Lloyd Center Mall

Lloyd Center Mall is really easy to get to from downtown Portland. It's right off of one of the MAX stations, the last stop in the ride free area. We weren't out specifically to shop, however after the market, cherry blossoms, brief sleet on Saturday and a lunch out, we found ourselves in that area. Before we hopped on a train to get home I said "Lets go check out what this big mall is like."

Not too long ago I overheard some people talking about an ice skating rink inside a mall, but I didn't know where it was. Apparently it's right there. There were lots of kids out (I can't remember the last time I was in a shopping mall this crowded) and the ice looked pretty rough. A girl on the rink grabbed onto the rail near us and complained her feet hurt. I don't know if this would be the best place to ice skate, but I really like skating & this is closer to us than the roller rink...I might give it a try if I can figure out when it is less busy. According to wikipedia, this is where the infamous Tanya Harding first started to skate.

I was surprised to learn that Lloyd Center has been there, in one form or another, since 1960. We left the place saying "the dream of the 90s is alive in Portland" because it reminded both of us ohio natives of some of the shopping malls that came and went in that decade. Who knew there were still suncoast video stores, for example. According to this article, the mall was enclosed in 1990 and a food court and theaters were added. The place is huge, but has a lot more natural light than many shopping malls.

 

I've heard tales of people being stopped by mall security for taking photos, since it is a private building. (also interesting to note, Lloyd Center has been involved in supreme court cases on that subject) but I noticed parents taking pictures of the kids on the ice, so I thought I could get away with it. Hopefully that gives you a better idea of the natural light and the scale. With something like 200 shops, this place is pretty huge!