tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2047095566316955789.post6174610355168235035..comments2024-03-12T06:05:52.460-07:00Comments on Sky City: Retail History: Roswell Mall: Roswell, GAJ.T.http://www.blogger.com/profile/04208881715255029485noreply@blogger.comBlogger46125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2047095566316955789.post-37074017517060966542019-01-05T15:11:28.462-08:002019-01-05T15:11:28.462-08:00Mamas pizza and the twighlight zone were awesome i...Mamas pizza and the twighlight zone were awesome i got high and drunk at the mall alot. The old guy at mamas pizza Pete used to go outside on the hill in the woods and drink Olympia beer. Mamas was last on Haynes bridge but he sold out to an employee and it went downhill i don't know if its open anymore. This mall was a major part of my youth. I remember it well and could answer most questions if anyone cares.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00789266138909380137noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2047095566316955789.post-32487258305268786492017-09-03T18:54:27.206-07:002017-09-03T18:54:27.206-07:00I grew up in this mall, I lived within walking dis...I grew up in this mall, I lived within walking distance from 1980-1986, I remember Mama's Pizza, Circus playhouse, Skate along USA. Sad to see what became of it by I literally grew up in this mallAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15717526884028347931noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2047095566316955789.post-54551123904688110072017-08-11T13:54:15.862-07:002017-08-11T13:54:15.862-07:00Manchu Wok, right? I remember seeing it from the ...Manchu Wok, right? I remember seeing it from the back of the mall with a set of stairs up to the restaurant. I assume it was accessible primarily from the enclosed strip portion extending from Kmart to the main mall.J.T.https://www.blogger.com/profile/04208881715255029485noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2047095566316955789.post-55791423146862843292017-08-11T13:54:10.853-07:002017-08-11T13:54:10.853-07:00Manchu Wok, right? I remember seeing it from the ...Manchu Wok, right? I remember seeing it from the back of the mall with a set of stairs up to the restaurant. I assume it was accessible primarily from the enclosed strip portion extending from Kmart to the main mall.J.T.https://www.blogger.com/profile/04208881715255029485noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2047095566316955789.post-50295390892991832712017-07-29T10:27:20.714-07:002017-07-29T10:27:20.714-07:00I'm so glad you wrote this. I grew up in Marie...I'm so glad you wrote this. I grew up in Marietta. My family used to go to church near Roswell in the 80s and we would occasionally eat lunch at this Chinese restaurant that was on the second floor of a mall. We never went in the rest of the mall so I didn't remember much else about it. The Chinese restaurant was right by the stairs on the left. We tried to go to the restaurant once in the early 90s but it was no longer there.<br /><br />I moved to Roswell in 2005 and ever since then I had been wondering where exactly that Chinese restaurant had been because nothing in the area matched the memory I had. Now it makes sense knowing that the section with the Chinese restaurant was probably the section that was demolished.Davidhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10620431523918793497noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2047095566316955789.post-18040858836496419182017-05-01T21:23:46.229-07:002017-05-01T21:23:46.229-07:00Went by there today, peeked into where Startime us...Went by there today, peeked into where Startime used to be. The metal halide lights were still on inside, but the doors where so dirty you couldn't see any detail, and the handles and pushbars are literally falling off of them. <br /><br />Like others have said, my family and I frequented this mall in the early 80's when we lived in Alpharetta, because back then the area was semi-rural and very "backwater". This was the closest "civilization" to us until Gwinnett Place came about in '84 or '85. I ate my first pizza at Mama's Pizza, played my first video game at the Twilight Zone arcade, got my hair cut as a little kid at the salon on the second floor. Went to the Richway, Radio Shack (in the breezeway to Kmart) and Kmart frequently until we moved to Gwinnnett County in '87. <br /><br />I went back to this mall twice in the 90's that I can remember: Once to the mom-and-pop computer store that was there at that time searching for hard-to-find Commodore games, and on a date to see "Twister" at the theater. Oddly, I don't recall why we didn't see that movie at Northpoint. Perhaps the show times didn't work out for some reason. That's the last time (until today when I was driving by) I had seen the place.BigBlueDinosaurhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09289927377048457050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2047095566316955789.post-84689067979250392032017-03-14T18:42:33.842-07:002017-03-14T18:42:33.842-07:00It was Circus Playhouse It was Circus Playhouse Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16760792687814556434noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2047095566316955789.post-63259969843013141172017-01-22T04:40:27.408-08:002017-01-22T04:40:27.408-08:00The cemetery remains. According to a guy I work wi...The cemetery remains. According to a guy I work with, his church owns it. It's the burial place of a few slaves from pre-civil war if he's correct. Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18299366480210940113noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2047095566316955789.post-34248374537548289632017-01-22T04:35:58.160-08:002017-01-22T04:35:58.160-08:00Thank you for taking time to write this. Thinking ...Thank you for taking time to write this. Thinking back on it, the mall was rather strange. But as a kid, living in the area, it's pretty much what I understood a mall to be until Northpoint came along. My first and only visit to Town Center at Cobb cane before Northpoint was constructed and I was absolutely blown away by the sheer size of it. I didn't realize places like that existed as a 10 or 11 year old. I was a local boy whose parents rarely ever ventured further than 5 miles away. It was a Sunday tradition on Sundays to have dinner at the old dine in Pizza Hut that used to be across the street then go to Roswell Mall.Your assessment was right by our experience too.we'd pretty much go to K Mart and the rest of the mall served as a covered walkway to Target. I do remember the movie theatre because it was all we had. We frequented the old Twilight Zone arcade that was downstairs by the theatre, and at one point a little shop that dealt in selling and trading sports cards was downstairs. Otherwise, I knew there were a few other stores but I've no idea what they were. <br />I do appreciate this article and wish I could find something similar about my old elementary school. I can find nothing at all on it. But I was the last generation on my father's side to attend before it was closed. It would be nice to find even a photo but the Internet seems to have nothing on it. It was Northwestern Elementary School on Birmingham Highway before Crabapple Crossing opened across the street. <br />Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18299366480210940113noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2047095566316955789.post-14528975047254062262016-10-06T11:54:01.120-07:002016-10-06T11:54:01.120-07:00I went to the mall as a child between 1985 and 199...I went to the mall as a child between 1985 and 1991 or so. There is a video on Youtube uploaded in 2012 that was filmed in 1991 which shows the interiors of the mall well. Search on YouTube for 'Roswell Mall'. Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07126237198705455715noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2047095566316955789.post-67970457379100516262015-05-31T13:59:41.394-07:002015-05-31T13:59:41.394-07:00I worked at the theater in the early 90s as well. ...I worked at the theater in the early 90s as well. Good times. The guy who managed it then now owns it.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2047095566316955789.post-71553031626087605102015-05-31T13:51:34.873-07:002015-05-31T13:51:34.873-07:00Circus Playhouse... And it was Awesome!Circus Playhouse... And it was Awesome!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2047095566316955789.post-67486018556345473782015-05-27T09:33:57.490-07:002015-05-27T09:33:57.490-07:00Hair Etc. was the place and Mama's Pizza had t...Hair Etc. was the place and Mama's Pizza had the best pizza.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2047095566316955789.post-82952355791163874302014-12-30T10:11:46.067-08:002014-12-30T10:11:46.067-08:00So many childhood memories at this place. I spent ...So many childhood memories at this place. I spent the 1st 13 years of my life in the Sandy Springs area and as a youngster in the late 1980s my mom would take me there on Friday afternoons to the library, video arcade, and pizza restaurant. I met Braves pitcher Zane Smith there as well. Thank you so much for this journey through time :-) Marknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2047095566316955789.post-30273465718581751582014-10-28T22:09:11.354-07:002014-10-28T22:09:11.354-07:00Late 70's/Early 80's: I remember the arcad...Late 70's/Early 80's: I remember the arcade downstairs, and some concession stand named "Sailboats" with some old lady running it. I do remember that Chinese joint upstairs and the theaters. Saw "Empire Strikes Back" there.LordSomberhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08483452672640797537noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2047095566316955789.post-91363726287334529732013-04-11T19:46:37.669-07:002013-04-11T19:46:37.669-07:00It's funny how I never really thought about th...It's funny how I never really thought about this place until happening upon this post, but now I'm remembering bits and pieces of the past. I want to say I saw Wayne's World in the theater here, which would have been 1992. Not too sure about that, but it seems right.<br /><br />I definitely saw Doug Stanhope at the comedy club sometime around 2000 or 2001. Drove all the way from Rome for it with a car full of drunks (ah, college.) It seemed like an odd location.<br /><br />These days I go to the new theater, which is nice, and I've bought flooring from the Floor and Decor place (ah, adulthood.) So strange that such a prime location has been eternally in flux. If I had to guess I'd say it'll stay that way until somebody just tears it all down.Mickeyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16980072484914437668noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2047095566316955789.post-12923884683831969982013-02-06T11:00:41.456-08:002013-02-06T11:00:41.456-08:00It was Mama's Pizza...they are now located on ...It was Mama's Pizza...they are now located on Old Milton Parkway in AlpharettaAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2047095566316955789.post-15790286010158170582012-11-24T07:19:47.773-08:002012-11-24T07:19:47.773-08:00I spent a lot of time in the Roswell mall when i w...I spent a lot of time in the Roswell mall when i was growing up. My friend Jimmy's dad owned the Mama's pizza, and my brother worked at both Morrison's and Kmart. I worked at the downstairs theater in the late 80's, early 90's range. The original theater was still around and pretty much as it was when it closed up until at least 1990. I moved away in 1994 and after that is when the rebuilding of the inside started. I have been home a few times since and it is very strange how they redesigned it. Circus Playhouse was in the space next to the Richway side as the last outdoor space, and there was a vacant spot between that and the Richway (part of the short lived Richway grocery, maybe?). Lot's of memories....shame it went so far downhill...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2047095566316955789.post-88161059729559980132012-07-08T10:25:13.113-07:002012-07-08T10:25:13.113-07:00I miss Rich's too. I loved the Pizza place. My...I miss Rich's too. I loved the Pizza place. My family went their all the time. I think it was CC's. I don't remember the name. But I've got photos somewhere.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2047095566316955789.post-23569068995178288382011-08-07T21:03:34.578-07:002011-08-07T21:03:34.578-07:00@Anon, the restaurant was probably Mama's Pizz...@Anon, the restaurant was probably Mama's Pizza. It stuck around the mall until at least after the Startime renovation. I hear it finally moved to Alpharetta but I have no idea when.Dantehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05469645009950587832noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2047095566316955789.post-82781408506523809932011-08-01T07:52:22.538-07:002011-08-01T07:52:22.538-07:00I went there this weekend with my kids to see a mo...I went there this weekend with my kids to see a movie at the new theater (Aurora complex) that opened a year ago. The theater is pretty decent actually. The doors to the bottom floor plaza level are still open. Apparently whirlyball is still around and they are at the very end of a long (60 yards or so) hallway. The hallway is totally desolate with the only sound being a few crickets chirping. It creeped my kids out pretty bad. The hallway just has an empty restaurant on the left and 2 other gated up empty storefronts. Curious to see what last occupied the now empty restaurant space. It had a sticker on the door saying 'Best of citysearch 2007' or something, so I assume it hasn't been closed that long. I tried to walk all the way down to the end but my kids got scared so I had to turn around. I think this would be a good place to film that zombie show they film here around atl. Or maybe set up a game of street hockey or something.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2047095566316955789.post-33913372615915504612011-04-25T12:44:37.435-07:002011-04-25T12:44:37.435-07:00Was this before or after the mall was redeveloped?...Was this before or after the mall was redeveloped? I suspect that even now that there are parts of the original mall hidden away and sealed off since the entire structure was not demolished.J.T.https://www.blogger.com/profile/04208881715255029485noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2047095566316955789.post-41514279683013644702011-04-25T12:35:12.838-07:002011-04-25T12:35:12.838-07:00I forwarded this page to a friend because he is in...I forwarded this page to a friend because he is into this kinda stuff. He says he was good friends with a manager of the "newer" movies at the Roswell Mall in the mid 90s. He said the manager friend "found" the original theater completely holed up and intact roughly above the new one. Nothing had changed. Would have loved to be there! Creepy!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2047095566316955789.post-82338715345673023232011-04-25T10:27:39.805-07:002011-04-25T10:27:39.805-07:00@JT
I posted above about a year or so ago...still...@JT<br /><br />I posted above about a year or so ago...still live in the area and I'm actually currently researching old theatres in the area, so will let you know if I come across any cool pictures.<br /><br />Anyways, I'm currently the Chairperson of the City of Milton Historic Preservation Commission and will soon be on the Board of the Alpharetta Historical Society. <br /><br />Can be available to meet at the old mall and point out where everything was...remember all of it.<br /><br />Travis Allen<br />teallen76@hotmail.comAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2047095566316955789.post-55361514425951045942011-04-24T13:47:58.735-07:002011-04-24T13:47:58.735-07:00Awesome memories on Roswell Mall. The craft store...Awesome memories on Roswell Mall. The craft store was Waccamaw...how did I forget that? On that Santa pic, I would love to see that so I could at least see one image of what the mall used to look like. I went to that theater once, but I do not remember much about it.J.T.https://www.blogger.com/profile/04208881715255029485noreply@blogger.com