A night out at Valley View Center Mall March 2022

On the way back from a day trip to Dallas, we passed through to see what has become of the Valley View Mall site. 

Check out this video from Retail Mix USA to see how the site looked about a week before our visit.

The AMC theater which was the lone holdout at the mall had recently closed. With the theater closed, the rest of the mall will probably come down soon.

The AMC labelscar is new. With the power still being on, we were able to see the soon to be fenced off spots at the property

A look at some of the old tenants that were at the mall.

The bright bulbs of the entrance were still shining for us.

I never went into the mall after the corridors were walled off. Even though I saw this in videos, it was still strange to see in person. 

I was glad that the power was still on so we could see inside for one last time.

Zoom in and you can see my shadow and what may be an old mall directory.

Even the signage showing the exit to I-635 was still illuminated.

Classic lighting. 

The Valley View labelscar.

Looks like the equipment was in place to start going after the final part of the mall for demolition.

The dark Valley View I-635 road sign.

An oasis in the middle of abandonment. 

Now for a drive around the property. 

And a bit of drive through. Yes this is the slab of the former Foley's/Macy's/Sanger Harris. This lot was wide open for anyone to drive into, although there was construction debris around. Just glad we didn't get a flat here.

This is part of the mall corridor that was left intact. 

A look at the remaining center court of the mall.

More of the same but from a different angle.

Part of the old floor was still intact.

The outline of the storefront. 

Looking into the vast emptiness where the Macy's/Sanger Harris anchor used to sit.

AMC was gone, but this sign was a reminder.

The way they demolished the mall with AMC still open is so strange. From I-635 the site didn't look too bad, but when you drove around the ring road it looked terrible. Practically most of the mall was gone and even the sides no longer had anything besides sheetrock walls keeping the interior closed off. In 2022 the difference between the Valley View site and Red Bird is enormous, both sites began their transformations at about the same time. Red Bird is booming with construction, new businesses, and new living spaces. Valley View is this, a partially demolished mall with nothing new going up yet. With AMC out of the picture, there should be nothing left to stop this site from redevelopment. While it is sad to see yet another mall wasted, Valley View never had a chance with the Galleria practically around the corner. 

 

Two Fiestas Houston Texas March 2022

For our first store the vintage store #18 8130 Kirby Drive, near NRG Stadium. This is a vintage late 80's store with practically no remodel as of yet. This is one of the few stores that still have the full exterior signage with chasing lights and neon. As a bonus, all neon signage is still intact throughout the store. A lot of the neon reflects off of the shining floor which you can see here.

Nothing says 1980's like this neon. If only the inflation of 2022 had stayed away from this store like the bland design of modern Fiesta stores.

Coffee Bar is gone, but the signage remains.

So simplistic yet so awesome.

Even the areas without neon signage have the vintage look.

The Chinese food takeout counter.

Just keep scrolling and enjoy the neon. I am out of words for just how awesome it is. 

Flags from around the world.

Even the checkout area has neon.

The "futuristic" frozen foods area. The dropped partitions make the area feel like a separate store. 

The view from the back corner of the store to the other side of the store.

Sadly, some of the neon is not functioning. I hope this store doesn't get the bland remodel that has been going through the chain over the past few years. This is one of the few untouched stores from the 1980's.

The decor package of this store is very similar to the Market Basket in Orange Texas. The biggest difference is that the neon signage here is not in cursive.

To see that Market Basket click here.

This Fiesta is a gem, visit here before it is too late, and this store is remodeled.

Not Fiesta related, but this new cell phone camera takes excellent neon shots. The next Fiesta store is coming right up.

Now for the next store #8 2323 Wirt Rd. near Hempstead Highway. This store still had the chasing lights, but the logo appeared to be the new one. In this store, you will see a mix of old and new signage.

Lots of neon still going strong. Here is the seafood counter.

The produce department has the new design. 

The Kmart style vents look strange in this store.

More of the newer designs.

Old signage to the left and new to the right.

The clothing department has the latest signage as well. From this view, it almost looks like a Kmart store. Also using the wide view lens on the new cell phone camera.

More of the wide view, looking at the front of the store.

A real treat, this sign has neon and chasing lights. The updated bakery signage is painted to the left, so I am glad this sign was still here.

A view of the neon Dairy department signage.

Looks like these Fiesta signs have the updated boring design.

In the future I will post the videos of these and more vintage Fiesta signs in action. The signage from inside and outside of the stores will be featured.