My childhood mall, which was once the indoor retail hot spot of Austin, has slowly joined the land of the dead malls over the last decade. This week it closed its doors for good, and it will be converted to a branch of Austin Community College. Highland Mall was built in 1971, and it was Austin’s first indoor mall. You can read more about the mall’s history in this heartfelt article. The piece notes that “life revolved around the mall,” and that celebrities who came to Austin stopped by to shop. I’m no celeb, but this week I visited Highland Mall one last time with my camera, and today’s post is filled with photos of this once-vibrant space…
A few words before I let the pictures speak for themselves: To a kid in the ’80s, this mall was retail heaven. The skylights, the fountains, the massive amounts of tile, the indoor plants. The Food Court. I spent many an afternoon eating pizza with my mom at that Food Court. It was a part of our shopping ritual. It wasn’t about the shopping—it was about spending time together. If you were a child of the ’80s or the ’90s, you know how a trip to the mall was everything on a weekend afternoon. Who doesn’t remember the first time they were dropped off to shop with friends…without parental supervision!
This isn’t Austin’s only mall, and you can bet I still spend quite a bit of time walking around the other two, checking out the un-remodeled areas of certain stores (I nearly cried when they remodeled the Dillard’s furniture department at Barton Creek Mall last year).
I’ve seen lots of photos of dead malls over the last year, but I never fully realized that Highland Mall was already gone. On Thursday evening, the last night of Highland Mall’s existence as a retail destination, I was not alone in my nostalgic walk. There were other folks with cameras, some alone and some with friends and family.
Songs like “Boogie Oogie Oogie” by A Taste of Honey played over the speakers, and I couldn’t help but wonder if the ’70s selections were intentional. I spent a LOT of time here in the ’80s. This post is my goodbye to Highland Mall. The one thing that comforts me: The mall isn’t being demolished or left to rot. It’s being transformed into an institution of higher learning. Maybe they’ll even keep some of the fountains, skylights and indoor plants. Enjoy the photos:
Beautiful! I love(d) the 80s aspirations to the Good Life. Let’s create our own beach with a blue-tiled water feature, a skylight and some palms! I want to drink a celebratory grasshopper in its memory. (And you’d love the palm court at Alexandra Palace in London.)
Thank you so much, Richmonde! There’s something about the ’80s and palm trees, isn’t there?! Let’s toast to the beachy style in commercial spaces!
This mall reminds me of Metrocenter in Phoenix (AZ). That mall is very similar to yours, and it’s pretty much dead too. It was built in 1973, and was the largest mall in AZ, until AZ Mills opened in 1997. It’s so depressing to see these malls in this sorry state when we remember them in their heyday. In AZ at least, I’ve seen 4 malls go under-Los Arcos, Tower Plaza, Tri-City, and Thomas Mall. I really feel bad for the employees of those stores–no more employment. It just goes to show you how bad off our country really is. I’d like to see the good times return.
It’s interesting to see a shift from indoor malls to outdoor shopping centers. I’m just glad this mall is going to be repurposed as a community college instead of being left to rot! Many of those stores have been closed for years now, and some of the long-term tenants (such as the food court vendor I talked with) have been offered a space on the campus of the community college. But with that said, it’s so sad to see so many memories disintegrate…
Love this post! Have you ever seen the lookbook Olive shot here around the same time as these pics?
If not, check it out- http://oliveaustin.com/blogs/news/19866307-highland-mall – So pretty and sad!
Excellent article and photos. Special memories for me here too.
I’m not sure how I missed this post. It’s so strange to think that I, along with so many others in my age group all worked in malls just like this one that were always swirling with activity; the noise of the fountains and people and music, and that curious mix of odors from the food court, Wilson’s Suede and Leather, and that kiosk selling the imposter designer fragrances. And now they’re all disappearing just like the Drive-In theaters of the 50’s and 60’s. I remember these places as a little community where teens like myself all sort of knew each other as we all went to each other’s stores and then would see each other in the food court and bitch about our jobs and how we looked forward to payday. It doesn’t seem that long ago, but seeing these pictures reminds me of just how much time has passed since then. It makes me a little sad.
I had just seen this post today and as a child of the early 00’s this was the first mall I had ever been to! I loved coming here with my parents and brother on weekends or during the holidays it was always the best. Also I go to school at this mall now for college and yes they did keep the fountains and plants and alot of it still looks like the old mall it used to be now just a little different.
Man,talk about an 80’s Re-Awakening. Here in Dayton,OH, we had the Salem Mall, and yes, it was THE PLACE TO BE SATURDAY AFTERNOONS! Shopping for vinyls at Camelot Music. Hanging out at the arcade checking out the Game Machines(Playing monter themed one like Rampage was my fanfare, go fig). Hanging out at the Food Court chowing down HUGE slices of pizza from Pizza Pizzaz. Michael Jackson jackets and Nike(s)….the list goes on!
Sadly, the Salem Mall got destroyed in a one-two punch so-to-speak, Gangs and high volume of thievery scared the customers away, and the moving of TWO staple stores like Rike’s and JC Penny did the rest of the damage. Still, it is fun to go through the old memory album from time to time and recall how great it was hanging out back then.
Thanks for the boost!
I grew up in Los Angeles during my young teen years in the 80s heydays and the malls here were the epitome of teen hangouts, including ‘picking up chicks’ and what have you. We had more malls than one can count. Those days were really fun – phone booths, photo booths, etc etc. The malls here are still pretty active, except for the dying Puente Hills Mall a.k.a. ‘Twin Pines Mall’ where Doc sent Marty back in time to 1985! It is somewhat different now with time but still gives a nostalgic feel whenever I go.