OT rant: requiem for a roller rink, more retail nothing

[washabear]

Three years ago, the roller rink adjacent to my neighborhood closed. It was very old, had been there for decades, and was considered somewhat of a historic landmark in the area, which used to be rural but has changed a bit. I was sad to see it go, having been accustomed to seeing it over the years, way before my neighborhood even existed. It sat vacant for awhile, but eventually a sign went up that read “Retail Opportunities.” I wondered what would happen. First, a bank was erected on the land next to the rink. Not a good sign. I expected the rink to be demolished, but instead it was converted into a mini strip center with several storefronts, and the basic structure was preserved. My friend asked me what I thought would go in there, and I said, half jokingly, that it would probably be a nail salon, a pizzeria, a Chinese carryout, and a mobile phone store. Well, damned if I wasn’t right! I saw the new fancy permanent sign today. On the roster? A pizzeria and a nail salon! I’m sure the Chinese carryout and mobile phone store will be coming soon—followed by a mattress store if there is any space left.

Just how many nail salons can one community have anyway? Every strip center I see has one.

Ugh!

Thanks for reading.

 

[petek]

Sad aint it, especially for a strip mall. Our roller rink was demolished about 25 years ago after I had left town but I spent many summer days there in the 60's and early 70's. It was situated at the beach between the city park and the yacht club, prime land, there's three 14 story condo's on the site now and a little plaque commemorating it. Not as bad a strip mall I suppose.

 

[sdlee]

we had two around here growing up.one was owned by a man who just loved the activity. It had been a bowling alley and you actually skated on hardwood as opposed to glossy painted concrete.It was esay to see that the floor had previously been bowling lanes.

The other one was huge and built specifily for rollerskating.
Its now a huge second hand store. I dont know what happened to roller rinks...insurance was the biggest down fall I suppose.I just asked my nephew if he knew of any and he didnt even know what I was talking about. THATS SAD!!!

 

[petek]

Going the way of the Drive-in

 

[rp2813]

The old Rollerland building still stands not far from where I grew up. It hasn't been a skating venue in decades but guess what's in there now? Appliance Parts! And from what I can tell, the actual rink is still there too. The floors in back are elevated so I'm pretty sure the rink is intact. Maybe what went around will come back around.