Northgate Mall October 2011 Lafayette Louisiana

I always enjoy discovering or re-discovering malls that have no current information online and bringing the malls to you on this blog. Northgate Mall in Lafayette Louisiana is alive and still open for business. Northgate has survived even with the development of a large big box center around two miles away from the mall. Northgate Mall is located south of I-10 off of exit 103A at the corner of NE Evangeline Throughway and Willow Street. Northgate Mall was the first major indoor mall built in Lafayette in the early 1970's. Northgate Mall coexisted with the Acadiana Mall for years until all large anchor stores closed and were replaced by non-traditional mall stores without mall access. This is my third visit to this mall and I was fortunate to have seen this mall in the mid 1990's when the mall was bustling with all of the anchors operating. I also visited the mall in 2007 and the mall was not much different than this visit in October 2011. I was actually surprised to see the mall operating since there is no information and their website was closed several years ago. I found this thread from 2009 with names of stores that gives a little insight into the past of the mall. There is also a funny facebook page with several hundred friends that is worth checking out. This mall is a nice change from the boring malls of the current generation and serves almost as a time capsule of a mall from the 1980's. All three of the main department store anchors closed; JCPenney, Montgomery Ward, and Service Merchandise were there at the mall for the best years. Now Home Depot, Albertsons, Stage, and Anna's Linens are the main draws to the mall. Transcom a call center took the former Service Merchandise anchor for their operations. The mall has survived by being at a great location and bringing in many different stores to keep people coming to the property. 

Check out the old school computer in the picture; I bet the child in the picture is a teenager by now.

I took shots of two different mall directories. Take a good look at the anchor stores for a nice surprise. Yes a 2011 mall directory still listing a department store that has been out of business for over a decade.

Surprisingly the tenant list is mostly up-to-date. Although Beeper Boutique, Aladdin's Castle, and Sam Goody are gone. Does anyone besides doctors use a beeper anymore; they were such a hassle. Try finding a payphone these days to make a call when your beeper goes off.

There are a variety of signs around the mall with different styles of mall logos.

These signs advertising Stage stores are all around the mall. Mall management must be really trying to make sure that Stage does not start locking their entrance to the mall up.

The main entrance to the mall next to Albertsons.

Albertsons is located on the former JCPenney site.

Stage looks out of place with the modernized entrance.

Stage and the back of the former Service Merchandise (just past Stage)

This former junior anchor is in bad shape. I can't tell what it used to be; maybe a grocery store. This junior anchor is located directly next to Anna's Linens in the mall taking up a significant amount of space in the nearly empty mall corridor.

This view shows how popular the mall is on a Saturday afternoon.

Service Merchandise is now Transcom a call center; and has a secured mall entrance.

The Home Depot is detached from the mall and is located mostly on the former Montgomery Wards site.

The ceilings have mirrored glass square designs in several spots throughout the mall.

Stage is the only true department store anchor left at the mall. The anchor choices of this mall helped to facilitate the demise of this mall as the retail destination of Lafayette. You can still get in and out through the mall, but it appears to be a matter of time that Stage will eventually lock up this entrance.

The former entrance to Service Merchandise has been completely changed.

The lights are on; maybe this former store is an extension of the Transcom anchor.

Eight stores including Stage are in this half of the mall.

Hi Style, Style America, and GNC are a cluster that has stayed together. On the right two closed food outlets and the Maison De Hallmark.

Gordons or Zales store?

This is the entance to the dilapidated junior anchor/ (grocer?) from one of the above photos.

Hibbett has this location in the mall and one a little over a mile away at the new development with Target and JCPenney. How long will this store last?

The old Foot Locker; someone took the hoop away that was in between the two numbers above the register stand.

The new Footlocker; well the 1990's version. I like the 1990's version of Foot Locker stores better than the boring vanilla stores of the 2000's. Check out the + designed skylights.

There is a small working fountain in the middle of the center court.

These four stores sell mostly men's clothing and they are all connected together inside of the stores to easily hop from one to another. This is the first mall that I have been to that has more men's clothing stores than women's clothing stores.

Three kiosks remain in the mall these two by the main entrance. There are 12 stores and 3 kiosks open in this half of the mall including Anna's Linens.

Store after store here is closed; the blue and red looks to have possibly been the Aladdins Castle.

The former entrance to Montgomery Wards; which has been demolished.

More mirrored glass designs.

The former entrance to JCPenney was walled off when the store closed. Albertsons is on the other side of this wall.

Footaction USA sports an updated look, but the inventory of the store was very low compared to the store space.

Another former junior anchor possibly at one time a Woolworths.

Walking towards the Stage store.

Maison de Hallmark is actually a jewelry store not a Hallmark card store.

Wood panel storefronts should have never gone out of style.

Saturday afternoon at Northgate; once a great mall. What will it take to bring this mall back?

The Service Merchandise/ Stage court. There is a small food outlet that was closed today, but probably only  opens for the Transcom crowd.

Anna's Linens looks to have once been a K and B Drugstore.