BALTIMORE — The Gallery Mall was once a hot spot in Downtown Baltimore.
“They had stores on every floor,” Doreen Andrews said. “Everything was booming. I mean people everywhere.”
Andrews remembers the mall’s glory days. She worked there when it first opened.
“In the 80s, and 90s even the 2000s, we were making money,” she said. “It was beautiful,”
Over the years, a lot has changed. Many of the businesses left and so did the mall’s customers
“I think it’s kind of sad overall. This entire area is kind of becoming more deserted,” said Kate McGowan who was visiting the mall Wednesday.
Now, the future of the mall is in question.
Luis Medina, who owns La Mesa, said he and others have been told they’ll have to leave at the end of the year.
“I’m looking right now for another place around Baltimore or another state. I can’t be here If I don’t have a place,” he said.
He says no one told him what will happen to the mall moving forward.
“No explanation of what’s going on [or] what they plan to do,” he said.
The owner, Brookfield Properties, says the company is “currently evaluating several potential options to reposition the Gallery that will meet the needs of the market”, but the spokesperson did not confirm or deny if it was closing.
“It’s really sad,” Medina said.
Medina said leaving a place he’s been for 12 years is bittersweet.
“It’s still a place you can make a living,” he said.
And for some, it’s a place that still has a lot to offer.
“The gallery has been here for a while and I think if anything they should find a way to keep it here,” Andrews said.
WMAR-2 News also reached out to the mayor’s office about the mall and a spokesperson sent us a statement saying, “The City will continue to work with Brookfield as they consider options for significant improvements and investment in the Gallery to meet the needs of the market.”
