St. Laurent Shopping Centre

[Harley613]

Originally Posted by Acajack

This is something I would say!

I mean, every larger mall in the GTA is between Bayshore and Winnipeg....

[Harley613]

Originally Posted by acottawa

I am not entirely clear what St Laurent could have done differently. It has always been a mid-market mall catering to the lower middle class, which is quickly disappearing (both in terms of people and stores catering to that demographic).

There was a time when it had the highest retail GLA in Eastern Ontario/Western Quebec, a high concept destination attraction that was unique to St. Laurent (The Sega Playdium), some very funky (for the time) acid trip balloon art, a first run movie theatre, two major department store anchors in their prime, and a fine food grocery store. It was peaking right when they cancelled the huge second floor expansion/renovation. If they had of gone through with it, they would have beaten Bayshore and Rideau by years and possibly evolved into the destination mall of the region. Instead it has withered on the vine.

[acottawa]

Originally Posted by Harley613

I mean, every larger mall in the GTA is between Bayshore and Winnipeg....

Not if you’re going by any direct route (such as the transcanada highway that runs right beside Bayshore). If we”re just talking longitude then I guess Chicago is also between them.

[acottawa]

Originally Posted by Harley613

There was a time when it had the highest retail GLA in Eastern Ontario/Western Quebec, a high concept destination attraction that was unique to St. Laurent (The Sega Playdium), some very funky (for the time) acid trip balloon art, a first run movie theatre, two major department store anchors in their prime, and a fine food grocery store. It was peaking right when they cancelled the huge second floor expansion/renovation. If they had of gone through with it, they would have beaten Bayshore and Rideau by years and possibly evolved into the destination mall of the region. Instead it has withered on the vine.

I am not familiar with that era (I am guessing mid 90s) and maybe mall management kicked out successful businesses to pursue the wrong strategy, but it sounds like trends changed and that type of mall was was not aligned with new trends. Since the 90s we have seen massive consolidation in the retail sector.

[Harley613]

Originally Posted by acottawa

I am not familiar with that era (I am guessing mid 90s) and maybe mall management kicked out successful businesses to pursue the wrong strategy, but it sounds like trends changed and that type of mall was was not aligned with new trends. Since the 90s we have seen massive consolidation in the retail sector.

Early 2000's. Morguard didn't kick any businesses out. They cancelled their prime opportunity investment in the expansion, right as malls in Canada were hitting their (potentially) last moment in the limelight, other local malls invested soon after, and St. Laurent has been geriatric every since.

[acottawa]

I went to St Laurent in the early 2000s. I have no recollection of a Playdium or a first run movie theatre. The Silvercity was open at that point just down the street.

It is also possible (and perhaps more likely) they cancelled the expansion because they couldn’t find enough tenants. The wave of mall expansions mostly happened in the early 2010s driven by a wave of new American arrivals. There wasn’t much going on in the early 2000s (Vaughan Mills I guess).

[OTSkyline]

The redevelopment of their surface parking lots into office & residential (which has been proposed on/off for years now) could've probably helped the mall's situation.

That opportunity is still on the table if they chase it. We're not building any new malls any time soon, so with continued population growth in Ottawa and densification within the greenbelt, St-Laurent could still make a come back, but it will take some work.

[Acajack]

They are owned and managed by Morguard. Not sure how their other malls are doing (the other major ones in the region aren't Morguard AFAIK) but the way they've handled St Laurent has just been brutal.

Regarding expansion, they were in the running and probably had the lead to get the region's first Simons, which would have been great and probably solidified even a sizeable Gatineau consumer base. People from Gatineau used to go to St Laurent a lot. I don't know anyone who goes there anymore. My wife and kids and their friends certainly don't.

Note that Les Promenades used to look and feel like a poor cousin to St Laurent and the other Ottawa malls. Now it's doing great. It's an Oxford mall - they look like an excellent mall operator.

[acottawa]

Originally Posted by Acajack

Note that Les Promenades used to look and feel like a poor cousin to St Laurent and the other Ottawa malls. Now it's doing great. It's an Oxford mall - they look like an excellent mall operator.

At one point I had a circle of friends that called it "Le Dirt Mall."

But again, they don't have a lot of competition. Once they convinced some stores they were going to fix it up, it became the Gatineau location for these stores.

I can't think of many stores that 1) would be interested in the Ottawa market and 2) don't already have a store within 5km of St Laurent. That was not the case for Le Dirt Mall.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by acottawa

At one point I had a circle of friends that called it "Le Dirt Mall."

But again, they don't have a lot of competition. Once they convinced some stores they were going to fix it up, it became the Gatineau location for these stores.

I can't think of many stores that 1) would be interested in the Ottawa market and 2) don't already have a store within 5km of St Laurent. That was not the case for Le Dirt Mall.

Les Promenades was indeed very shitty for the longest time, though "Le Dirt Mall" wasn't a particularly inventive name on the part of your friends! Unless there is a nuance I am missing.

[acottawa]

Originally Posted by Acajack

Les Promenades was indeed very shitty for the longest time, though "Le Dirt Mall" wasn't a particularly inventive name on the part of your friends! Unless there is a nuance I am missing.

I believe it was a reference to the movie Mall Rats.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by acottawa

I believe it was a reference to the movie Mall Rats.

#CulturalBlindSpot

[orleans_man]

Originally Posted by acottawa

I went to St Laurent in the early 2000s. I have no recollection of a Playdium or a first run movie theatre. The Silvercity was open at that point just down the street.

It is also possible (and perhaps more likely) they cancelled the expansion because they couldn’t find enough tenants. The wave of mall expansions mostly happened in the early 2010s driven by a wave of new American arrivals. There wasn’t much going on in the early 2000s (Vaughan Mills I guess).

I'm not 100% sure, but I seem to remember a new larger "Sears" Department store was going to be part of that expansion. I wouldn't be surprised if Sears was unable to commit to a larger/longer lease and that may have also played part in holding back on their plans at the time.

[J.OT13]

Originally Posted by Harley613

There was a time when it had the highest retail GLA in Eastern Ontario/Western Quebec, a high concept destination attraction that was unique to St. Laurent (The Sega Playdium), some very funky (for the time) acid trip balloon art, a first run movie theatre, two major department store anchors in their prime, and a fine food grocery store. It was peaking right when they cancelled the huge second floor expansion/renovation. If they had of gone through with it, they would have beaten Bayshore and Rideau by years and possibly evolved into the destination mall of the region. Instead it has withered on the vine.

Sega Playdium? Where was it and when did it close? What did they have? I don't remember that at all.

Originally Posted by Acajack

They are owned and managed by Morguard. Not sure how their other malls are doing (the other major ones in the region aren't Morguard AFAIK) but the way they've handled St Laurent has just been brutal.

Regarding expansion, they were in the running and probably had the lead to get the region's first Simons, which would have been great and probably solidified even a sizeable Gatineau consumer base. People from Gatineau used to go to St Laurent a lot. I don't know anyone who goes there anymore. My wife and kids and their friends certainly don't.

Note that Les Promenades used to look and feel like a poor cousin to St Laurent and the other Ottawa malls. Now it's doing great. It's an Oxford mall - they look like an excellent mall operator.

For sure, Oxford brought Les Promenades to the next level. Second or third best mall in the region. Very impressive transformation in such a short time.

[Harley613]

Cyberdome, not Playdium. My memory isn't what it used to be
It had a rock climbing wall, VR, lasertag, etc. Very Playdium-like.

[J.OT13]

Originally Posted by Harley613

Cyberdome, not Playdium. My memory isn't what it used to be
It had a rock climbing wall, VR, lasertag, etc. Very Playdium-like.

That should have been cool, and right on transit too. Where was it?

[Harley613]

Originally Posted by J.OT13

That should have been cool, and right on transit too. Where was it?

Lower level where Willis College is now. The rock climbing tower was inside the glass box between Entrance 5 and the old Sears on the South side.

[J.OT13]

Originally Posted by Harley613

Lower level where Willis College is now. The rock climbing tower was inside the glass box between Entrance 5 and the old Sears on the South side.

So over here:

https://www.google.com/maps/@45.4214244,...OcWjTpfDXNV48E2zqENiA!2e0!7i16384!8i8192

Nice! So St. Laurent was a destination beyond just retail (and cinema, which was in every mall at the time) for many years. It had other entertainment options.

Strange that I never knew about Cyberdome. As a kid in the 90s, we were there a few times a month.

[Harley613]

Yes, exactly that spot. It was there for a few years, from 1997 to early/mid 2000's.

[Harley613]

I'm so curious what the massive subterranean former Sears warehouse under the former store and part of the parking lot is like now. It must cost a fortune to have a space that large being empty all these years.