From Cinderella City to Buckingham Square: How the Mall Shaped Denver

Like many American cities, Denver and its adjoining suburbs have had moments defined by malls. From Cinderella City to Villa Italia, Buckingham Square to Westminster, malls have come and gone, but created indelible memories for many Denverites. These intergenerational spaces played host to first jobs, first dates, and for many teens, first parent-free experiences in the public realm. Today on the show, host Bree Davies talks with author and architecture critic Alexandra Lange about her new book, Meet Me by the Fountain: An Inside History of the Mall. Together, they trace the architectural and social history of Denver through the lens of a built environment meant for shopping — but remembered for so much more.

Bree and Alexandra talked about beautiful images of dying malls — like these photos from Seph Lawless.

(Pssst… today’s blooper comes courtesy of these amazing in-store tapes from KMart that someone kindly posted to the Interwebz. Also, Bree recommends the album Vacant Places by Hantasi if you really want to immerse yourself in the mall’s aural aesthetic.)

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