What was Ford City Mall like in its heyday?

Curious City

WBEZ Chicago

Investigation, Chicago, Radio, Arts, Society & Culture, Public, Education, Curious, City

4.6 • 661 Ratings

🗓️ 17 September 2025

⏱️ 8 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Vacant shops and faded signs, Ford City Mall is in the process of being sold. But this shell of a shopping center was once a bustling hub, especially for young people.

Transcript

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0:00.0	America is changing. And so is the world.
0:04.4	But what's happening in America isn't just the cause of global upheaval.
0:08.6	It's also a symptom of disruption that's happening everywhere.
0:12.4	I'm Asma Khalid in Washington, D.C.
0:14.7	I'm Tristan Redman in London, and this is the global story.
0:18.8	Every weekday will bring you a story from this intersection, where the world and America meet.
0:24.3	Listen on BBC.com or wherever you get your podcasts.
0:29.9	You've seen the headlines. Now let's go deeper.
0:32.6	I'm Sasha Ann Simons, and I'm getting local takes from the experts and your neighbors on In the Loop.
0:37.5	Every weekday at 9.
0:39.0	This is where Chicago checks in.
0:41.1	Listen to In the Loop wherever you get your podcasts.
0:46.3	It's Curious City, where we take your questions about Chicago and the region.
0:50.8	And investigate.
0:52.0	Report.
0:52.6	Explore.
0:53.5	From WBEZ.
0:55.7	What's up, Chicago?
0:56.6	I'm Erin Allen.
0:58.4	Do you remember hanging out at the mall?
1:01.9	Meeting up with friends at the movie theater, going to Sparrow's, scoping out the cuties,
1:07.1	maybe buying a little something to impress, said cuties.
	...

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