Parkwood Mall: Diamond or Dinosaur

[LA Bruin]

Parkwood Mall: Diamond or Dinosaur

I went through Parkwood mall a few days ago, and bought a pair of headphones, and as I went through, I was reminded of how bare it seemed. I wondered why a mall was seemingly doing so poorly.

In this age of Wal-Mart stealing competition, and Wilson apparently trying to locate everything as far away from the poor as possible, I wondered why Parkwood mall was not prospering as it used to. Has the days of the mall gone away forever? Or is there still potential?

What it seems to come down to is support…do people still believe in the mall. There are a few sides to this, based on what you believe in your heart. In theory, we assume that we should support local businesses as best we can, because they are our neighbors, and the money generated circulates in the town, rather than being pumped out of the state like Wal-Mart.

But there are other sides to this. For example, before the mall was bought several years ago, there was a big stink about one of the people in town who wrote a letter to the future owners, warning them of “undesirables” that lived right across the street of Parkwood mall. What he was referring to was African Americans, and implied that building the new movie theatre ought to be moved further up the road, away from “those people”.

This is the same mentality that has been a terrible link to the history of Parkwood Mall, and I can prove it by asking one question. Think very hard on this one folks, and see if you can get the answer….ready?

How many African American owned businesses have been in Parkwood Mall in the last 30 years? How many can you remember? Now, if that question is not important to you, then you have already proven my point.

I remember only about 4 such businesses in my time…and one is currently there. This implies that Parkwood Mall does not encourage half of our community to have a business, yet it relies on that same number to sustain that mall. This has been the history of the mall since its inception, and has not changed at all. A lot of people hold a strong resentment to the mall, and refuse to shop there for such reasons, as well as others.

Right now, as I write this, there is talk that the mall will be adding something in the space where Steve and Barry’s used to be. Flowers shoe store is going out of business, and there are several other businesses that are gone. Make no mistake, Parkwood Mall is failing, because there is no traffic going there. You are more likely to see tumbleweeds than customers, and there seems to be no real effort to change that.

Is there hope for the mall…sure, but it would take radical thinking and an open mind to make changes, and clearly this is not what the mall will do. They are dead set on their ways, whether they have 1 empty “box” in the mall or 21 empty “boxes” in the mall. To me, there seems to be no real effort to get people to shop, only an assumption that people will come spend their money. It just seems that the management of the mall are poor stewards of this business, and it seems to show when you walk through the mall… there just does not seem to be much there for anybody except the walkers who get good exercise.

Has Parkwood Mall outlived it’s usefulness…or is there still hope?

[Hello Wilson]

I still go to the Mall at times. I do enjoy eating at K & W.
They need to lighten it up. Keep with the times, inside and out. MAKE IT INVITING!!!! Not just the movies. Make it so men and women feel safe shopping there. No I don't think Wilson Mall ( will always be Parkwood Mall to me) has outlived it's usefulness. It's still a great place to shop. To go on Sunday afternoon, do some shopping, get something to eat, and then go to the moives. you can do it all at one location. Build it as that, for the whole family!

[LA Bruin]

I agree 100% with you Hello Wilson. The mall still has some very good qualities about it, and you mentioned several of them. I also agree that they could make it more inviting, it just seems that it just looks like one big open building, rather than some place where you can go, shop, eat and even catch up with friends you may not have seen in awhile. I believe that a mall that houses several locally owned businesses ought to attract more people than a Wal-Mart, that puts nothing back in the community it saps from. I am more likely to see old friends at Wal-Mart than at the mall, which is a shame. Both places have a part in our town, but Parkwood Mall needs to be a little more aggressive in keeping Wilson shoppers... notice I still call it Parkwood Mall too. Again, I agree with you too.

[businessman]

As long as the utility rates/fees and taxes are like they are in Wilson the probability of success of any small business is slim, in or out of the mall. Wilson/Wilson County have long been too controling of business. In my personal opinion it is not as much a racial issue as a desire of control by the "athorities". It extends from the school board to city hall (city and county).

In general my experience is Wilson has the most unfriendly business enviroment in this state unless "you know someone in high places" and I don't mean JESUS CHRIST, altho I reccomend you know Him also wether you own a business or not.