Monstrous NY shopping mall that aimed to spark troubled downtown devolves into bane of Dem-run city
A New York Post dispatch on how a $200 million mall built to resurrect New Rochelle's downtown became a dim, rat-infested ghost of itself — and what residents actually think of the spin.
1 / 5In the article · Yank's paraphrase
It's like Oz, and Oz isn't real. And who's the wizard?
AI Summary
New Roc City, a 1.2 million-square-foot shopping center in New Rochelle, New York, opened in 1999 at a cost of nearly $200 million and was meant to anchor a downtown revival. It once featured the county's first IMAX theater, a Space Shot thrill ride, dining, fitness, and education tenants. Nearly three decades on, residents and retailers describe it as largely empty, dim, and deteriorating, with roving groups of young people intimidating shoppers and visible signs of neglect throughout.
Yank Summary
What matters, in Yank’s words, each linked to where the source says it.
New Roc City cost nearly $200 million to build and opened in 1999 as a cornerstone of downtown New Rochelle's revitalization. In the source
Community leader Jim Killoran says the mall is disconnected from downtown, comparing it to Oz: "It's antithetical to a successful project." In the source
It's like Oz, and Oz isn't real. And who's the wizard?
A community leader frames the mall as an elaborate illusion disconnected from real city life, then challenges who bears responsibility.
In context
Community leaders said several factors played a role in the mall’s decline, including an enclosed design, changes in entertainment and shopping trends, and a shift in New Rochelle’s downtown redevelopment strategy, which focused on luring New York City commuters who don’t frequent local haunts. “It’s like Oz, and Oz isn’t real,” Jim Killoran, a longtime New Rochelle activist and executive director of the Fuller Center for Housing of Greater New York City, said of the mall. “And who’s the wizard? “It’s a mall next to a main street, and they call themselves separate,” Killoran said. “There’s New Roc City and then there’s the rest of us. You don’t have people saying, ‘Hey, let’s go to New Roc t…
It's like Oz, and Oz isn't real. And who's the wizard?
Receipt
It just sucks. It was a really bad idea and it didn't work. They were trying to make it cool, but it just sucks.
A tenant inside the mall delivers the bluntest possible verdict, collapsing any remaining case for the project's concept or execution.
In context
The 1.2 million-square-foot New Roc City shopping center was supposed to be the cornerstone of a revitalization of the long-neglected downtown in New Rochelle when it opened to great fanfare in 1999. Nearly three decades later, the mall is an eyesore in disrepair, with few tenants, fewer customers and occasional roving bands of rowdy young toughs that scare away shoppers and families. “It just sucks,” one New Roc retailer told The Post. “It was a really bad idea and it didn’t work. They were trying to make it cool, but it just sucks. It’s a pain in the ass. “New Roc City just sucks,” he reiterated. “It’s obviously been a big flop.”
It just sucks. It was a really bad idea and it didn't work. They were trying to make it cool, but it just sucks.
Receipt
The smell of urine, elevators not working, rats and plenty of homeless in areas of the garage — the fire system does not work, most exit signs are not lit, and the bottom level is littered with construction debris.
An activist catalogues specific physical failures—safety, sanitation, infrastructure—turning abstract decline into a concrete list of hazards.
In context
Today, groups of youngsters occasionally roam the mall, intimidating patrons and families, while signs of disrepair and neglect are visible throughout the facility. “The smell of urine, elevators not working, rats and plenty of homeless in areas of the garage,” said local activist and past candidate for elected office James O’Toole. “The fire system does not work after the city just installed a new one, most of the doors to the stairwells don’t work and most exit signs are not lit. “There are plenty of abandoned cars on all levels of the garage,” he said. “The garage entrance near the Hotel has been closed off for over three months. The bottom level is littered with construction debris.”
The smell of urine, elevators not working, rats and plenty of homeless in areas of the garage said local activist and past candidate for elected office James O’Toole. — the fire system does not work, after the city just installed a new one, most of the doors to the stairwells don’t work and most exit signs are not lit, and the bottom level is littered with construction debris.
Receipt
It's a mall next to a main street, and they call themselves separate. You don't have people saying, 'Hey, let's go to New Roc tonight.' It's antithetical to a successful project.
Killoran pins the mall's core failure on its deliberate isolation from the surrounding street life that sustains any successful urban destination.
In context
“It’s like Oz, and Oz isn’t real,” Jim Killoran, a longtime New Rochelle activist and executive director of the Fuller Center for Housing of Greater New York City, said of the mall. “And who’s the wizard? “It’s a mall next to a main street, and they call themselves separate,” Killoran said. “There’s New Roc City and then there’s the rest of us. You don’t have people saying, ‘Hey, let’s go to New Roc tonight.’ It’s antithetical to a successful project. It’s like a whole different world to downtown.” Security and safety has been another concern, with several disturbing incidents in recent years despite a New Rochelle police outpost inside the shopping center.
It's a mall next to a main street, and they call themselves separate. Killoran said. “There’s New Roc City and then there’s the rest of us. You don't have people saying, 'Hey, let's go to New Roc tonight.' It's antithetical to a successful project.
Receipt
Now it's dead. I grew up coming here and it used to be so lively. Now, it's all dim and dead.
A longtime visitor measures the fall from personal memory, anchoring the statistics-heavy decline story in lived human loss.
In context
Yet, over the years the mall’s design and location spelled doom. “New Roc City was supposed to be the ultimate hangout spot for friends, couples and single people,” said DC Andino, a county resident who once took classes at a Monroe College campus nearby. “But now it’s dead. I grew up coming here and it used to be so lively. Now, it’s all dim and dead.” Community leaders said several factors played a role in the mall’s decline, including an enclosed design, changes in entertainment and shopping trends, and a shift in New Rochelle’s downtown redevelopment strategy, which focused on luring New York City commuters who don’t frequent local haunts.
Receipt
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