Filene's - Crystal Mall - Waterford, CT
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| Former Filene's Outside Entrance |
CRYSTAL MALL
850 HARTFORD TPKE
WATERFORD, CONN.
CLOSED 2006
Filene's was a large retail chain in the United States based out of Boston, MA. Originally owned by Federated Department Stores, then May's Department Stores, and eventually Macy*s in 2006, the Filene's name has since been phased out and most stores converted to the Macy*s name. This particular location in the Crystal Mall in Waterford, CT was not so fortunate in receiving a Macy*s makeover, as the mall already had a Macy*s location, which was a former Jordan Marsh.
Filene's was the second store in the Crystal Mall to open, just behind Sears, in 1984. despite having two levels, two exterior entrances, and two mall entrances, the Filene's location was extremely small for the chain, having only 90,000 square feet.
In 2008, two very unusual anchors moved into the former Filene's space: Christmas Tree Shops on the first floor and Bed Bath & Beyond on the second floor.
During the 2007/2008 renovations for CTS/BBB, one of the exterior entrances was lost, which was merely a clone of the still existing one. Satellite imagery from 2005 shows the old vestibule present on the building.
The vestibule to the former entrance has since been removed, however some remnants of it can still be found. Black-colored beams remain where the vestibule once stood, and you can see a slight change in coloration of the wall where the entrance doors once were.
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| A picture of the secondary exterior entrance to Filene's ©The Caldor Rainbow |
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| Notice the black beams and discoloration of the middle section of rockwork. At the top, you can see the roof still has a bit of an angle from the old entrance |
There aren't too many remnants of Filene's inside of the store. The interior underwent extensive renovation for each store, so there isn't too much to cover on the inside.
Bed Bath & Beyond Interior Entrance (2nd Floor)
The Christmas Tree Shops entrance on the first floor much more closely resembles the former Filene's entrance. The wooden part of the facade has since been covered up with a new wall, but other than that, not much has changed. If you look closely on the stonework behind the Christmas Tree Shops logos, you can actually see a bit of the markings leftover from the old Filene's signage, which was on the masonry.
Compare the Christmas Tree Shops entrance to the Filene's entrance
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| Filene's Entrance circa 2006 ©The Caldor Rainbow |
Interestingly enough, the entrance facade for Bed Bath & Beyond had the entrance to the store pushed back 30-or-so feet, opening up this awkward sitting area.
This picture was taken on the walkway just behind the stairs in the above picture (the stairs have since been removed). The entrance to Christmas Tree Shops sits flush underneath with those pillars in the front, and the entrance for Bed Bath and Beyond was pushed back 30 or so feet from the Filene's entrance.
Sadly, pictures of Filene's from when it was still open is hard to come by, and I haven't found any pictures. If you have any, feel free to share them below in the comments!
Until next time,
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