DIXIE SQUARE - Abandoned Paradise 1/11/09

[84Bronco351]

Too bad thy won't rebuild the mall :'(

[davidb1959]

They were paying $35.00 a day for extra's in the crowd scenes for the Blues Brothers Movie and I knew a couple of people who were picked. I used to go there in the early 70's there was a Turnstyle Dept. Store and so many other one of businesses that are all done now

[sage1133]

This place would be fucking golden for Airsoft,

[patsaxon]

It looks like it is too late to renovate the old mall as it has suffered abuse and neglect over the past years. I would suggest tearing it all down, then rebuild it to it's original architectural design when it was first built. Then place inside a museum, art gallery and public library. Such architecture designs of the past should be appreciated!

[woodencoasterfan]

Great video. It's interesting how they filmed the mall chase scene with a parking lot full of brand new cars from a nearby dealer which couldn't be scratched because they weren't insured. They then had a map of all the store fronts that identified which ones were set up to be destroyed and which ones couldn't be touched as there was actual product which wasn't insured as well. Too bad to see it this far gone.

[TURKEYkebabz]

This is pretty much how all horror movies start...

[theshatnerman4242]

I HAVE TO GIVE KUDOS FOR PEOPLE BRAVE ENOUGH TO WALK IN PLACESES LIKE THIS,AND SHARING THERE WONDERFUL FINDS ON VIDEO.

THANKS AGAIN FOR SHARING,I NEVER BEEN HERE BUT LIKE TO WATCH VIDEOS ON ABANDONDED THINGS

KUDOS

[Devosworld1]

@theshatnerman4242 THANK YOU FOR USING ALL CAPS TO CATCH OUR ATTENTION

KUDOS

[Drac39]

They are finally tearing it down

[jonrev]

@Drac39 Eh, don't hold your breath... we're now into mid-November and it's still standing. Demo was supposed to start earlier this month. The more I think about it, the more I believe it's just another political move by Pat Quinn. Who knows where the money actually went.

[Drac39]

@jonrev And also who would want to develop anything in that shit hole Harvey? Isn't it the town with the higest murder rate in IL besides Chicago?

[AGENTARMES]

the Floyd soundtrack couldn't be any more fitting. Great vid. Thanks for sharing! Gotta love urban decay adventures!

[MrUnidyne]

1:57 - That must be the last Thom McAn sign left!

[jonrev]

@MrUnidyne It's gone now. The storefront collapsed in July of 2009, and the sign was rescued.

[MrUnidyne]

@jonrev Any possibility for the sign to be put in a museum?

[Psuedo3D]

@jonrev: Don't you mean stolen? Isn't that what happened?

[jonrev]

@Psuedo3D Depends on the point of view. With just about all the major interesting items gone now, anything left in there should probably be rescued while the opportunity still exists. If it isn't lost in the demolition, it will be reclaimed by nature.

[OutridersGhost]

They should have had a scene in Blues Brothers 2000 with the prison warden and Elwood standing in the center of these ruins, and the warden chewing Elwood out while he stares at the floor in shame.

[MaxxTheKid777]

wow i fucking hate abondaned places i feel threw the floor in one today trying to get to a spot

[elevatorsonly]

Did you see any signs of locations of elevators?

[elevatorsonly]

On another one of your Dixie Square Mall vids, I SAW A FREIGHT ELEVATOR DOOR! How do I know? I saw a door in that vid with one door on the top, rubber thingy in the middle, another door on the bottom. Those 2 doors are actually attached to each other and open vertically. Another sign is the window on the bottom left of the first door. That was on your 2/28/10 video.

[EERNOZTHROAT]

I understand the main reason this thing still stands is that no one wants to undertake the cost of properly removing/disposing of the asbestos with which the place is loaded. Maybe you should spend a little less time there! Just kidding; I enjoy the videos.

[beachgal26]

What amazes me is how someone can still manage to get up to the second floor. I would have thought it rotted through years ago??

[TheKNIGHTELFMOHAWK]

what song is this

[nitrophreak]

@TheKNIGHTELFMOHAWK MUSIC: PINK FLOYD - BRAIN DAMAGE/ECLIPSE

[KENNEDY456]

This place has got nothing

[JamesTClement]

All they need is a slash of paint here, and maybe there and to get a new starbucks in there and they will be back on top.

[Interests2009]

Great selection of music.

[DudeManGuy1019]

Lots of space in this mall...

[IfByWhiskey]

I just discovered this video today, and like hundreds if not thousands of others, have the childhood memories that make DSM alive, and not like the creepy abandoned place it is now as I type this.

My step-grandfather worked in the Walgreens there, he managed the resturant. I had many a lunch there with my brothers and sister.

What is truly shocking is that the mall still stands. It should have been razed decades ago. I watch your vid, read about DSM elsewhere on the 'net, and ask myself WHY?

[xvoy2002]

Kind of looks like the rest of Chicago that i've seen, or actaully one of the nicer areas of Detoit.

[Melville10]

Didn't this mall close in the late 1970s?

[jonrev]

The mall closed in 78, with the remaining shops with exterior entrances closing by August 79.

[rmx77]

@jonrev i thought from what i read online that it closed up in 1975 or 77 or so and then the film crew got it in 79-80

[jonrev]

@rmx77 Some of the stores that continued operation after the mall closed,such as Walgreen's and Jewel, had exterior entrances. The Blues Brothers was filmed in August of 79 (for a release in 1980).

[rmx77]

@jonrev ah ok i got ya now. nice get of how it looks. better then picts i think. also did u happen to get any of the fire damage that was done in at least march of 09 or were u there before it happened

[jonrev]

@rmx77 The fire occurred July 20, 2009. The "DIXIE SQUAR3" and "Dixie Square 4" videos both have footage of the fire damage.

[sweettatie1]

could somebody please tell me what happened that caused this mall yo be abandoned!!! This is a great video, and my intrest in what happened is peaked!!

[jonrev]

Severe jump in crime, mostly.

[tictac4569]

I am planning on exploring this place some time in the next week. I was wondering if it's heavily patrolled at night by police? That's the time I feel like it would be most creepy but I'm not sure when its the best time to go. Any feedback would be great

[jonrev]

Get some video while you're there! Not sure how things are at night, but I'd be careful with where you point your flashlights so you don't attract attention.

[tictac4569]

@jonrev I see. Well I would need a decent camera with night vision, which I don't have lol. What's the best way to get around over there? How do you know what your exploring and where you are exactly?

[PinkStupidity]

WOW! Your mall videos, are by far, the most fascinating videos I have ever seen in youtube. I can't stop watching. I spent hours watching them yesterday and now I'm watching them again!! I'd give my left arm to be able to go and explore this place and bring home a few souvenirs.

[8MrDonut8]

Is this karma?!

lol

[ryno23gocubs]

Looking at some of the support beams, I'd be scared the whole building would collapse on me.

[panecasio]

It looked like some lights were still functional! Creepy!

[jonrev]

Power has been cut for about 4 years now. It's all natural light in there.

[tsntana]

4 years? You're saying that place actually still had power?

[jonrev]

I think they brought in generators; the extra lights are left behind by asbestos removal crews.

[318SIDAVE]

Awesome, i guess they didn't even bother to re-construct after the bluesmobile destroyed it.

[timhulsey]

@318SIDAVE The Bluesmobile had nothing to do with this.

[TheRalphus666]

good movie..great song.....a hacksaw so you can dismember someone after killing them with a shotgun????? Instant section 8

[runtyhunt]

@jonrev, when was this place abandoned?

[jonrev]

1979.

[mcmemechitown]

why would u need so many weapons cause your are in an urban area? most people that get killed in harvey it is due to a lifestyle they chose! ....I love harvey i grew up there this what happens when people white's mostly get scared and move because too many blacks are around ...wake up this is one of many results racisim and hatred brings.

[ace5high]

i want to go there myself. i'd have to bring some things with me though: a backpack, the obvious digital camera, a d-cell flashlight, hacksaw, machete or large knife, and a loaded 12 gauge shotgun just in case. also i'd have military fatigues on complete with steel-toe boots and thick gloves. one more thing: a few other people with me. i definitely would take some souveneirs too

[jonrev]

Don't bring a hacksaw, a machete, or a 12-gauge... GUARANTEED ride in a copcar if caught.

I'm 90% sure you'll never run into anyone there, I never have at least. A knife might be a good idea, at least you would have something.

There is nothing really worth taking anymore, don't bother.

[10mintwo]

wonderfully melancholic.

[SFVAfilms]

Excellent Footage and nice commentary on the ecconomic decline of the malls! I also like the 'General Cinema' sound at the end. I am old enough to recognize that tune! haha!

[LongIslandEddie]

Jonrev-

Great visual commentary on the sadly changing face of a once strong civilization. One day we invented Formica, the next time we turned around, our financial leaders and the politicians had fleeced us! The malls around here are standing on the edge of the same tarpit that Paradise Mall has sunken into, America is on the way down but thank God for youtube where we can see it happening right before our eyes. There is comfort in having seen it all, I'll not wonder about the end of days.

[rainbowloverj]

Music makes it 10 times creepier than it already was. I'll probably have strange dreams now. This place looks TERRIBLE! I can't believe they would ever let it get THAT bad. At this point, I believe they should put it out of its misery and knock it in.

[Falcone45]

Well, after it changes hands so many times in a city with almost no money, things never happen. Hell, I wish they would have tried to preserve it as well.

[amyisindallas]

Has anybody said or commented on the land this mall is sitting on. I sounds like something happened (100 or more years ago). Something not right about it. It seems that everything on this land has turned to crap. Even demo work has failed. Montgomery Ward was demod on accident. I love these videos you have made, You are braver than I am.

[Bidone1967]

Nice video from a interesting place. I like to visit old abandoned places and take some videos.

[huntercsx]

we have buildings in my hometown that were built between 1912-1917 and they still exists.

[45gunner]

COOL n CREEPY at the same time!

[joejeep03]

who fucked up the inside so bad? trespassers or construction/demo type crews?

[RaginCajunBull]

both

[HattieLovesCattie]

That is one depressing video but thanks for putting it up.I imagine its heartbreaking for ppl that grew up going here to see if like this.Where did the stores go later,to newer bigger malls nearby??

[jonrev]

Yes, many stores fled Dixie Square for newer, bigger, and SAFER malls nearby.

[67tr876]

SAVE DSM

[musicnewsweekly]

I used to go to elementary school at DSM, go Mckinley....half the mall closed in 78 when attending school on the JC penny Side. Great fun back then. I met John Landis (blues brothers director) and he still have great memories of DSM, Harvey and Dixmoor. He filmed at 4am as the whole neigborhood watced....I was there.

[Falcone45]

I've been getting into abadoned places since the start of the college semester. It just reminds me of what used to be. Still, I bet that was a great memory watching the film being made.

[amyisindallas]

I think it is ironic that anything built on this land has gone to crap(golf course,mall) Also, trying to tear it down has failed. And the one building that was supped to stay up was accidentally torn down? I know I am probably wrong here, but I think there is something wrong with the land the mall is sitting on. Only weather and time will demolish this place. Even business deals to demo have fallen through. I think something happened a long long time ago.

[Hanssen69]

Well that is what will happen if there is no humans in the world and buildings decay.

[Blackson187]

Or if the people of Harvey get near anything.

[BeastofYuccaFlats]

This looks like a scene from Fallout 3 on XBOX. A few of my fave malls of my youth are shadows of their former selves, most notably River Oaks Mall in Illinois. It was a great outdoor mall, but the crime element just took over. People just find safer places to shop once the word gets out.

[mariedoors]

Excellent work- thank you for making this!

[keyswhiz]

I was born in harvey illinois in 1959 at Ingalls hospital.. went to that mall many times with my parents in the 60s, got out of there in the 70s.... well... im sure you all know why :O)~

[nickdecarlo76]

What a shame that it can't be restored, all because of the stupid ass gangs and other criminals

[rickster348]

Crime destroy's shopping malls, People won't shop if they think their going to get rolled.

[baconhead2008]

Will there be another film festival next year? If there is, you can try then.

[dreamcicle19772006]

I'm not from here, but this footage is really fascinating!!  Excellent work!!

[jonrev]

Thank you!

[whitebishop1]

I liked it! Looks like an awesome place to film a zombie movie!

[rotes]

is the neighborhood dangerous?

[jonrev]

At first glance it seems OK but with an 800,000 sq.ft. shopping center rotting across the street from some of the houses, anything's possible.

[Rcrby525]

yea

[233268]

sweet now i can go down there this summer thank u

[Drac39]

I wouldn't recommend doing that/ Harvey is crime filled and Dixie Square it's self is dilapatated

[jonrev]

I agree with Drac, unless you are experienced in urban exploration I strongly advise you not go in there.

It is a gang hangout, the building is to the point of crumbling in on itself, and the police are active in the area.

Use my videos as a safe alternative to explore Dixie Square from your own home.

[Rcrby525]

ACTUALY!, in march or july, the jc penny collapsed to the basement

[jonrev]

Penneys doesn't have a basement.

About 40% of the second floor has collapsed, about 4 or 5 8'x8' sections since my last visit in March.

[233268]

wow dude great vid when i go down 2 my grandparnets in illions ill have them take me 2 harvey il so i can see the old DSM are they tearing it down i need 2 no soo i dont get there and its gone plz respond back plz and THANKYOU

[jonrev]

Demolition has been halted for an indefinite amount of time.

[bIancoitaliano]

I heard this mall was built on a burial ground. That is why it had bad luck.

[jonrev]

Not true, it was built on a golf course.

[guitargods2009]

Yeah a golf course built on a former burial site. j/k. Actually great footage jonrev. Go back there and shoot more footage as an update.

[jonrev]

Thanks. Another visit is in the works...

[ihatetaft]

Oh good! Your videos r great. Really makes me feel like I am there.

[amyisindallas]

I think you are right. There is something not right about the land the mall is sitting on.

[Rcrby525]

it had bad luck becaus in the 70's, crime started to happen in the area.

[HattieLovesCattie]

Blame Wal-Mart too.They have killed so many malls.Also blame the Internet,its cheaper to buy online than go to a mall and try something on etc.This mall is half town down coz the new owner ran out of $ cleaning up the abestos.

[jonrev]

WalMart at the time was not the empire it is today; they were just another chain of department stores. The internet was not even a thought at the time either. None of these factors had any role in the death of Dixie Square.

[shhhrv]

i would like to stop by the dixie mall in june on our way from minnesota to michigan, is the mall building still standing? thanks for an answer. vroom vroom, steve at hrv

[jonrev]

It is standing but for your safety please don't go in there unless you know someone who is familiar with the mall or urban exploration.

The neighborhood isn't great (obviously if there's a shopping mall rotting just across the street) and the police have a great presence around the mall (PD on the southwest corner of the mall parking lot).

[shhhrv]

Thanks for the mall info. We plan to stop there on June 10th as we travel to the NASCAR race in Michigan. Our motorcoach owner is a fan of The Blues Brothers and we always watch the movie as we travel through the area. This is a suprise stop for him as we detour off our regular route. It's actually nice to know the police are near if the "hood" is that bad. we'll take a couple photos outside and get out. Thanks again. Vroom vroom , Steve

[ControlDenied307]

Fantastic video, and excellent song selection. I've only very recently gotten into the whole "dead mall" scene after trying to research the old Cherryland Mall here in Traverse City, MI, and this mall is definitely one of a kind. Thank you for posting this.

[asmetuyasiempre]

JONREV what u have against u peers ?

specially the homeless,u whole film dont worth a dog caca;u start u inf about this film,with sarcasm about people that dont have nothing against you,hell u r using pinks music u aint entitled to do that.,pink floyd play for all the homeless ,the people and the punks,i cant belive u guys want to use the blue brothers movie, those cats where for the peple specially the homeless,u should fix the damn place and help the homeless .. wake up silly

[jonrev]

That was not sarcasm, that was answering questions that I would've otherwise been flooded with. People are curious to know if people who explore Dixie have run into anyone else there.

I have nothing against homeless/punks (as in "gangbangers")/animals, and if you ever get off your fucking ass and see this place for yourself you would most likely be concerned with running into one of those as well.

And please, for the love of God, take an English class.

[hondolespaul]

Great video! I would like to acquire the Thom McAn lettering. Do you know who got it down?

[fode140]

I just checked out your pictures too. They are incredible! What beautiful work! I absolutely cannot believe the Thom Mcan sign is gone. I was just there 3 weeks ago and it was still there. Must've just happened. How would they get it down?

[Rx985]

I just saw your pics from your visit a couple days ago and they're fantastic! Great job! And how shocked were you when you first saw that the Thom Mcan sign was gone?

[jonrev]

Thanks, I have a video from that visit coming in the next week or so.

I was more shocked that they got it down without destroying the storefront, it looks like its ready to collapse any second.

[rthatchjr]

I would just like to say thank you Jonrev. I used to go to Dixie Square when i was a child with my mother and aunts and cousins, I remember its last days and how sad people were,it was the final blow to Harvey,Illinois. My mother and father met there and i was born in Blue Island, Illinois, I spent many years in and around Harvey and it saddens me to see how bad it truly has become,but thank you for bringing back some wonderful memories.

[jonrev]

You're very welcome. It's so hard to believe that a mall where thousands of people grew up with and have memories of can be forgotten by the rest of the world to the point of where it's at now.

[TBird100636]

I thought the Harvey Police Station was right next door to the mall, no cops bothered you???

[jonrev]

Yes it is, but I think ever since the city sold the property they've lost interest in it.

[fode140]

Any word on the progress of the Paw Filmworks documentary? CAN'T WAIT! I check in to their website constantly for any news about it!

[jonrev]

I don't know anything on the progress of Paul's film, but if what I heard is correct then he is done filming there.

[PampersPete]

$1,587 and counting.......

[PampersPete]

I'm $100 closer to my goal tonight. $1,487.00 and counting. DSM.....here I come. Soon....so very,very soon.

[NightAire]

Fantastic overview of the mall today; it's been fascinating to watch (through everyone's pictures and videos) as slowly but surely inside is becoming outside once again. Yet... every so often there's still a preserved pocket of its origins, like those signs in JC Penny's... It's an absolutely fascinating video! (You were brave to go on the 2nd level of JC Penny's, & on the roof... glad you weren't hurt!!!)

[PampersPete]

BTW,awesome video Jonrev. Any particular reason you deleted one of the two Lakehurst vids not too long ago? I'd love to meet up with you & Paul at DSM to take some pics one of these days. I'd really love to send a brick or two back here to SoCal as a memento of a bygone era.

[jonrev]

The reason my second Lakehurst video, and all of Paul's videos disappeared is because Warner Music Group and YouTube are in a pissing match about WMG getting money from videos that use their songs, so YouTube is pulling all videos with WMG's music in it. Paul lost so many that it looks like he pulled his entire collection.

Thanks for the comment.

[PampersPete]

I'm so fuckin' tired of WMG. I kind of figured Paul's vids got pulled because YT is a bunch of pussies. I hope he puts them on another site soon. When I first started researching DSM(partly due to your videos...thanks for turnin' me on btw),"Flying" was a song I had never heard before and loved the DSM footage. I'd like to take down my YT vids from Paul and replace them soon. Send me a message and I'll send you one with my cell phone number. Would love to have a few beers with you for Lakehurst.

[PampersPete]

rterry07coty,all of Paul's vids are deleted. Not sure why yet. I sent him a message via MySpace a few days ago but he hasn't logged on since the 6th.

I'm saving up old money that comes across me at work. So far I've got $1,387.00 saved. I hoping to have 2 Grand around the middle of July saved. I'm planning on flying back to Illinois and Wisconsin to see family then. I may be coming in March if I lose my job in 3 weeks. Would like to get together with Paul & whoever to see DSM if possible.

[rterry07coty]

That was totally awesome! I am obsessed with Dixie Square. I've never been to Chicago but I'd love to take a trip up from Alabama and visit Harvey. I'd just bypass Chicago. What happened to Dixie Square Revisited? It has been removed. Good job--keep it coming!

[mrdeedz1]

Nice video, man. PawFilmWorks have supposedly been putting together a documentary of D.S.M, but they've been pushing the release date back so much that i've stopped inquiring about it. Whenever it comes it'll come. So thanks for the fresh DSM footage, dude. It looks like you were solo on that visit. You got balls!!! I tried to do a solo there once and i couldn't. Harvey cops were 2 nosey.

[jonrev]

PawFilmworks is still working on it, Paul was with me on this trip, along with about 4 other people with cameras. You NEVER go into Dixie Square alone.

[mrdeedz1]

Oh yeah, i know about now going in alone. Even though i packed a firearm with me that day i tried to go in solo, i know that gun wouldn't save me if that escalator in JCPenneys decided to collapse on top of me or something. I remember the layout of that place pretty well..as a kid and a teenager. My friends and i used to dare each other every halloween to run thru the main entrance to the north JCP entrance at night time. It was scary as hell..but fun. i wouldnt try that shit 2day though.

[ToonTownTerrorist]

This is some good business, right here!

I love seeing new D.S.M. footage, but it's a shame you didn't get a better shot up the escalator steps.

Well done.

- T3

[level505]

my two favorite things in this world, abandoned places and Pink Floyd!! VERY WELL DONE...EPIC!!

[Rx985]

Great video! How nervous were you feeling when you were walking on the 2nd floor of that store near the end of the video?

[jonrev]

I wasn't too nervous, I just had to be ready to run at any moment. That store was Penneys department store

[MockStoneLLC]

You have a giant abandonded Mall?? thats crazy! and no stoners and hobos?

[jonrev]

We were there very early in the morning in January so that there was a lesser chance of running into homeless, thugs, or the wild dogs that a usually in there. The only other living thing we saw was a fox inside Jewel grocery store.

[MockStoneLLC]

wow, did it see you? awsome song BTW

[jonrev]

Yes he ran off as soon as we saw him. We spotted him later inside Polk Bros. but it wasn't until he was running out the back door.

[fode140]

Excellent video! You ventured really deep inside. I've driven by DSM a couple of times, but not had a solid plan to spend too much time inside and worried about leaving my car alone in the street for too long! It's amazing how much faster it's deteriorating now.