Friendly Center & The Shops at Friendly

[StevenRocks]

Thought this would fun for all the mall fans out there; found these at Starmount Coropration's website:

Flying above

Welcome!

Harper's Resturant: very tasty!

Barnes and Noble Booksellers: no music section, but very cool.

Eddie Bauer: big enough to be a mini-anchor.

Gymboree: cute kids' clothes.

Hecht's: this is an old picture, they still have showcases.

Belk: another old picture; Woolworth's is to the left, and the store pictured was torn down a few years ago.

Express: not a usual hangout of mine.

The Limited: very striking exterior.

Gap: fall into it.

Bear Rock Cafe & Deli: also tasty.

New York & Company: back when it was Lerner New York. Former location of Fleet-Plummer Hardware.

Victoria's Secret: very sexy.

Harris Teeter: the coolest HT in town!

The Grande: catch a flick.

Banana Republic: classy urban clothing.

Toys and Company: local flavor

This concludes our tour. Happy Shopping!

[JunktionFET]

Looks like a friendly place!

Sorry, that joke was really bad.

Anyway, I wonder what the place looked like originally. I do like how each storefront is a little different instead of the same old boring template used over and over. If they are going to do anything with an old shopping center, I'd rather they spice it up with a little personality like this.

[DigitalSky]

Yeah It's a nice place to go - good college hang out.

[StevenRocks]

Anyway, I wonder what the place looked like originally.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

The original look was really simple. Lots of red brick and aluminum-fronted canopies. I'd love to get ahold of some old photos. The green and beige canopies are from the '80s, and the brick and precast concrete arches are from 'the '90s.

[ezcheese]

My mom was telling me about how Freindly center was in the early days. Apparently, it was pretty much the only thing around that area of Freindly Ave in the beginning. She grew up in Greensboro and went to Grimsley (which was called Greensboro high school back then) in the 50's.

[Jerseyman4]

Great pics!

At the time when Asheboro did not have a movie theatre for a short time (they bulldozed the old theatre, U/C at the Randolph Mall) in the summer of 2003, i used to go to the Grande theatre a lot to catch a movie with the X girlfriend. Of course now the movie theatre is open now but the cheap a$$e$ wont take student discounts but Grande did. I also remember (i know im going off topic but i have to say this!!!) back in town when Aberdeen tore down the McDonalds to make for a new one while i was in HS, it gave everyone a reason to skip classes to go down to Rockingham and get Micky D's! Even my parents would go down to Rockingham for Micky D's at least once a week. Now of course the new Mack Donalds is opened now and still is really nice.

Edited April 30, 2006 by Jerseyman4

[DigitalSky]

http://www.news-record.com/apps/pbcs.dll/a...C0101/509210313

So Harris-Teeter will build like their biggest store ever... and PF Changs is officially coming.

[ezcheese]

awesome news. i have been wondering what has been going on with that site since i moved.

[StevenRocks]

It's crazy how Friendly Center has come back so strong. When I was little, the place was a relic of the '50s. Now it's the hottest mall in town.

Back in the day, HT was over where Belk is now and it was kinda small. When they rebuilt, it was impressive. That said, the current store's parking lot is horrible and it cuts back on visibility to the new section, so I can see why they're moving.

[DanRNC]

Is Tex and Shirley's still there?

[DigitalSky]

Yes, Tex and Shirley's is still there. I saw they're building a new location somewhere else in Greensboro too I can't remember where though...

Steven, when Harris Teeter (Big Star) was in Belk's current location, where was Belk located at that time? thx

[StevenRocks]

Steven, when Harris Teeter (Big Star) was in Belk's current location, where was Belk located at that time? thx

It was right next to the current Belk, closer to Hecht's. It was about 40,000 square feet on two levels and it was a typical '60s Belk store.

Big Star was at the bottom of the hill facing Friendly Avenue, then there was a Kinney Shoes and I think a Swenson's Ice Cream between Belk and Big Star, then the Belk, and a Woolworth right beside it.

[ezcheese]

It's crazy how Friendly Center has come back so strong. When I was little, the place was a relic of the '50s. Now it's the hottest mall in town.

Back in the day, HT was over where Belk is now and it was kinda small. When they rebuilt, it was impressive. That said, the current store's parking lot is horrible and it cuts back on visibility to the new section, so I can see why they're moving.

i always hated that HT parking lot. it will be good that they're going to be able to create a better parking situation, especially since the new store will be even bigger than the current taj ma'teeter

[cityboi]

Is Tex and Shirley's still there?

This place is usually packed in the mornings. I love their sweet potato pancakes

[DigitalSky]

^Tex & Shirley's is pancake heaven.

[intcvlcphlga]

I know this is old news to most of you but since I'm rarely in Greensboro I was shocked to see that the former Burlington Industries hq had been torn down when I drove by this weekend. How did that happen? Their hq was probably the best piece of architecture in Greensboro. Was there not any public outcry to the loss of such a landmark? Is a bigger Harris Teeter and a chain restaurant like PF Chang's worth losing such an important piece of Greensboro's history?

[StevenRocks]

I know this is old news to most of you but since I'm rarely in Greensboro I was shocked to see that the former Burlington Industries hq had been torn down when I drove by this weekend. How did that happen? Their hq was probably the best piece of architecture in Greensboro. Was there not any public outcry to the loss of such a landmark? Is a bigger Harris Teeter and a chain restaurant like PF Chang's worth losing such an important piece of Greensboro's history?

I'm all for preservation, but the BI building wasn't very easy to reuse for another purpose and it was unoccupied, with little chance of getting another tenent. Since Friendly Center needed more space, the plans make sense, even though Greensboro lost some latter day architectural history.

[ILoveCallingNCHome]

even though Greensboro lost some latter day architectural history.

....and an awesome fountain

[StevenRocks]

....and an awesome fountain

So very true. I have a picture of that fountain somewhere around here. I think it was in a book about Greensboro from the '80s.

[ezcheese]

i always referred to the BI building as the exo-skeleton building. i thought it was cool too, but when a company goes under, it's better that something else goes in there than to have that building sit vacant for years. it would have been cool to re-develop it, but again, what's going on now will be better than nothing.

Edited September 29, 2005 by ezcheese

[StevenRocks]

The new HT will be the biggest grocery store in Greensboro, but the Morrocroft store in Charlotte will still be about 8,000 square feet bigger. That one's the biggest in the state.

[krazeeboi]

Isn't the building that was demolished the one that they had an online clip about? Several people were out to see the building imploded, and it seemed to be a very important piece of Greensboro history. Too bad the building was unfit for adaptive reuse. Columbia renovated and refurbished an old Confederate printing plant downtown and now it is a Publix. There's also an old train station in Charleston that was remodeled and is now home to a Harris Teeter (the coolest grocery store I've been in by far). A similar concept would have been cool for Greensboro.

Edited September 29, 2005 by krazeeboi

[StevenRocks]

^ Greensboro is not a city that's shy about tearing down old buildings.

I think if it could have held on for another 15 years or so, the BI building (circa 1971) would have been considered historic, but it was not to be.

[krazeeboi]

Too bad.

[StevenRocks]

I'm still amazed at Friendly Center's major comeback over the past few years...