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Alternate space for clubs General discussion
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Regular poster 118 posts maddoxdy Regular poster 118 posts
maddoxdy

I know this is a crazy idea to start with but....

It seems at some point in a club's history, they are looking for a new space to build the club layout. I've noticed that there are some malls with a great excess of empty stores. I was wondering if any club has tried to get into one of these empty stores for little or no money? This could benefit the mall in drawing more people in. It would take a club with very determined and tenacious members to pull something like this off. It would also require dedication in they would probably have to be running trains or have something going on all the time (well maybe 4 days out of 7).

Just a random thought.

 

Doug Maddox

Reading Company Along the Bethlehem Branch

 
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Joe Brugger Prolific poster 1,014 posts
Joe Brugger

Club space

A club in Pocatello, Idaho occupied mall space for several years before finding a more permanent space. I'm sure there are many other examples.

http://www.ida.net/org/pmrhs/pmrhome.htm
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Norman46 Regular poster 233 posts
Norman46

A club in Milwaukee

Occupies a large basement room under one end of a strip mall. Huge serpentine layout with possibly the best passenger depot I've ever seen. They had an open house as part of Trainfest when I went a few years ago. I have no idea what their rental or lease situation is.
Norman Modeling L&N in HO circa 1953 We don't stop playing with trains because we grow old. We grow old because we stop playing with trains. Webmaster for http://www.locallocomodelrr.org
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G1000vista Active Member 61 posts
G1000vista

It happened here

There was a club near here that was in empty store at mall for a while, they had a "large portable layout". plus some smaller ones. They had to be open certain hours/days each week for public viewing. After a year or 2 the Mall found a business  for the space, so they had to move.  I guess if you are going to build one in a mall, have a "plan B" ready for when you loose the space.

G1000vista
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Ken Biles Greyhart Frequent poster 551 posts
Ken Biles Greyhart

Here too

The Colorado and Great Western Modular Club held a store space in the Westminster Mall before it was torn down.

That may be the big problem. They are tearing down all the malls and replacing them with newer versions of Shopping Plaza's that were popular in the 50's & 60's. Give it another 30 years, and they'll tear those down to rebuild malls again.

 

 Ken Biles

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ctxmf74 Super User 15,984 posts
ctxmf74

Give it another 30 years,

yeah, once folks get tired of parking on the street trudging from store to store thru the cold and wet they'll think of new covered shopping spaces and call them something different.....DaveB

1990.jpg 
Read my blog
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Benny MRH Author 7,171 posts
Benny

...

The only good alternative for a club is a space the club OWNS.  PERIOD.

 

Retail mall space is a good 2000-4000 a month in rent.  No thanks!

--------------------------------------------------------

Benny's Index or Somewhere Chasing Rabbits
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Mycroft Frequent poster (deceased) 783 posts
Mycroft

Jacksonville, FL

Ran a train in an empty mall store for a month or so around Christmas.  Entry fees wee collected for Ronald McDonald house.  They did it for several Christmases running.  3 or 4 clubs got together and built the layout.  My own contribution was a single 4 foot module (stand alone) with the HMS Bounty and a "film Tug" on it (The real Bounty was docked down by the river at that time).  I also did a library, a bunch of billboards and the hardware store that made the TV commercial.

James Eager

City of Miami, Panama Limited, and Illinois Central - Mainline of Mid-America

Plant City MRR Club, Home to the Mineral Valley Railroad

NMRA, author, photographer, speaker, scouter (ask about Railroading Merit Badge)

 
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Steven S Regular poster 265 posts
Steven S

After a year or 2 the Mall

Quote:

After a year or 2 the Mall found a business  for the space, so they had to move.

And there's the problem.  Money trumps all other concerns.  A basement location like Norman mentioned might not be too bad because there won't be many people interested in it.

If a mall has so many empty stores that they're willing to give you space for free, it means the mall is in decline and probably won't be around much longer. 

 

Steve S
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glenng6 Regular poster 319 posts
glenng6

The Mall at Steamtown, Scranton PA

There is a very nice layout in the Mall at Steamtown, in Scranton, PA. It is well worth the trip. I know it has been there for a few years. I have no idea what their arrangements are with the mall, but if your in the area check it out. It contains many replicas of buildings in the Scranton area and numerous trains, running continuously. Glenn
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Jackh Prolific poster 2,044 posts
Jackh

Look at Alternatives

There is or was a really nice O scale club in St Paul MN in a mall that used to be a passenger car repair shop. They had a corner space on the 2nd level. I know they had occasional issues with the owners about rent and loosing their space. They always managed to work things out though.

Might want to look at buying or renting an old mobil home. Single or dbl wide. A bit of work and you have a great space.
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ACRR46 Active Member 88 posts
ACRR46

Mall Space

I belonged to a modular club that rented space in and mall that was in decline and had many open stores. Yes we received a break on the rental fee but still had to pay for utilities like lights, HVAC, and water. Plus we were obligated to be open many times a year. It took a toll on the club once we had to raise the dues for each member to cover costs. The plus side was a great place to run trains and the exposure for the club.
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ctxmf74 Super User 15,984 posts
ctxmf74

in a mall

I recall seeing a Lionel toy train layout in a mall at Cupertino or maybe Palo Alto( can't recall exactly where as I was just following my wife around looking for shoes) , a pretty high rent district so they must have an in with management......DaveB

1990.jpg 
Read my blog
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BCRforever New member 21 posts
BCRforever

Mall Space

Our Club in Prince Albert, Sask started our first year in the Hobby Stores garage, until we found a location at one of our malls. The deal was that we would open Thurs nights and Saturdays for the public. We stayed in the mall for close to 3 years before we had to move with more stores coming in. Later we were able to move into a large storage area at our local exhibition grounds. Make sure that every thing is portable, in case you need to move in short notice. Brian

Every Mile of Mainline has Two Miles of Ditch.

Prince Albert Model Railroaders Prince Albert, Sask, Canada

http://riverxingnorth.webs.com/
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WaltP Regular poster 134 posts
WaltP

There is or was a really nice

Quote:

There is or was a really nice O scale club in St Paul MN in a mall that used to be a passenger car repair shop.

It's still there, built by the Twin City Model Railroad Museum. It's modeled after Minneapolis circa 30's/40's.  The 'mall' is now just business space, but the layout is still there.  It's in Bandana Square at Lexington and Energy Park Drive in St. Paul.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bandana_Square

 
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Rob Shilling Regular poster 224 posts
Rob Shilling

The Clarion Model Railroad

The Clarion Model Railroad Club in Clarion, PA was in the Clarion Mall a hundred years ago, okay, maybe not a hundred years ago, but in the late 70's and very early 80's. They have moved a couple of times since then. They were in a basement of a store on Main St. Clarion for a while, then on the third floor of a building on Main St. Brookville, and now I believe they are in the basement of a store in Clarion once again. Meanwhile large sections of the mall sit empty or have constantly changing businesses.

~ Rob
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Bananarama Regular poster 137 posts
Bananarama

Historical Alternative

One could also check with their local town or city planner whether they might have some available space within a historical building or district, especially if your club is incorporated as a non-profit and willing to be publicly accessible.

Cheers!
Marc - Riverside

Regards,
Melanie - Riverside, CA
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