How can you transform a vacant mall? These Londoners have ideas

Lines of vendor tables, sounds of drums and hundreds of young families will fill the halls of Citi Plaza in downtown London on Saturday.

It's a notable difference from a typical day at the mall, which houses just a handful of retailers, and where echoes ring through the mostly vacant halls.

This weekend's EarthFest, running Saturday, is just one way London organizations are looking to use the space at Citi Plaza, with the hope of bringing it back to life.

"I was a teenager in the '90s so I used to come here when the Galleria Mall was really hopping and you forget about that," said Earthfest volunteer Molly Miksa . "But when you have all these tables, exhibitors, performers and people, and you see the light streaming through, you see the nice space it is."

Originally built as Galleria Mall, the space opened in 1989, housing stores such as Ralph Lauren and Harry Rosen. When department store Eaton's left in 1999, Galleria started struggling and pivoted to office and event spaces.

Today, Citi Plaza is home to the Middlesex-London Health Unit, a gym, movie theatre, a hair salon and some other tenants. CBC London and London Public Library's Central Library are also in the building, but the library owns its property and CBC rents space from the library.

One of the last retailers in the mall is a Dollarama, and the only remnants of a food court is a Subway open two days a week. 

Bonnie Wludyka, the senior property manager of Citi Plaza, said the goal is to turn most of the building into office space.

"We don't see it as a shopping space anymore," she said. 

Roller skating and art galleries among ideas

EarthFest isn't the only group to use Citi Plaza to hold an event. The space turned into a roller-skating rink in 2022 and a multimedia art gallery in 2023.

"It was so much fun to see people come into a space that they were totally not expecting it to be," said Kathy Navackas, who organized both events. "I'm a firm believer…in taking empty space or unused space and seeing if you can reimagine it."

There are perks to holding events in a space like Citi Plaza, she said, because it was already built with features like washrooms and electricity.

"We're stuck in thinking it must be retail, it must be a restaurant. No, it can be a creative space," Navackas said, adding that she thinks the plaza could also host a board game night or use empty storefronts as art gallery space. "In London, we're just so stuck on the traditional things."

Another organization's ideas for Citi Plaza involves keeping the space as-is. Film London is calling for movies and TV shows to use the former mall as an on-location set. 

"When you think of a mall, especially stories set in a mall, you think of certain elements," said Film London manager Andrew Dodd, pointing to storefronts, escalators, elevators, skylights and water fountains. "All of that is featured here in Citi Plaza."

Film crews may be inclined to shoot in a vacant mall, rather than a busy one, as it is easier to secure permits and ensure they are not disrupting businesses, Dodd said. 

"It's got a bit of a time capsule feel to it as well," Dodd added. "Any sort of '90s to early 2000s mall look, right up to a modern contemporary look, Citi Plaza has it covered."

While Citi Plaza might not return to its original status, London organizations say there are still ways to give it a second chance.

"I'm a firm believer that it's the arts and cultural kinds of things that will bring these spaces back to life," Navackas said.