FloridaFuture
July 22nd, 2007, 04:55 PM
Malls Want Teens To Act More Adult
By MICHAEL SASSO, The Tampa Tribune
Published: July 21, 2007
LARGO - Robin Elder, who manages a bookstore at Largo Mall, knows how to spot a teenager on the lam.
Especially on busy Friday evenings, a few teens - skateboarders, Goth types or the hip-hop set - will duck into her store, scamper to the back and peer over their shoulders to see who's following them.
With the long arm of the law on their tail, youngsters have a funny way of becoming bookworms.
'You can tell,' said Elder, who's worked at Book Bank USA for three years. 'If they come in real quick and run to the back, they're ducking security.'
Here at Largo Mall and across the Tampa Bay area, merchants sound a similar tune. So many teens are swarming in front of mall movie theaters, especially on Friday nights, older customers are staying away and retailers and restaurants are losing business.
The situation may be most severe at this outdoor mall on Ulmerton Road, where one merchant reports teens setting fires behind his store and slamming their skateboards into his glass storefront.
Largo police say they're getting the problem under control. It appears, though, to be at least an irritant at other malls and strip plazas, too.
Locally, malls are trying to fight back by beefing up their internal security staffs and hiring off-duty police officers and sheriff's deputies. For now, though, no Bay area mall has joined the national trend requiring teens to have an adult present after a certain time of night.
Spokeswomen for the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office and Tampa police say teen loitering hasn't been a huge problem demanding law enforcement's attention. During the past six weeks, however, the Largo Police Department has had to send officers toLargo Mall, an outdoor center featuring a Regal Cinemas complex.
Fire And Glass
A few merchants with stores near the theater were piping mad on a recent Friday afternoon.
At the Largo Golf Emporium, which sits next to the Largo Mall's theaters, skateboarders have plowed into the shop's storefront and nearly broken the glass, said store manager David Dorman. He also can point to a black splotch on his shop's back door, where teens have set fires.
The golf shop recently started closing an hour early on weekend nights to avoid the mayhem.
'You've got kids screaming obscenities, running up and down,' said Dorman, who has complained numerous times to the mall's management, the large real estate holding company Weingarten Realty Investors. 'High-class customers won't come here.'
Largo police Sgt. George Edmiston said as many as 300 young people used to hang outside the theater before police started cracking down.
Often, parents would drop off children, thinking they were going to the movies. Instead, the youngsters would never buy a ticket and loiter for four hours, Edmiston said.
About six weeks ago, the police department started sending up to 15 on-duty, off-duty and special operations officers to the mall on some busy nights. They issued citations for trespassing, traffic violations and body 'surfing' on the hoods of cars. The crowds have died down dramatically, he said Friday.
A representative for mall owner Weingarten Realty did not return calls from the Tribune.
Teen loitering is hardly a new problem, and other malls in the area have faced the same issue for years.
At University Mall in Tampa, mall manager Tom Locke has tried to divert teens into other activities. The mall has worked with a few faith-based youth groups, and it has invited youngsters from the nearby University Area Community Development Corp. to survey teens at the mall about what events they would attend.
Crowd control, though, is an ongoing struggle, he lets on.
'It's a constant program,' Locke said. 'It's not something you can just walk out and say, 'OK, we've provided a place for kids to go and that's done.''
Even Other Teens Aren't Safe
At the sprawling Regency Square plaza in Brandon, which houses an AMC 20 theater complex, youngsters occasionally spray-paint graffiti on the walls along Chicago's Maxwell Street Grill, a small restaurant near the theater.
At Westfield Citrus Park in Tampa, Chris Joy tries to focus on selling high-end bed sets for the Dormia retail chain. Every weekend evening, however, a few youngsters will bolt into his store, jump around on the beds - which run $799 to $4,500 - and scurry off giggling.
Overall, merchants at Westfield Citrus Park said the mall is relatively tame. However, Adam Lopez, a clean-cut 17-year-old with a faint moustache, said he and his girlfriend avoid the mall on weekend nights. Twice, children have tried to pick a fight with him for no apparent reason, he said.
Taylor Clifton, a marketing representative for Westfield Citrus Park, said mall security and local sheriff's deputies work hand-in-hand to keep the mall safe.
Several area malls in the area have taken to hiring off-duty sheriff's deputies to help keep the peace. Last weekend, 12 off-duty Hillsborough County sheriff's deputies worked at three area malls: Westfield Brandon, Westfield Citrus Park and University Mall.
The malls paid the sheriff's office about $2,800 for their service, most of which goes to the deputies, said spokeswoman Debbie Carter.
For now, no mall in the Bay area is adopting a parental escort policy.
Across the country, at least 50 malls and shopping centers have begun requiring teenagers to be accompanied by an adult after a certain point in the evening, often 5 or 6 p.m. The huge Mall of America near Minneapolis has such a policy, as do several malls in upstate New York and the St. Louis area.
While some malls fear they will lose all their teen business, most malls find that bigger-spending adults return to the mall at night, said Malachy Kavanagh, a spokesman for the International Council of Shopping Centers.
'Sales often actually rebound after one of these policies is put in place,' Kavanagh said. 'If the people do come back, your sales will increase.'
Reporter Mary Shedden contributed to this report. Reporter Michael Sasso can be reached at (813) 259-7865 or msasso @tampatrib.com.
http://www2.tbo.com/content/2007/jul/21/bz-malls-want-teens-to-act-more-adult/?news-money
By MICHAEL SASSO, The Tampa Tribune
Published: July 21, 2007
LARGO - Robin Elder, who manages a bookstore at Largo Mall, knows how to spot a teenager on the lam.
Especially on busy Friday evenings, a few teens - skateboarders, Goth types or the hip-hop set - will duck into her store, scamper to the back and peer over their shoulders to see who's following them.
With the long arm of the law on their tail, youngsters have a funny way of becoming bookworms.
'You can tell,' said Elder, who's worked at Book Bank USA for three years. 'If they come in real quick and run to the back, they're ducking security.'
Here at Largo Mall and across the Tampa Bay area, merchants sound a similar tune. So many teens are swarming in front of mall movie theaters, especially on Friday nights, older customers are staying away and retailers and restaurants are losing business.
The situation may be most severe at this outdoor mall on Ulmerton Road, where one merchant reports teens setting fires behind his store and slamming their skateboards into his glass storefront.
Largo police say they're getting the problem under control. It appears, though, to be at least an irritant at other malls and strip plazas, too.
Locally, malls are trying to fight back by beefing up their internal security staffs and hiring off-duty police officers and sheriff's deputies. For now, though, no Bay area mall has joined the national trend requiring teens to have an adult present after a certain time of night.
Spokeswomen for the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office and Tampa police say teen loitering hasn't been a huge problem demanding law enforcement's attention. During the past six weeks, however, the Largo Police Department has had to send officers toLargo Mall, an outdoor center featuring a Regal Cinemas complex.
Fire And Glass
A few merchants with stores near the theater were piping mad on a recent Friday afternoon.
At the Largo Golf Emporium, which sits next to the Largo Mall's theaters, skateboarders have plowed into the shop's storefront and nearly broken the glass, said store manager David Dorman. He also can point to a black splotch on his shop's back door, where teens have set fires.
The golf shop recently started closing an hour early on weekend nights to avoid the mayhem.
'You've got kids screaming obscenities, running up and down,' said Dorman, who has complained numerous times to the mall's management, the large real estate holding company Weingarten Realty Investors. 'High-class customers won't come here.'
Largo police Sgt. George Edmiston said as many as 300 young people used to hang outside the theater before police started cracking down.
Often, parents would drop off children, thinking they were going to the movies. Instead, the youngsters would never buy a ticket and loiter for four hours, Edmiston said.
About six weeks ago, the police department started sending up to 15 on-duty, off-duty and special operations officers to the mall on some busy nights. They issued citations for trespassing, traffic violations and body 'surfing' on the hoods of cars. The crowds have died down dramatically, he said Friday.
A representative for mall owner Weingarten Realty did not return calls from the Tribune.
Teen loitering is hardly a new problem, and other malls in the area have faced the same issue for years.
At University Mall in Tampa, mall manager Tom Locke has tried to divert teens into other activities. The mall has worked with a few faith-based youth groups, and it has invited youngsters from the nearby University Area Community Development Corp. to survey teens at the mall about what events they would attend.
Crowd control, though, is an ongoing struggle, he lets on.
'It's a constant program,' Locke said. 'It's not something you can just walk out and say, 'OK, we've provided a place for kids to go and that's done.''
Even Other Teens Aren't Safe
At the sprawling Regency Square plaza in Brandon, which houses an AMC 20 theater complex, youngsters occasionally spray-paint graffiti on the walls along Chicago's Maxwell Street Grill, a small restaurant near the theater.
At Westfield Citrus Park in Tampa, Chris Joy tries to focus on selling high-end bed sets for the Dormia retail chain. Every weekend evening, however, a few youngsters will bolt into his store, jump around on the beds - which run $799 to $4,500 - and scurry off giggling.
Overall, merchants at Westfield Citrus Park said the mall is relatively tame. However, Adam Lopez, a clean-cut 17-year-old with a faint moustache, said he and his girlfriend avoid the mall on weekend nights. Twice, children have tried to pick a fight with him for no apparent reason, he said.
Taylor Clifton, a marketing representative for Westfield Citrus Park, said mall security and local sheriff's deputies work hand-in-hand to keep the mall safe.
Several area malls in the area have taken to hiring off-duty sheriff's deputies to help keep the peace. Last weekend, 12 off-duty Hillsborough County sheriff's deputies worked at three area malls: Westfield Brandon, Westfield Citrus Park and University Mall.
The malls paid the sheriff's office about $2,800 for their service, most of which goes to the deputies, said spokeswoman Debbie Carter.
For now, no mall in the Bay area is adopting a parental escort policy.
Across the country, at least 50 malls and shopping centers have begun requiring teenagers to be accompanied by an adult after a certain point in the evening, often 5 or 6 p.m. The huge Mall of America near Minneapolis has such a policy, as do several malls in upstate New York and the St. Louis area.
While some malls fear they will lose all their teen business, most malls find that bigger-spending adults return to the mall at night, said Malachy Kavanagh, a spokesman for the International Council of Shopping Centers.
'Sales often actually rebound after one of these policies is put in place,' Kavanagh said. 'If the people do come back, your sales will increase.'
Reporter Mary Shedden contributed to this report. Reporter Michael Sasso can be reached at (813) 259-7865 or msasso @tampatrib.com.
http://www2.tbo.com/content/2007/jul/21/bz-malls-want-teens-to-act-more-adult/?news-money