Yeah, all of these areas used to be so busy in the 80s and 90s when I grew up in South Burlington. The University Mall seems to be hanging on and keeping its independent spirit. Thanks for the video. 👍

Local Vermonter here. It's super depressing seeing what's happened to Umall and the place on Church Street. Both locations were some of my favorite places to hang out at as a kid, though i only ever went to CityPlace twice, so my memories of Umall are much fonder. We moved here back in 2007, and Umall was one of the first places i got to check out in the state, so it has a certain nostalgic allure for me. I'm sure the 80s and 90s were the heyday of the complex, but that doesn't matter when you're 9 years old and running about gleefully in a huge mall. I think the killing blow to my appeal for Umall was when the F.Y.E left; i'd often beeline to that store for the video game section (bc god forbid i step into Gamestop) and for the anime section as i was beginning to get into that too. Every once in a blue moon i'll come out with my Dad to Umall out of morbid curiosity, and it just feels so different. The complex still clearly gets some business, but it doesn't seem nearly enough to not make things feel really hollow. And don't get me *started* on the situation with CityPlace. I recently heard from last year that Officials with Burlington reached a "settlement" with developers on some sort of scaled-down proposal, but i haven't been to Burlington in some time now, so i have no clue if this is actually happening or not.

Thanks so much for the content. As a born and raised Vermonter now living in NC it was fun to see the mall of my childhood. (I’802m a child of the 70s and 80s.) I was 8 when the University mall opened! Poor old Burlington Square Mall (as it was called more commonly when I was little.) it used to be much more 70s/80s chic, white with lots of wood as I recall. It was always kind of darker and tunnel like, but it used to house higher end, pricier stores than University Mall and for that reason seemed a little more posh. I remember the shopping trips I enjoyed with my family to both malls and the things I purchased! Thanks for the memories! 💚802🍁

Both malls have interesting and unique ceilings.

I live in Burlington and I can't bring myself to go to the city place mall it's sad to see it. It needs to be closed

University Mall name, as the University of Vermont (UVM) is just down the street, or up the hill which ever way you are driving...gives the mall a location to anyone mall shopping ..the Church street bricked off street was a great idea also.. When i worked in Burlington,before the bricks,that was a busy street....thanks for the tour...👍👍👍

The University Mall looks nice but a little dated, like the Galeries d'Anjou in Montreal before their renovations. On the other hand though, the CityPlace looks sad and sinister. This said, great video as usual Doomie! You shall not be stopped, except by locked doors lol!

I’m remember when the Burlington city place mall was much more lively back in the 2000s when I was a kid. Its sad how it became shell it is today

thanks for doing these videos man. theyre so well done and the quality is high. I like watching these from time to time when I'm really stressed out, its really therapeutic.

I can't think of a single downtown mall developed in the 70's and 80's that didn't ultimately fail. Also, the "flow" feels off at University Mall. It makes sense that it was a mall that expanded kind of haphazardly over the decades.

City Place had a Woolworths on the first floor back in the day and I think a Service Merchandise at one point. Last time we were up there you could still go on the first floor, apparently it's closed now.

Yay! One very nice mall and partially sad state of redevelopment, but in one very nice video!! DOOMIE SHALL NOT BE STOPPED!! :D

Utah Has a university mall now called University Place

amazing how much the Umall has changed since just 2016 when I graduated from SB. There used to be and FYE across from the Gamestop, both those stores I went to a lot to get games and movies

needs more giant flower pots

Nice video! Steinbach was still open as of February, '98 when I quit there (worked there a year) to move to Louisiana. So it definitely didn't close in '97. The name of the mall is derived from The University of Vermont literally being just up the hill across the city line of Burlington.

The mall in my hometown of Sacramento was going down hill up until recently now it’s more packed than ever. Hope you guys in Vermont can try to maintain this mall.

Church Street Marketplace is actually an actractive outdoor shopping district in December, when it is decorated for the upcoming Christmas holiday. However, downtown Burlington is showing signs of urban blight: closed businesses, graffiti, vandalism, crime, buskers, beggars, etc.

It is so sad what the umall has become. It used to be loaded. Food court was full too. But then they took out one side to build h&m. Lots of stores closed and empty. Macys leaving downtown killed it

“Where did everyone go..?”

I haven't lived in Vermont for 6 years so I thank you for the update. It's sad to see such low foot traffic but understandable given the pandemic and the economy. I know it's not a mall but would be curious how Williston is doing with all the box stores that are there. City Place used to be much more vibrant when there was more variety on Church street and more local shops. Sometime before I moved high-end places moved in and really ruined the Church Street experience.

we use to go to this mall and i remember when kolhs was ames

Surprised that Target didn't have a presence until 2018.

City Place kind of reminds me of Mid City Mall here in Louisville. The larger businesses all have storefronts, but the interior is dark, and a little depressing. But despite that, I firmly believe it will outlast every other mall in the city. The outer places include a grocery store, a comedy club, a very popular bar (owned by an a-hole), a movie theater, and some restaurants. Inside there's a branch of the library, a Family Dollar, a popular charity thrift shop, a gym, law offices, a dance studio, and an empty area that is most often used during elections as a local campaign headquarters. The place is constantly treated as a joke, but it has a nearly 100% occupancy rate.

Something about visiting a mall that isn't anywhere near where you live and you know you'll never visit again is sad to me, just think. So many people had memories there, people loved and or love that mall. The extremely specific reverbed echo of the walls forever burnt into their brains, it sure is sad we don't primarily use these environments for shopping. I am so glad my local malls have anchors.

The Doomie got stopped by a locked door?!

great video man

So the main department stores of the University Mall are Target, JCPenney and Kohl's. Sears is the only department store that's closed permanently. Still it's a good mall. I love it.

City Place mall has new direction and a new layout thanks to the contract with Burlington high school and developer renovations that are 6 years overdue. Don being the owner again gives hope to the once great downtown mall. Instead of having a giant hole in the ground and a small section of tired stores that lack appeal, the renovations will look better.

Interesting video. Thanks!

growing up in sb these two strike a chord - i remember all the various versions of the burlington square mall, that place was a port in the storm during more difficult days. from the downstairs dollar store to dino's serving up hot slices on a cold day. as for umall, i think everyone saw it coming, post-ames was a steady decline. still, it was one of the few places in the state where current and quality goods could be found. everyone in the family could dart off in their own direction. it really honks to see what VT has become now, just a watered down version of the PNW.

The University Mall is really the only active mall in the state of Vermont.

Who remembers Ames, papa Gino's and the dream machine at the u mall

Oak Hollow mall in High Point NC is about as dead as road kill

cityplace is like playing doom in the 90's

I remember going downstairs for the game store in the late 90s

This is Vermont only thriving mall. The mall is very nice.

My fiancé and I have a Sunday routine of getting bubble tea and checking out what new retro games the Vermont Gaming Academy has. It’s been nice to see the U Mall staying afloat what with covid. Rip church street mall

For some reason all the proactiv stands in these malls stick out to me. Modern kiosk old mall I guess.

Vermont Gaming Academy is an old PacSun, right? Good video, on both malls. And honestly with how very dead CityPlace Burlington was with nearly noone inside, I think I would've attempted to sneak into that closed off lower floor for a quick look. But that's just me.

The University Mall has a nice open, welcoming feel with good aesthetics. CityPlace has a nice look that is dated and the over reliance of storefronts adding to the lighting made the crampes corridors dark and dreary. It is sad as I could see CityPlace being lively and cozy though those days are in the past.

The LL bean is moving out of the mall as well

Another mall weighed down by a dead Sears location. This is a problem all over North America as we've just filled our last Sears spaces in Edmonton with a trades school (Bonnie Doon), a Toyota Dealership/Brick furniture superstore (WEM) and a Walmart Supercentre (Kingsway) respectively... Most of these sat vacant for a better part of a decade after Sears Canada went belly up back in 2018...

Did my eyes deceive me, or was there a place you passed by in the University Mall Food Court called "Mana Burger"? And it was decorated with all kinds of video game nostalgia!? I'd have been curious to see what that place served as food.

Love how he mentioned act 250 and how it crushed the development. The law that destroys this state

What's wrong with the name?? It's the mall itself that is depressing and sad.

Ah...look at all those face diapers. Vermonters loved the scamdemic!

I remember the redneck security guards at the City place Mall I almost pulled my piece on one he was really scary and more ways than one I'm not surprised that this happened even though I am when I was working undercover security was worse than the drug dealers and the cops were too incompetent. And look at this place now almost dead but it started with CCV moved out that was a shame alone with NECI that really hurt. At least I got to see the Pinnacle of it at least.