danny@idacom.UUCP (11/12/86)
In article <1751@watdragon.UUCP>, brkirby@watdragon.UUCP writes: > Bruce Kirby > ----------------------- > If you think the United States has stood still, who built the largest > shopping center in the world? > -Richard M. Nixon > ----------------------- That's interesting. Here, we get a lot of propaganda telling us that "West Edmonton Mall" attracts x billions of people from all over Canada and the world. We also here of large advertising campaigns in the east, and in the United States. Has anyone out there heard of this advertising (or at least West Edmonton Mall) -- and has anyone from 'out of town' actually been there? Thanks Danny Wilson idacom!danny@alberta.uucp
ccplumb@watnot.UUCP (Colin Plumb) (11/13/86)
In article <139@idacom.UUCP> danny@idacom.UUCP writes: > >Has anyone out there heard of this advertising (or at least West Edmonton >Mall) -- and has anyone from 'out of town' actually been there? > >Thanks > >Danny Wilson >idacom!danny@alberta.uucp > Yes, I've been there. It's *BIG*. Big enough to hold a whole bunch of waterslides, an (admittedly small) amusement park (I'm sure you've all heard of the roller-coaster accident that happened there this summer), a practice rink for the Edmonton Oilers, a dolphinarium, and a whole bunch of other stuff inside - as well as quite a few hundred shops! (Including a car dealership.) It's certainly bigger than the Eaton Centre. To the best of my knowledge, it *is* the biggest shopping mall in the world at the current time (I don't know when Nixon made his quote claiming the U.S. had the distinction). I've heard (but don't quote me) that the arab brothers who financed "the mall" are planning an even bigger one somewhere in the U.S., but they'll have a tough time surpassing what they've already got. Would someone in Edmonton like to pick up a promotional brochure and quote some figures over the net? I forget the specifics. -Colin Plumb (ccplumb@watnot.UUCP) Zippy says: Look DEEP into the OPENINGS!! Do you see any ELVES or EDSELS... or a HIGHBALL??...
len@geac.UUCP (Leonard Vanek) (11/14/86)
In article <12183@watnot.UUCP> ccplumb@watnot.UUCP (Colin Plumb) writes: > the arab brothers who financed > "the [West Edmonton] mall" are planning an even bigger > one somewhere in the U.S., >but they'll have a tough time surpassing what they've already got. > > -Colin Plumb (ccplumb@watnot.UUCP) > The Gharmesian brothers are not Arabs. They are of Armenian extraction. Let's not get paranoid about petrodollars now! Leonard Vanek (yetti!geac!len)
lyndon@ncc.UUCP (Lyndon Nerenberg) (11/15/86)
In article <12183@watnot.UUCP>, ccplumb@watnot.UUCP writes: > In article <139@idacom.UUCP> danny@idacom.UUCP writes: > I've heard (but don't quote me) that the arab brothers > who financed "the mall" are planning an even bigger one somewhere in the U.S., > but they'll have a tough time surpassing what they've already got. > > Would someone in Edmonton like to pick up a promotional brochure and quote > some figures over the net? I forget the specifics. It's interesting to note that the "arab brothers" have managed to put more people into bankruptcy in this city than the rest of the hustlers combined. When you "lease" space in WEM, you sign personal guarantees that make sure you lose you house, car, wife (shuks!), kids (yeah!), cat, job, retirement, UI benefits, etc. There is a thriving business in Edmonton centered around moving people out of "the mall". It has to be done during the weee hours of the morning, lest the mall security types arrest you for breaking your lease. I know of *one* person who managed to legally terminate his lease with the "rug rats", and due to pressure from unknown persons, he never received the balance owed to him on his insurance pre-payments for his floor space. But then again, they *do* have the safest roller coaster in the country, don't they? -- Lyndon Nerenberg (VE6BBM) Systems Group - A Div. of Nexus Computing Corp. UUCP: {ihnp4,ubc-vision,watmath}!alberta!ncc!lyndon BITNET: USERCHNL@UALTAMTS
andrew@alberta.UUCP (Andrew Folkins) (11/18/86)
In <some article> someone writes: > Would someone in Edmonton like to pick up a promotional brochure and quote > some figures over the net? I forget the specifics. Well, this was in the Edmonton Sun on November 16 : WEM Contains 23% of Edmonton Retail Space The city planning department reports that the huge West Edmonton Mall contains 23 per cent of the city's total retail space and in 1986 captured an estimated 42 per cent of all consumer dollars spent in shopping centres in the city. In a department publication called "City Trends", the department reports that the huge mall occupies 473,790 square metres. The next largest mall, Southgate, is 66,900 square metres, and Londonderry is third with 66,400 square metres. The mall, with its three phases, now employs 18,000 workers in 828 stores. Another 1000 are expected to be employed in the expanded Fantasyland and the new hotel will mean 400 more, the magazine says. The mall cost almost $1 billion to build and generated $7.3 million in property taxes for the city in 1985. When Fantasyland and the hotel are completed, the city estimates the complex will generate about $11 million a year in tax revenues. ------------- Our claim to glory : the largest shopping mall in the world. If that doesn't make you proud to live in Edmonton, nothing will. :-) Incidentally, the Ghermezians are Iranian, they immigrated some years ago (~20) to Toronto, where they started a rug importing business. Just think, it could have been West Toronto Mall.
awwilliams@watcgl.UUCP (Alan Williams) (11/18/86)
In article <709@cadomin.alberta.UUCP> andrew@cadomin.UUCP (Andrew Folkins) writes: > >Incidentally, the Ghermezians are Iranian, they immigrated some years ago (~20) >to Toronto, where they started a rug importing business. Just think, it could >have been West Toronto Mall. Lately, the Ghermezian brothers have actually been hunting around the western suburbs of Toronto for a spot to build another West Edmonton-type mall. Apparently, they feel that an eastern mall would complement the existing one by serving two different markets (sort of the approach taken by Disney Land/World in the U.S.). They have been trying to get the same sort of tax breaks that they got from the city of Edmonton, but neither the Ontario government nor the local municipal governments have been too keen on that idea. Meanwhile, the local officials of Niagara Falls (N.Y.) have promised the Ghermezians just about anything if they will build their mall there. However, they seem to feel that Mississauga (just west of Toronto) is where they would like to locate their eastern mall. They haven't made too much progress in that area, though. But the Ghermezians are known for their persistence, so there may yet be a West Toronto Mall. -- -------------------------------------------------------------------- Alan Williams -- Dept. of Computer Science, University of Waterloo UUCP : {allegra|ihnp4|decvax|utzoo|clyde}!watmath!watcgl!awwilliams CSNET : awwilliams%watcgl@waterloo.CSNET ARPA : awwilliams%watcgl%waterloo.csnet@csnet-relay.ARPA ____________________________________________________________________