Toys "R" Us Design Timeline: 1970's-1989

The Caldor Rainbow has been doing an extensive amount of research and evaluation on Toys "R" Us store history. Through the help of The Ames Fan Club forum members and Microsoft Live Earth, we've been able to study and compile a fine array of unique information about an iconic chain of American toy stores.

Our primary goal with this extensive case study is, apart from preserving the golden ages of the company, is to give you alternative information and original on-site imagery you’re not going to find anywhere else on the internet.

My own passion for finding these stores; ones which resemble the company's now bygone well-known look: brown-roofed and rainbow-striped stores, is the focus. While there are a good handful still out there, by each passing year, the company catches up to these stores, most of which have or are becoming swept up by remodels. Those special stores still out there, still largely untouched by time (or any hapless repaint or remodel jobs), must be documented and preserved before they are gone.

Toys "R" Us eventually emerged from an umbrella of department and specialty stores called Interstate Stores, who owned two chains of toy stores by the late 1960's; one was Children's Bargain Town U.S.A. and the other Children's Supermart. The latter also went by the name of "Toys R Us," which had come from Charles Lazarus' store of the same name. Many of its later incarnations across the country would soon bare the name Toys "R" Us into a household, American icon it eventually became. When the umbrella of Interstate collapsed, the immensely successful toy stores, specifically Children's Bargain Town U.S.A. were all united or rebranded under the banner of "Toys R Us" by 1974. Read all about the companies' histories on Pleasant Family Shopping and their expose.

Many pictures shown here are mostly recent, from 2006 and 2007, from a few remaining, older looking locations we've visited including Woburn; Massachusetts, Clay; New York and Horseheads; New York. We hope to visit more in the future, and expand our travel scope to enhance our resource.

We will begin at this time though there are many stores that began as early as 1970.

STORE DESIGN ERAS

Brown Roof, Rainbow-Striped (1970s-1989)
White, Bright & Tiled (1990-1995)
Concept 2000 (1996-1998)
Blues For Jeoffrey (2005-2006)
Time For Childhood (2007-Current)

“Brown Roof, Rainbow-Striped Era (1978-1989)”

A typical, original template design Toys "R" Us store (Toysrus.com)

Charles Lazarus, founder of Toys "R" Us Inc., began a nationwide sprawl to launch his unique toy store chain. In the beginning, and short path to fame, stores began popping up as contenders and anchors in shopping centers sizing at around 45 to 50,000 square feet. It wasn't long before Toys "R" Us became a parent's bane, in a good way of course.

Brown Roof, Rainbow Stripes
By design; the original stores comprised of what's been referred to as a "toy castle" motif; multiple-layered brown roof, typically shingled though some contained lined steel, with three to four accented fortress-esque ripples over the face of the building. Below contains an array of vibrant rainbow or multi-colored vertical stripes often described as if to project a "curtain" facade; red, blue, yellow and green-striped wooden planks covering the entire frontal façade of the store revealing a few rectangular or box-shaped windows along the frontage. The roof would include the company signage in like multi-colors and an orange-brown (or black) toned sculpt of the company’s long-established mascot, Geoffrey the Giraffe. (Below is the latest rendition and variant of a typical store).

CLAY (7517); located in Clay, New York aside The Great Northern Mall. Built in 1988, this store is true to a typical original store design in the latest variant (taken August 2006).

Blue, Red, Green, and Yellow; the original rainbow-striped facade which draped the front of the earliest stores up until 1989. (Clay; August 2006).

After dark, the building's stripes would become illuminated with the help of lighting under the scaffold roofing (Horseheads; January 2007).

Exterior Model Variants
Upon observations, we've discovered there were a few different iterations of the original style used from their beginning up until 1989. Broken down into TYPES, each is slightly different while they all follow the same basic traits; a brown-roof, rainbow-stripes in their varied fashions.

TYPE A: The original stores built during the 1970's which were not entirely unified by design but had the common traits of a mansard-style rippled brown roof and vertical rainbow-stripes along the building frontage. Stores found would contain as many as five rippled roof layerings and anywhere between two entrant ways on the front, one enter and exit often nearby, clearly labeled. Underneath the entrance would often contain a box-shaped sign containing the "Children's Bargain Town USA" name.

Some of the earlier stores had original or conceptual traits within them like the Catonsville, Maryland store, which contains a "glass-encased tunnel" spanning the front of the store. Different rainbow-striped paneling is even seen on one such, remaining store, the vacant Anaheim/Garden Grove, CA, which is likely a much earlier type. Woburn, Mass.; built in 1979, contained a scaffolding over the sidewalks, an idea not widely mass produced after 1979.

Pleasant Family Shopping has posted a picture for a typical earliest store model, circa early 1970's.

TYPE B: Beginning as early as 1980 throughout 1984, this variant was fashioned within an "L-shaped" scheme and where built with focal points focusing on the building's corner or split, presumably to garner more roadside eyesight and traffic. The rainbow stripes would wrap around the building within the "L"-pattern, with as many as two adjacent nearby entrant ways on the building's longer "L" frontage and continuing stripes along the shorter part of the L, which would serve as the building side, often containing an additional logo. Stores are also well known to have had additional "peaking" or box-shaped glass-skylit exits ways distant from store frontal entrances, typically on the longer part of the "L."

Type B has also been known to contain a thinner roof façade, continuing with as many as four ripples across on the long portion of the "L"-pattern though not exclusively so. These were also the last years stores would see "Children's Bargain Town" signage over the entrance. (Reference: York, Pennsylvania, closed Lansing, Michigan)

TYPE C: Seen as early as late 1984 until 1989, this design was one of the more finalized template-styles, modified from original stores over the years. These were the first eras to contain a protruding building vestibule or mini-lobby area where candy and item machines might be stored along with excess shopping carts. Within these lobby areas would contain up to one or two frontal entrances and a side "Exit Only." (Refference: Clay, New York)

TYPE CX: A sub-variant of TYPE C which was was also a slightly larger featured version. Stores contained often longer roofs, protruding vestibule from building, often contains scaffold and adjacent sidewalks. Also known to be typically larger stores some with inclusive Kids "R" Us additions. Unveiled sometime in the mid-1980's or presumably 1986-1987. (Reference: closed Battle Creek, Michigan and Horseheads; New York).

Some of the earliest versions of the store were often less adherent to the variant styles presented above. Many of these were located in shopping centers (see "1980’s Expansion Boom; Proximity to Shopping Malls") and may or may not adhere to the "strip mall" conformity. These original locations were typically a mesh between established variants "A" and "B" like Woburn, Massachusetts and Catonsville, Maryland which features a kiddie-corner design and a distinct glass-encased tunnel comprising the entire front of the store (essentially contains all of the attributes of all the variants). Not all stores may fit a precise variant type, but will typically bend towards one emprical type. (credit: Daniel "D_fife" Fife for Catonsville).

WOBURN (7506); located in Woburn, Massachusetts and one of the first Toys "R" Us stores in the state features a "conceptual" original look with rare scaffold, and taller roof ripples not found on many later stores (July 2006). Woburn has since repainted to a primarily blue-striped look and has removed the "Exit Only" sign as of late 2006.

HORSEHEADS (6363); located in Horseheads (West Elmira), New York across the Arnot Mall. Built presumably in the later 1980's, this mammoth-sized store contains an expanded roof and scaffolding as well as a Kids "R" Us inclusion. Horseheads has since repainted white-striped as of late 2006. (January 2007).

ATTRIBUTES

Signage
The original Toys "R" Us model included basics that would later become models for future variants; an "Entrance", "Exit Only" and often orange-black colored sign with Charles Lazarus' original slogan perched above the entrance doors: "The CHILDREN'S Bargain Town" found on the earliest stores. Above the entrances was the "TOYS 'R' US" logo and a plexiglas cutout of Geoffrey to the left (and often, later found to the right) of the store name. The original Toys "R" Us channel lettering colors consist of "T" (red) "O" (yellow) "Y" (light blue) "S" (pink) "R" (lime green) "U" (orange) "S" (rich blue).

A store model as seen in a commercial from 1978.

Orange-brown toned “Entrance” signs and rainbow-colored “Exit Only” signs were typically found on store gateways. Stores built throughout the early and mid-1980s came complete with an early portrait of Geoffrey over the “Entrance” lettering as well while some later stores left them absent. The original "The Children's Bargain Town" slogan retained itself in the same orange-brown tone, typically found over the entrances of "L-shaped variant" stores but became absent additions on many stores built after 1985.

Many road pylons or street-level signage were, like the stores, brown-shaded background with a colorful palette, often featuring an enormous Geoffrey sign over the lettering. Many have been removed today, yet some still remain but in newer shades. There were a few known variants; some with the lettering all across, and some with Toys-R Us on two and even three lines in a square-shaped sign (as seen briefly in the "Power of Love" opening sequence of "Back To The Future").

There also appears to be subtle differences in the colors of the channel lettering found on older stores versus new. While the original suggests a traditional rainbow palette, another was unveiled; T (red), O (orange), Y (dark green), S (purple), "R" (yellow), U (light green), S (light red/pink). Upon the late 1980's, there appeared a pastel-themed version of red, cyan, purple, yellow, orange with a lime green "R" which appear on some of the many 1980's stores and red, yellow, cyan, yellow, orange tones by 1988, 1989.

There's also known styles of the channel lettering arranged in a "spaced" fashion, typically found on early 1980's stores and many "L-shaped corner" variants, where the individual letters were slightly spaced apart.

A typical old-styled "Entrance" sign featuring Geoffrey portrait (Clay).


"Entrance" sign without Geoffrey (Horseheads).


A typical rainbow-colored "Exit Only" sign (Woburn). Source: "Mark" claims this sign has since been removed.


An unusual, very early "Customer Pick Up" sign (Woburn).


A common, 1980's Customer Pick Up sign (Clay).


A typical older road pylon (Horseheads).


An updated road pylon still featuring early 1980's-era Geoffrey (Manchester, New Hampshire). The Manchester store, built in 1980 has since remodeled in 1992 from an original "L-shaped" variant.

Brown Building Stripes
Along the upper and lower edges of the building, typically lined around the entirety of the store, some of which having vertical stripes. When remodels went into effect as early as the 1990’s, most stores repainted the stripes, favoring silver to complement the brighter shift dictated by the newer era.

Brown stripes lining the upper and lower building (Horseheads).

Glass-Encased Exits (TYPE B Only)
Exclusive to the "L-shaped" variant stores used around the early 1980's were glass-encased, solarium-style vestibules used as primary store exits, found distant from the main store entrance(s). Most were scrapped quickly with newer era remodels, beginning in later 1984 models. Like the aformentioned Manchester, New Hampshire store, some where removed post remodeling, while some held on like one store in Bay Shore, New York store and Milford, Connecticut stores.

A leftover glass-encased exit which current exists from a since remodeled, former "L-shaped" store in Milford, Connecticut (6326).

Geoffrey Through The Years
As years went on, Geoffrey’s projected image displayed on stores and in media has changed a great deal and has varied over the years. The basic elements have been there through each redesign; orange and brown tones, antennaes, large lashed eyes, and an unforgettable "oh golly!" expression. Having origins from a realistic image; Jeoffrey is a confirmed male character, and in earlest ad spots, he is seen along with his wife (figure, partner) and daughter (who are also giraffes). However, his image became morphed into a more feminine, playful to an ultimately cartoony look by the latest years with other minor traits made to look more "loose-fitting" such as sloppier hair, and circle-shaped spots apart the "wavy" motif look on the version seen on the Clay store. Historically, there are many different iterations of Geoffrey with most of them either removed or replaced for the latest one (seen on the Woburn store).

Geoffrey's building-side imagery, noticably implicit corporate move to shift the focus off a lesser-focused appeal of the long-time mascot for unknown reasons. The phase-out began as a slow cancer beginning with the removal of associations on the store's exterior within each redesign or era. In the later 1980's stores, the Entrance portrait was removed for simple text. Geoffrey plexiglas "emblems" found on stores next to the company signage was finally stripped away on Concept 2000 remodels, beginning in 1996. All the older locations documented here still currently use the widely phased-out Jeoffrey signage, most of which are actually ones leftover from the 1980's.

As of 2006, the company used their most realistic, cynical sounding Jeoffrey yet most appearant in television ad spots baring resemblance to the real animal. As of late 2007, the company recognizes the importance of Jeoffrey by including him cartoonized, once again in the redesigned store logo in commercials.

One of the typical older designs (Clay).


A brighter, feminine appeal (Horseheads).


A cartoon appeal unveiled in the 1990's (Woburn).

Interiors
Many early stores mainly consisted of typical warehouse-style ceilings, supermarket-style aisles and were often criticized for being low-lit and rather compact. Through the years, this changed to suit the needs of customers, but many stores like Clay and Horseheads hearken back to the common feel of the stores then. The store in Horseheads was a gem beyond being held back in earlier eras, having original rainbow colored paints on walls; the colors of Toys "R" Us on the left side and the bolder shades on the opposing side for Kids "R" Us draped along the walls with accompanied store logo. Much craftsmanship is no more; phased for blue and yellow streaks, which have since been phased for even brighter colors along the white lines.

A richly-preserved interior containing rainbow colored wall mural to the foreground of current day shelving and hanging signage (Horseheads).

"Pull-Ticket" System
One staple artifact of Toys ‘R’ Us stores was their almost marriage-like bond with Nintendo and their untouchable Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) throughout the late 1980s and most of the 1990‘s. The sale of a vast, often unmatched selection of the console’s software kept their sales peaking and notoriety amongst a changing, video-gaming inviting market lively. Frankly, Toys “R” Us was the place for video games among the target audiences of mostly younger child-to-teenager market while today‘s spotlighters for this market, like GameStop, then Babbage’s (and Electronics Boutique / EBGames / EBX, who was recently bought out by GameStop) were once flocked by core computer-centric enthusiasts.

An antiquated "World of Nintendo" video game aisle featuring ticket slips (Clay)

One aspect of their presentation in selling video games, apart their double-line aisles of games was their “pull-ticket” system, which inarguably worked incredibly well for the company. The pull-ticket system included an array of game cover scans encased in plastic flaps with a ticket or paper slip underneath the product containing the price and later the rating of the game. One would take a ticket of desired quantity, bring it to the counter to purchase, whereby after a clerk would fish around in a separate backroom and the customer would later pick up their software at the front of the store just as they were ready to leave the store.

Glass casing displays higher-priced video game hardware (Horseheads)

While it’s still used today in some stores, the ticket slip system has been mostly phased out in favor of the Concept 2000-prompted ‘R’ Zone' at most locations by the turn of the century. The system is still used here but on a modified scale; primarily for game consoles, items of the sort are generally kept behind glass-shelving visible behind the counter like most video game retailers. All video game transaction is taken care of inside the “R” Zone department, no longer having customers wait until the finality of purchase to pick up which caters to convenience above all.

An aisle featuring ticket slips (Horseheads).

Other Happenings In This Era

1980’s Expansion Boom; Proximity to Shopping Malls
When Toys "R" Us began in 1978, the company was basic about stores placement; putting many in outdoor shopping centers. Likely due to the rise in their own notoriety and shopping mall trends and directly competiting with Child World and Kay Bee Toy & Hobby inside malls, Toys "R" Us entered the company’s golden age of expansion; a strategic trend moving in across (almost literally) most regional shopping malls, often in their own properties while some moved into centers adjacent to malls. The move quickly took effect but was almost essential by 1980 and continues this tradition today, though mainly with Babies "R" Us stores as the chain is focused on remodeling and reworking older locations. The chain is well known for having snatched up prime locations for its stores as those are ones to stick around today, despite the wave of closures in 2006.

Kids “R” Us (1983-2003)
Established in 1983, Kids “R” Us was introduced as a clothing-line subsidiary and sister store to Toys ‘R’ Us stores. Trafficking mainly in softlines; clothing, shoes and other related appeal for children, the company aimed towards quality and value, offering brand names and exclusives carried today in many Babies "R" Us or merged Toys "R" Us stores.

The chain birthed and opened in Paramus, New Jersey in lieu of the company’s expansion in the early 1980’s, when stores began popping up everywhere. Strategically placed within a certain general area, sometimes sharing space right next to of the Toys “R” Us brethrens, and mostly had their own originally constructed building variants.

Most early Kids “R” Us stores were like their Toys R Us brethrens; contained mainly brown colors, and bolder colored circular racetrack-like stripes around the entirety of the store's entrance and display windows. Later stores unveiled in the 1990's featuring stacked block windows and a more grandiose-looking format.

A once three-year vacant Kids "R" Us store standing beside an active Toys "R" Us in Manchester, New Hampshire (built in 1981), since demolished for a Nissan dealership, had received a white paint job under it's original brown.


A former Kids "R" Us in Springfield, Massachusetts has plenty of vestige as a Namco Pool Store today.

In 2003, all remaining Kids “R” Us stand-alone store fronts shuttered, ceasing the brand almost completely in favor for a more profitable and rising interest by consumers in Babies “R” Us, which would later occupy some former locations not in the area by then. The company’s loses caused Kids “R” Us stores to be sold off and/or converted and rebranded in response to a booming generation into the much more successful Babies “R” Us, which centers closely around infant and toddler-aged furniture and accessories once carried in smaller quanitites by both Toys "R" Us and Kids "R" Us.

A former Kids "R" Us in Corbins Corner in West Hartford, Connecticut since occupied by Office Depot. Label scar and triangular "Entrance" signs still visible.

Most other stores were sold to other retailers like Office Depot and Petco, leaving existing Kids “R” Us notoriety and brand to be combined with existing Toys “R” Us stores shortly after their closure, which had been already lost volume in response to financial purge. Today, Kids “R” Us still exists by name, mostly within Toys “R” Us and Babies “R” Us parent and/or hybrid stores. The name as a whole still quietly exists, but is slowly being replaced by Babies "R" Us.

Worldwide Exp-Japan-sion (1984)
In 1984, Toys “R” Us expands into the worldwide market seeing it’s first store in Japan. The company currently claims “643 toy stores in 32 countries outside of the United States, including Australia, Canada, France, Portugal and the United Kingdom.” (Toysrus.com)

Flashforward
The last known year of the store’s original look appears to have been 1989; when the company was fizzling from a vast season of successful expansion. Stores within the original image are still around today but are extremely rare as most have since reformatted into variants of fringe post-2000 favored designs or have seen the brunt of minimalist remodels or "cheap", safe, solid-colored paint jobs. Many of the brown-roof, rainbow-draped stores might've showed their age by 1989 and years to come in a few respects; difficultly to maintain, trends changing. These stores conveyed the magical nature of just what made Toys "R" Us itself unique, colorful and candiful to the eye; aspects retail trends vastly stray in seas of white, bright, safe and borings of today.

Here's a list of the latest confirmed stores dead and alive still hanging on; some of which have received paint jobs or minor enhancements, ultimately still original looking, lacking remodeling.

CLAY (7517)
Clay, New York
Year Built: 1988
Variant: Type C
Road Pylon: No
Resembles exact model from Bangor, Maine (1989). Last true original remaining in New York.

HORSEHEADS (6363)
Horseheads (West Elmira), New York
Year Built: 1987 (Unconfirmed)
Variant: Type CX
Road Pylon: Yes; brown-pastel lettering
Repainted to white stripes (late 2006).

WOBURN (7506)
Woburn, Massachusetts
Year Built: 1979
Variant: Original, close to Type A
Road Pylon: No
Repainted to blue stripes (late 2006). Last original remaining in Massachusetts.

BANGOR (7519)
Bangor, Maine
Year Built: 1989
Variant: Type C
Road Pylon: Unknown
Features repainted white roof, still has rainbow stripes.

CATONSVILLE (8344)
Catonsville, Maryland
Year Built: Around 1978
Variant: Type A
Road Pylon: Unknown
Features repainted white roof, and a distinctive glass "tunnel."

YORK (8310)
York, Pennsylvania
Year Built: Unknown
Variant: Type B
Road Pylon: Yes; Toys "R" Us/Kids "R" Us sign; white colored.
Features an oddly off-colored grey-black Jeoffrey. Contains white "Entrance" sign, placed in a former "Children's Bargain Town" placement. Also contains "Exit Only" sign above glass exit. Last original store left in Pennsylvania.

Picture was found on Webshots by user.

BLOOMINGTON (6008)
Bloomington, Illinois
Year Built: Unknown
Variant: CX
Road Pylon: Yes; Toys "R" Us/Kids "R" Us sign; part brown-pastel (Toys "R" Us), part white (Kids "R" Us)
Contains unusual variant; two entrances on building frontage, skewed to the edge. Picture found, taken in January 2005. Google Maps satellite imagery confirms. Stripes have been repainted white.

PORTAGE (6072)
Portage, Michigan
Variant: A
Road Pylon: Unknown
Store is located within a strip plaza. Stripes have been repainted blue.

TOPEKA
Topeka, Kansas
Year Built: 1985 (?)
Variant: Type C
Road Pylon: Unknown

BOARDMAN
Boardman, Ohio
Year Built: 1985 (?)
Variant: Type C
Road Pylon: Brown/Pastel

SAINT CLAIRESVILLE
Saint Clairesville, Ohio
Year Built: 1985 (?)
Variant: Type C
Road Pylon: Brown/Pastel
Stripes painted over white.

MOLINE
Moline, Illinois
Year Built: 1985 (?)
Variant: Type C
Road Pylon:
Stripes painted over white.

CEDAR RAPIDS
Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Year Built: 1985 (?)
Variant: Type C
Road Pylon:
Stripes painted over white.

DURHAM
Durham, North Carolina
Year Built: 1984~5 (?)
Variant: Type C
Road Pylon: ?
Rainbow stripe/planks removed

ROANOKE
Roanoke, Virginia
Year Built: 1986
Road Pylon: Box-shaped
Rainbow stripes repainted blue

Currently Vacant

ANAHEIM
Garden Grove, California
Year Built: 1970s (?)
Variant: Type A
Road Pylon: Removed
Closed in 2002. Currently vacant as of June 2007. Here's the vintage old road pylon, since taken down. Picture taken by Flickr member.

EUCLID
Euclid, Ohio
Year Built 1985, closed 2002. Currently vacant.
Variant: Type C
Currently boarded up, signage removed. Contained "Concept 2000" star "R" logo before closure. Aside equally dead Euclid Square (Mall) area.

BATTLE CREEK
Battle Creek, Michigan
Year Built: 1986, closed 2006. Currently vacant.
Variant: Type C
Site claims it was renovated in 2002 but still seems resembles original style in Inquirer photo (See below). Was coupled with Kids "R" Us.

Battle Creek Inquirer (2006)
Intell Property Group

Resources
Daniel "D_fife" Fife of Chris Fontaine's Ames Fan Club forums, again, is my greatest ally in preserving these stores with his vast collection of images (some linked here) and information on the Toys "R" Us page. Because of his and many others' pictures, I am able to compile and locate stores furthering in concise information and theories.

Dead Euclid
Jen Owens, a fellow Blogspotter, and her fascinating webpage on the dreary haven of dead retail phenomona; Euclid, Ohio. There just happens to be an infamous, dead, out of time Toys "R" Us there looking post-apocalyptic looking too.

Photo Albums
Toys "R" Us; Horseheads
Toys "R" Us; Woburn Revisit (July 2006)
Way Back Woburn (April 2006)
The Great Northern Adventure (Clay, New York)
Flickr: "Great Northern Mall" (features Clay store; May 2007 update)
"Rainbow-Striped Milestone" (May 27, 2007)

Do you know of a Toys "R" Us still within the original mold in your area? If so, please inform us!

Last updated: February 10, 2008.

Lowe's And Behold; Appeal For An Orange Derby Shopping Center

The aging process has not been true to the terminal Orange Derby Shopping Center.

Situated on (CT) Route 34, New Haven Avenue; en route to New Haven, located in a somewhat collapsed but hubristic "Connecticut's Smallest City" of Derby (the "downtown" is in the midst of some post-war torn look), just on the Orange line. The Shopping Center, which has been a long companion of the town, at least since the 1960's, has been withering away for decades and just recently became a near ghost town when plaza anchor Big K-Mart shut its Derby location down within the 2003 wave of closings within the state of Connecticut.

The Orange Derby Shopping Center is an active example of ill-adapted shift in the retail market over the ages which inevitably finds a victim - and frankly this one that has not adapted well with the times. The plaza, heavily marred with crackled, wavy, and uneven pavement certainly doesn't invite beyond it's heavy vacancy rates, seagulls (the unproclaimed bird of "the dead mall"), and a rest stop for truckers.

Having opened with Zayre; a discount department store who later folded under once rising rival Ames, not renewing it's placement in this location in the late 1980's. K-Mart, who most recently occupied the location left by Jordan Marsh, a department clothier, who opened shortly after the demise of Zayre closed all it's mostly mall-stationed anchor stores in 1996. K-Mart, according to a reader, found sanctuary after being displaced from a fallen Ansonia Mall in nearby Ansonia. After three-plus years of post-K; deteriorating, vandalism, and graffiti at the long-stationed shopping center, once neighbored by a Service Merchandise plaza in it's heyday will soon be completely demolished for yet another soulless, cookie-cutter retail cloner, Lowe's Home Improvement.

In the retail zodiac, 2007 is the year of the Lowe's.

Lowe's Home Improvement plans to occupy space currently and soon to be no longer held by the Orange Derby Shopping Center namesake. There are no plans if the future tenants will opt to remove the antique and characteristic road pylon which has been not only greeting those passing through Derby, but also a literal beacon for the residents who live behind and around the shopping center. There's good chance the sign will not be salvaged beyond Lowe's construction.

A once housed "Garden Shop" during the Big K years.

While stats continue to show Wal-Mart to be the top retailer, Lowe's has been creeping in more so in the top ten than it's competition around Connecticut. Lowe's has been quite well known, like its fellow rising retailers, for sweeping up many vacantly troubled retail sites and shopping center in the past few years, cleaning up much of the collapses of the end of the millennium which include many now long-gone retailers of the northeast like Caldor, Bradlees and even most recently Ames.

Entrances to one of the more unusual, non-original K-Mart stores.

A now rare design leftover variant from Zayre which included an overlaping, stucco facade and a gapped central where entrances are placed.

Just recently, The Caldor Rainbow has reported numerous new Lowe's stores coming this year on a few years vacant retail sites including one in Torrington on the site of the town's oldest plaza, Meriden; on the site of a four-plus year leftover from Ames. Stores have been popping up all over the place along with other rising retailers like the continually successful Wal-Mart, Target; who's continuing it's northeastern expansion, Kohl's and Home Depot to name some of the biggest players.

A mostly silent strip of shops hurt by the closure of major anchorage.

The New Haven Register reports the property owners are hoping for two more buildings in addition to Lowe's and their accompaning garden center. Upon Lowe's announcement, late 2006 and early this year, remaining tenants have slowly leaked out within the horizon of demolition plans. The future plaza does not plan to include the current or recently vacated tenants which include Fashion Bug, GNC, and a handful of smaller-owned shops and bakery; most of which have or are in agreement with the town's mayor for relocation plans elsewhere in town.

There's also no word on what might become of the two off-plaza restaurants; Burger King and nearby (old-school) Dunkin' Donuts; both of which seem likely to not be directly affected due to their remote locations across a somewhat dreary creek, far outside the central breaking grounds. The newly-revamped site sees a fast food restaurant, which will likely gauge competition with Burger King .

Lowe's will undoubtably be getting to work very soon, after the hurdling wetlands negotiations are met so anyone who wants to see the plaza in it's last few months alive better get there soon.

The Caldor Rainbow must extend gratitude to one of our readers and New Haven area resident, Loki, who originally informed us about the plaza.

Make sure you check out the complete set on Yahoo! Photos to see more of Orange Derby Shopping Center; taken just yesterday March 12, 2007.

Torrington Parkade Hits All-Time "Lowe's"; Everything Must Go!

516 Winsted Road has been silent for years.

Ever since Ames closed all it's stores in 2002, the bizarre, three-scaffold complex with all sorts of off-colorings, possibly sealed showroom windows will soon be no more. The otherwise vital remains beside it, anchored by a Big Y Supermarket (complete with outdated "Super Big Y" road pylon) continues to see plenty of shoppers while the other side largely does not. But developers have drafted a plan to make the decades antiquated plaza, one of the town's eldest, under renovated retail sites, a future site for a more vital retail to truck along with far-off times most of the town is steeped in. Anyone who's driven down Winsted Road knows of the flair of the antique, neon-lit Torrington Parkade road sign, which has been there since the 1960's and shows it's age well in 2007.

Torrington is a town that's fascinated me for a while now. It's certainly an out of the way town, located in the Northwest portions of Connecticut near similar, further north town Winsted. The city itself is well known for its vastly antique, industiral working-class landscape with much of it's retail offerings in an interesting, equally time-ravaged position. As far as their retail goes, there's a lot of history within. The central area of Torrington, outside the CT-4 and US-202 influences of Price Chopper, Wal-Mart, and BJ's Wholesale Club, is also home to one of Connecticut's few surviving, vital "Big K-Mart" stores, an outpacel JCPenney within a blown-clad Super Stop & Shop plaza, but most of all The Torrington Parkade.

The Torrington Parkade contained two anchors beginning in 1968 with Sears and an outpacel Sears Automotive Center. Sears moved out a few short years later selling its store (likely for one at the Naugatuck Valley Mall), selling the site to discount department store, Caldor. After extensive renovations, the chain opened the store on October 1, 1971.

On the other side, the plaza was anchored by Super Big Y. When Caldor when out of business in 1999, a not-too-long succeeding discounter, Ames took over the location for a few years in their scheme to occupy a bulk of fallen Caldor locations which helped sink an overzealous retailer. Ever since then, the parcel on the furthest end of Torrington Parkade has been vacant, unable to attract even an Ocean State Job Lot into the space. But now, there appears to be a future for the fallen site, and a plan that might have some Torrington residents cringe.

Eventually, it was once said Lowe's Home Improvement was to occupy the space left by Ames to enter the Torrington market. Now it appears their agenda has gone fourth and will see to have the Torrington Parkade, as it's been known for many decades, to soon be no more. Having drafted a revitalization plan; Lowe's has negotiated to demolish the entire Parkade site, beginning with a phased repositioning of the entire plaza which will result a newly-renovated, relocated Big Y on the site of a soon-to-be-demolished Ames; which will take place before Lowe's begins it's own construction on the current Big Y property. Big Y of Torrington renovated in early 1990's dropping the "Super" addage to the building's frontal identities, while still existant on other portions, has not since updated much as it's seen other stores in the state expand and renovate.

A mysterious former anchor store occupied by Caldor in its prime; could it have possibly been subdivided into three at one point?

As a result of the draft, remaining smaller stores inbetween the anchor placements, and even those within a dilapidated miniature faux mall scape between the anchors feature quad-bench seating, otherwise distressed concrete planters, and home to much graffiti as well. These stores, including a Radio Shack, who has their old company signage around back of the store, now have an ultimatum; close or move elsewhere. Unable to determine the fate of the current smaller parcels, two locations, Jo-Ann Fabrics and Burger King outparcel among a few other dark storefronts have complied to close their stores with any certain plans to open elsewhere in town. There aren't any plans yet to include the once strip offerings in the proposal.

Jo-Ann Fabrics is wooing shoppers with rising store closure sales and informing them to shop their nearby Waterbury store. Jo-Ann, who's only occupied the space formerly occupied by the fallen House of Fabrics has seen a short-lived term in Torrington. Everything Must Go!

The largely antiquated and neglected faux indoor mall portion, located behind the strip stores, will soon go.

Behind the site is but another story; lots of dilapidated, forgotten but noteworthy leftovers from the plaza's earliest days including this since dismantled "Exit 45" signage where the former tenant displayed it's advertisment.

The franchise-operated Burger King, who recently had two locations in town; East Main Street and the now departed Parkade site on Winsted Road sought to close in lieu of Lowe's proposal. Unlike Roy Rogers, Burger King is not exactly downsizing, but it seems they have no plans to reopen a store elsewhere in town. Like a recently abandoned Roy Rogers in Newington, Burger King had been reported mysteriously vacated without warning.

Unlike most Burger King locations around the state, this particular one had much of the early decor most chains have updated since; wooden-trims and draped seating, wooden warehouse-style ceilings, brown and tad clad tiles, and even the company's 1970's-era logo on the doors which was phased out widely in the late 1980s.

The current realtors of the Torrington Parkade, Paragon Realty Group, like the site itself, has not updated their website lately, seemingly since the closure of Caldor in 1999. The plaza doesn't seem to have changed much since its origins, presumably the 1960's. Do you remember what the Parkade was like before? Judging by it's tired appearence today, it couldn't have changed too much since.

The future adaption for the site seems to follow this schedule; the first phase would see to demolish the vacant Ames, build the new Big Y in its place, demolish the current Big Y, and then Lowe's will begin its construction. A deal with the operating strip stores hasn't been determined; relocation or closure?

Paragon hopes to begin the long-planned project in April 2007.

Additional Resources

Yahoo! Photos "Torrington Parkade (3-9-2007)"

The Ames Fan Club; Ames Torrington

Facebook Photos: "On The Eights"

Most photos taken March 9, 2007.

Sundown for Roy Rogers?

"Thank You, Newington! Please Visit Us In Manchester."
is the only explanation a snowcapped Roy Rogers on the Berlin Turnpike served up last week.

So what's going on over at Roy Rogers on the Berlin Turnpike? It's not just the US-5/CT-15 location that's abrupty closed it's doors to the lunch rush along the ever-heavy Pike.

Early this year, it seems Roy Rogers will share a limited future with the state of Connecticut as it has shut down its "old-fashioned" style fast food dining along the Berlin Turnpike which has served customers for a few decades. Fellow Ames Fan Club forum posters have rung in on the shock of the sudden closure of a North Haven location as well as the Newington location, which was discovered and reported shuttered early last week upon its property not having been cleared from a wintry storm early last week.

No explanations, no appearent warnings. Signage has now been removed from not only the somewhat architecturally outdated wooden-grooved facade but also the nearby stucco-faced trashcans lining the edges of the parking lot along with the sundown-canyon logo doning its attract pylon to forecast motorists coming along the way. Some people are walking in-and-out of the place, but not serving customers any longer.

Roy Rogers, whose well known for its old-fashion, old-western way of doing things, like successful rival franchiser Wendy's and other Arby's, offers a "Fixin's Bar" which allows customers to add as many toppings or and condements "Fixins" as they pleased.

But in a more health and bacteria-centric world of today, the liberty of the idea might be host to a contributing decline of Roy Rogers. Their stores are generally left behind; distressed, often dingy, neglected, and never really on the continued zeal and edge the other fast food restaurants hold today. Ideas don't keep the company fueled or pressured to market "low-carb salad" trends which keeps them down. But some people might've liked that casual devoid-trendy-atmosphere at Roy's. Appearently, not enough.

The next phase is this; who will fight for the prime placement the fast food retailer had along the Berlin Turnpike? There's very little doubt this space won't be occupied by Summer as its location at the junction of The Pike itself, 173 and a host of prime retailers' traffic; Wal-Mart and then Lowe's behind it.

Is the company suffering? It might seem that way as we've seen the company purge locations over the years, like its once dominant placement at the Meriden Square; it was one of the first quick food places to open the mall's new food court in 1993 before it closed a few years back.

Roy Rogers now has one, remaining location left in Connecticut; Manchester is the lone, remaining cowboy in the state which shares a close proximity to the Northern end of Connecticut along the Tolland Turnpike. They also operate in many travel plazas upstate New York, which was my last outing there in recent time. Better get your "Fixins" now...

Got any memories at Roy Rogers? Will you miss them?

[Groovin'] Fox Run Mall; Glastonbury, Connecticut

They don’t quite make them like this anymore.

The fox certainly ran, at least at one point in time at Fox Run Mall. Located in Glastonbury, Connecticut; and shortly off CT-2, the town is widely known as Hartford's upper-eschelon neighbor whose town's commerce is otherwise shaped by its unique layout of geometric buildings and unusually crafted, non-pareil versions of dominantly uniformed franchise chains hearkening back to an appearent boom of sharp-angled 1970’s and all that’s come along way with it. Its developer, New Plan, has indeed a new plan for Glastonbury’s Fox Run Mall as it will soon be recognized beyond it’s once captivating, now long-outdated design when a remodel ensues with the arrival of a third Whole Foods Market for the state.

As of December 2006, Shaw’s Supermarket operated one of their more unusual looking locations on the furthest end of the strip when it succeeded an independent grocer in 1998. Following a company downsizing of Connecticut-wide existing stores, it's become vacant along with a handful of other stores in other regions of Connecticut. But the prospect for a vacant anchor has taken flight by New Plan; the proposed Whole Foods will be constructing its own parcel outside the timeframe of a decades-old supermarket of past which will begin a sweep for entire center.

Beginning with the advent of Whole Foods, the once architecturally vital center will feature more a contemporary renovation to give the once hip, brown-shingled center a refreshing, hopefully devoid of visionless, empty appearance like most shopping centers have become today for fear of bringing fourth unique presentation. As trends have changed by decade, times of past have conditioned developers today to drop importance of mere shopping centers, getting the job done constructing safety and simplicity over richly diverse style.

There was once a time when design and shopping centers were pinnacle to presentation. Back when shopping centers where in their prime, and seemed culturally and architecturally relevant, their developers had vision as centers like Fox Run show today. They were shaped by the conformity of the new age; a new frontier of design back in the 1970‘s whose peak of experimental and often eccentric science-fiction-inspired design was on high. Fox Run Mall was quite frankly the swankiest presentation around and still showcases as an outliar. While Fox Run was certainly cutting-edge then, its groovin' design tells of an appearent lost trend.

Like it windows back into a galaxy far, far away, there’s all the vestige; sloped and shingled hut roofing with other bizarre, grandiose shapely roofs makes it almost something islandic this side of Star Wars. Throw in some oddly-painted murals at the former Shaw's, brown-draped everything, Euro-aqueduct-style brick arches, and you've got a portfolio of Fox Run's richly groovy texture. There were no Ewoks to be found in the frontal facing landscaping areas, once sought to be a highlight of Fox Run's cunningly different atmosphere, which still bare foreground accentuating its strip presentation of shops.

They certainly had a thing for these Italian-inspired aqueduct archways, more or less a staple of 1970's trends.


Just one of Fox Run Mall's few time-expired tenants.

While Fox Run isn’t quite a traditional "shopping mall", given its scale, the design is certainly one that may have been ahead of its time with the regional malls (especially Westfarms). When a trend of enclosing (existing and new) malls sweeped the land in the early 70's, developers at Fox Run wanted to invite a different idea. They didn’t exceed the expectations of a regional shopping mall given their alloted space and project goal, they made something of a hybrid strip mall concept; essentially a strip mall-based center complete with some amentites of a shopping mall including (non-faux) landscaping, benching, but also a scaffold to protect shoppers from weathering all under a true blue sky to promote an outdoor feel.

Early phase of development threw in a "Mini Mall" for good measure.

The other angle to Fox Run is its traditional indoor-style; a "Mini-Mall" on the right side of the center which features a small corridor-length indoor portion catering to just a few other shops not featured along the showcased strip. It's nothing big at all, and probably something that could've benefitted from being expanded. Feeling the shadow of past today, most of those shops are now small-time community-based or within vacancy like Arrow Drug; whose Walgreens-esque wooden "mortar and pestle" logo still decors the outside. On the contra; all the strip shops are fully occupied; ranging from unique "lifestyle" shops; a bank, laundromat belonging to someone named "Luba" (couldn't help thinking "Jabba"), and unique dining like Elisa on The Ave to chain stores, like Radio Shack.

Could it be Fox Run’s space-aged design was a forecast to the sweeping “lifestyle” concept that’s embraced today? One could only hope, whatever the future brings to Fox Run, it might still retain its independence in the bland space of shopping centers.

Digest on the Yahoo! Photos-hosted photoset of Fox Run Mall. We visited it just before the big snow storm so these are freshly recent. My treat for neglecting you all this past week. Have a superb, possibly long weekend!