Christmas times were really nice because the mall was packed and there was all kinds of people and stores decorated,” Pitts said.
The mall will be torn down sometime this year after all the stores are vacated. The last day to shop at JC Penney’s will be May 5 other stores like Kings Jewelry will stay open until May 31.
“The mall needs to rest in peace and I’m going to try come here as much as I can before it goes out of business,” one shopper said.
Once the land is cleared, developers will put up individual buildings for businesses and restaurants. Mark Longietti, the Director of Business and Community Development for the City of Hermitage said later on down the road they may put in community event spaces and housing.
“I think it’ll be a transformational project for the entire region. I think people will be really happy when it's all done,” Longietti said.
To celebrate the end of this era the mall will have a farewell event on Saturday, May 4 from 1p.m. to 5 p.m. Small businesses will set up booths, there will be activities for kids and food trucks. Also at the event, people can post their favorite memory of the mall on a “post-it wall” as a way to say goodbye to the building that’s been there for years.
The City of Hermitage has no official date on when the demolition will begin.