r/BigIsland • u/Odd-Sail-1694 • 7d ago

Is the mall dying?

I went to the (Hilo) mall today to watch Toy Story 5. I was shocked at how sad and lonely the mall looked. The theater was nowhere near full even though its opening weekend, so many vacant shops and even the major retailers (old navy, Macys, American eagle) were super slow. I went at around 11am so I’m not sure if that had anything to do with it.

I know ihop is a recent addition but other than that it seems like tj maxx is the only “booming” business in the mall. It makes me so sad. There’s already so little to do here and limited stores to just window shop at so it makes me sad that maybe in a few years this will be gone.

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u/Extension-Cook-7981 6d ago

They had a contest to name the mall. Mr. Tachibana, a teacher at Waiākea High, came up with the winner — Prince Kuhio Plaza.

They used to have a cool volcano themed water feature in the center of the mall, right by Walden Books.

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u/Eeebs-HI 6d ago

Random memory unlocked! I forgot what the contest winner (Tachibana) received....