09/28/2026
Can you save a downtown by turning it into an indoor suburban mall?
Back in 1974, Middletown, Ohio tried exactly that. Facing pressure from regional suburban malls, the city made a radical bet: they paved over the street grid, raised a massive canopy over Central Avenue, and enclosed downtown as the "City Centre Mart."
The result? It almost completely killed downtown retail.
Storefronts lost all street visibility, traffic dried up, and established businesses fled. What was meant to modernize the core turned it into an empty concrete cavern for decades.
It took millions of dollars, years of demolition, and sheer local persistence to tear down the canopy, reconnect the street grid, and invite cars and foot traffic back to Central Avenue.
Today, downtown Middletown is steadily reclaiming its identity with craft breweries, local eateries, an active DORA district, and an arts-driven corridor. The recovery is still work in progress, but the lesson is clear:
Great downtowns don’t need to pretend to be malls. They work best when they celebrate their historic streets, walkable blocks, and authentic architectural fabric.