The Beginning of the End for Regency and Arlington.

[stephendare]

Today's Times Union announced the following tidbit:

Regency Dillard’s switches to clearance center
Posted: Monday, May 5th, 2008 at 5:56 pm

By LIZ FLAISIG
The Times-Union

National department store retailer Dillard’s has added its Regency Square Mall store to a handful of locations designated as clearance centers.

Dillard’s Inc. spokeswoman Julie Bull confirmed today the Regency store would sell discounted merchandise from full-line stores in the Florida region, including St. Johns Town Center and The Avenues.

The Little Rock, Ark.-based chain has made fewer than 10 of its 330 stores clearance centers, Bull said.

See jacksonville.com for updates and Tuesday’s Times-Union.

Consider that other well known Regency Anchors, such as CompUSA, Lowe's and several other stores have already announced closings and retractions nationally.

The conversion over to discount centers was also the first step of Downtown's decay.

It has been noted for some while that Arlington seems to be on a downswing, and with the economy in free fall, this would pretty much be the bell tolling.

[stephendare]

Especially when you consider the type of media narrative that is occurring for the Arlington neighborhood.

Also in today's paper:

By Jim Schoettler
Staff writer


A Jacksonville man slain in a robbery after opening his family’s convenience store Sunday is being remembered today as a hard-working, kind young man fulfilling a dream of attending college.

Police have made no arrests in the killing at the Snappy Food Store at Merrill Road and Trollie Lane in Arlington. The victim, identified as Moussa Maida, 19, was ambushed and shot about 8 a.m. as he opened the store police said.

Friends and customers who knew the victim as “Mike” stopped by the store through the morning, some delivering flowers and others sharing thoughts of anguish over the killing.

He was a 2007 graduate of Englewood High School who worked for his father. One friend said the family came to the United States from the Middle East several years ago. Another said he most recently had been attending Florida Community College at Jacksonville.

“He had his whole life ahead of him,” said a weeping Rima Maron, said the friend. “He devoted his life to his family and his work.”

Crime scene tape remained up around the store this morning and shards of glass from the broken door were still on the sidewalk. Detectives went in and out as other officers guarded the scene.

Two women stopped by to place pots of yellow and white daisies with sympathy cards on the pavement. A bouquet of flattened small roses laid in the driveway.

Summer Williams, a frequent customer of the store, drove by and stopped.

“Did they catch them yet?” Williams, 28, asked through her open car window.

James Brown, who lives near the store, said the victim and his family were friendly to everyone.

“Whenever you walked in, he always had something positive to say,” said Brown, 24. “I’m upset. It’s wrong.”

Police are looking for an Acura described as dark gray or charcoal with dual exhaust pipes. Anyone with information should call First Coast Crime Stoppers at 1-866-845-TIPS.

[stephendare]

I would say that now is the time to start collecting photos of the nice houses and beautiful areas of Arlington so that the next generation of restorationists have something to work with.

[JeffreyS]

I hope Arlington will not slip it really does have nice neighborhoods.

[thelakelander]

Regency needs a make over.  Its developers need to take a look at the lifestyle center concept, before its too late.

[reednavy]

That way it doesn't wind up like Gateway Mall, or worse, Normandy Mall!

[adamh0903]

I would think the SJTC hurts the Regency mall a little.

CompUSA opened back up btw, same name, new ownership

[second_pancake]

Guys, let's be realistic here.  Arlington is going downhill not because the retail market is pulling out or making changes.  The retail market is pulling out and making changes because Arlington has gone down hill.

The housing prices in that area have always been affordable if not downright cheap in areas (see Arlington Rd./Cesery Blvd.) which attracts those with limited income.  While some of these households are new families buying into their first home to start to make a life for themselves, many of them are also those that just need a cheap place to stay.  There are very few neighborhoods with HOAs which makes it a prime place for those who don't want to keep up the appearance of their homes or who prefer to work on their vehicles in their front lawn.  This, of course, detracts from anyone who could make a difference, financially speaking, from buying into the area.  Who, after all, wants to buy and maintain a big beautiful home next to a 900 sq ft. cinder block home with peeling paint, broken windows and a broken-down chevy in the front 'yard'?

Then, of course, when something looks impoverished, the derelects take over. The neighborhoods are overrun with youngsters that grew up learning no sense of responsibility with too much time on their hands, so they hang out in the streets getting into trouble...or, they go to the mall to get into trouble.

If the prior residents had been more active and concerned about their neighborhoods at the first sign of a declining environment, Arlington wouldn't be the area it is now. But the fact of the matter is they didn't see a value there so they packed up and moved toward the beaches to places like Hampton Glen and The Woods.

Every city has to have a 'bad part of town'.  I'd rather it be one of the first neighborhoods built as a result of urban sprawl than a neighborhood that was built as a result of a new city being formed.

[second_pancake]

I would think the SJTC hurts the Regency mall a little.

CompUSA opened back up btw, same name, new ownership

Totally different class of people.  The people that shop at Town Center were former Avenues folks (if that), not Regency.  Hell, there are places at SJTC that are segregated by class.  Have you been down to the 'new' side?  Funny how up at Ted's Montana Grill you'll see the Smart car and some Honda's or a Lexus parked on the sidewalk (dealer cars), but the further you go up, the cars start becoming Porches and Jaguars, and the stores go from The Gap to Louis Vuitton.

[Joe]

I must be missing something here ... Arlington has been going seriously downhill for the better part of 15 years!!

The "neighborhood" includes a huge land area, so some areas are still very nice, and even growing rapidly. But the original Arlington started going to hell a long time ago! Even as a kid, I remember the Regency area being a dump compared to the rest of the Southside.

[adamh0903]

Thats the thing, it doesnt have so much to do with different classes of people than it does with Regency being a dump.

[JeffreyS]

Went to a mall in St. Louis that had I Believe a discount Dillards and it seemed like a normal mall.  My wife told me it had at one time been the fancy mall but it certainly hadn't become the Normandy mall.  We really need to avoid Regency slipping into a blight on the way from downtown to the beach.

[FLA_DAWG]

I'm new to the board, but as a Regency area ( Monument Rd) resident I must chime in on this one.  Some people tend to paint the whole Arlington area with a broad stoke and the media doesn't help Arlington's image. There are plenty of area from Southside Blvd, Monument Rd, Merrill Rd, Ft Caroline that are nice healthy middle to high income areas. I admit the "old" Arlington area (ie Xpressway, Cesery, Justina) have gone to hell (can you say HUD) and this does bleed over into the nicer areas give the whole area a bad identity.  Anyone notice the correlation between the cleanup of Springfield and the Arlington getting worse. You're cleaning up Springfield but driving the bad element into Arlington, But I'm happy for the Springfield area.

As for the Mall, it started going down hill in the late 90's early 2000's because of two things 1-Avenues Mall and 2- it started attracting a bad thug element and your average shopper was scared away.  SJTC DEFINITELY  hurt the mall.  A lot shoppers( including me)  that would normally go to Regency mall now go SJTC instead.  This "decline" is really only at the mall.  There is a difference between Regency "mall" and Regency the shopping area, as far as I know other shopping centers in the Regency area do well, haven't heard of any closings. They actually keep adding new shopping area and stores.. H.H Gregg just opened a brand new store.  CompUsa changed owners. You still have Best Buy, circuit City, Target, World Market, Bed Bath and Beyond, Barnes and Noble and a tons of other shopping in the area.  Haven't heard anything about Lowes closing. I was there Sunday and no sign of closing to me where did you get this info?   

I agree this may be the end of Regency Mall, unless the Mall owners decide to do something to change course, but I really don't see that happening anytime soon.... Thats my rant ....  Have a nice day.

[stephendare]

FLA DAWG.

What do you think would happen if the residents from the nicer neighborhoods of arlington stayed, hung out and demanded that Regency Mall clean up its act, instead of leaving for the much further malls of the southside?

Do you know any of the neighborhood associations?

What would you suggest that they do to change course at the mall?

[adamh0903]

As for the Mall, it started going down hill in the late 90's early 2000's because of two things 1-Avenues Mall and 2- it started attracting a bad thug element and your average shopper was scared away.  SJTC DEFINITELY  hurt the mall.  A lot shoppers( including me)  that would normally go to Regency mall now go SJTC instead.  This "decline" is really only at the mall. 

This is kinda what I was trying to say, but didnt know how to say it, I used to go to Regency Mall every friday and Saturday Night when I was in High School. I remember being at the AMC 24 the night it opened, there is deffinately a thug element to the mall. Now,10 years later,  coming from Callahan I drive right past Regency, straight to the Town Center. I do still shop quite a bit at Guitar Center, and the others new shops in that area.