Peru Mall video (Cool mall pics follow up)

So a couple months ago, when i was first setting up my Spacehey i made a blog with some mall pics i found that looked really cool. They were all from Peru Mall in Peru, Illinois. Well yesterday, i randomly got a youtube video in my recommended about the same mall. It was really good!

(Also i finally figured out how to embed youtube videos!! :P)

I mentioned a little bit of the history of the mall in my blog post but he goes really in depth in this video. He confirms that all of the tiles were added during the 1989 renovation, as well as some other geometric features that weren't in any of the photos on my blog. Seeing more detailed coverage of this mall was so cool, because it all has that geometric look i really like.

From hearing about the mall's history tho, i realized it was in pretty serious decline. Dead malls always make me so sad :( Apparently there are even plans to demolish the whole thing, but the owners haven't bothered to do anything since they announced the plans in 2020. I think it's good that they aren't rushing to destroy an old mall but still makes me nervous that they might in the future >_<

He also talks a little about how the opening of the mall destroyed a lot of small businesses, and completely destroyed the local shopping district that existed there at the time. Even though i'm a fan of malls, i think it's important to realize the destructive impact they can have on smaller businesses. Hearing about Peru Mall from that side really reminded me of that.

Even though it would probably be considered a dead mall by most, it's not completely abandoned yet. There are still a few stores there still open, even major chains like Claire's, Spencer's, and Bath & Body Works. There were some arcade games around the halls, and they have a movie theater, which is the last remaining anchor. I think if you wanted to go there, you could have a classic "day at the mall" sort of experience although a pretty limited one. The Spencer's in particular looked really cool, they had the classic logo on their storefront and they were promoting a ton of anime and manga stuff. They also had a store there called Oasis, and for some reason this was REALLY cool to me. It was just a room with vending machines and benches to sit on. Probably just a way to use vacant retail space, but i really loved this idea. It seemed like a great place to hang out and take a break from shopping or walking the mall. As a kid, i really loved vending machines, and this probably would have been my favorite place to hang out ^_^ Even just the name Oasis makes it seem like the perfect spot to relax and have a bag of doritos (even though it kinda just looks like an office break room XD)

Pic of Oasis from reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/deadmalls/comments/shjpk4/peru_mall_where_america_shops_peru_il_where_the/

NorthCdogg22 has a lot of other mall explorations vids on his channel, if you're interested definitely check them out! I'm super glad i saw his video and got to see a lot more of Peru Mall :)