Story on the Development of West Acres

[fightingsioux4life]

Good article on how West Acres Shopping Center in Fargo came to exist:

http://www.grandforksherald.com/event/article/id/241830/

Shopping malls have definitely changed the landscape of America over the past 50 years.

PS: It's a good thing Bill Schlossman wasn't a resident of Grand Forks. He would have been told that his idea was "not feasible" and not "cost-effective" and it just never would have happened.

[watchmaker49]

Good article on how West Acres Shopping Center in Fargo came to exist:

http://www.grandfork...icle/id/241830/

Shopping malls have definitely changed the landscape of America over the past 50 years.

PS: It's a good thing Bill Schlossman wasn't a resident of Grand Forks. He would have been told that his idea was "not feasible" and not "cost-effective" and it just never would have happened.

Really? Considering that when the South Forks Plaza and the Columbia Mall were built they were fields on the edge of town. Yes shopping malls did change the landscape but now ask yourself why so few are being built anymore? Lifestyle centers are now the way of retail. Look at Arbor Lakes in Maple Grove.

[Cratter]

Or good thing it wasnt called "Walmart," the community would be in a uproar!

[82SiouxGuy]

Good article on how West Acres Shopping Center in Fargo came to exist:

http://www.grandfork...icle/id/241830/

Shopping malls have definitely changed the landscape of America over the past 50 years.

PS: It's a good thing Bill Schlossman wasn't a resident of Grand Forks. He would have been told that his idea was "not feasible" and not "cost-effective" and it just never would have happened.

Sears moved out to the South Forks Plaza, which was on the edge of town, several years before they built West Acres. Actually, Kmart opened early in 1964 and Sears later that year. Both stores had wings with other stores attached, some of them in an enclosed mall type setting. Rydells was in its present location, but otherwise there wasn't much except fields south and west. Red River was built a few years later in the middle of a field. They enclosed the space between Kmart and Sears and opened that part as an enclosed mall in 1973. They added a wing to the mall in 1977. Columbia Mall opened in July of 1978. Columbia Mall was built almost a mile from anything else. So Grand Forks wasn't really that far behind Fargo in developing new shopping regions and moving out of downtown.

[Cratter]

Hence the "South" Forks.

[82SiouxGuy]

Hence the "South" Forks.

And now it should be "Central" Forks, the place is probably about the middle of Grand Forks.

[watchmaker49]

Sears moved out to the South Forks Plaza, which was on the edge of town, several years before they built West Acres. Actually, Kmart opened early in 1964 and Sears later that year. Both stores had wings with other stores attached, some of them in an enclosed mall type setting. Rydells was in its present location, but otherwise there wasn't much except fields south and west. Red River was built a few years later in the middle of a field. They enclosed the space between Kmart and Sears and opened that part as an enclosed mall in 1973. They added a wing to the mall in 1977. Columbia Mall opened in July of 1978. Columbia Mall was built almost a mile from anything else. So Grand Forks wasn't really that far behind Fargo in developing new shopping regions and moving out of downtown.

Thank you for making what I was saying better with the history lesson.

[fightingsioux4life]

Okay, you all have convinced me that my sarcastic aside was not accurate.

[Cratter]

Wanna talk Fargo growth? Stanford is building a new half billion dollar hospital! Wow! Didn't know they had such demand. Sanford is pretty sure the states largest private sector employer with over 7,000 employees in Fargo alone.

Wish they had bought Altru.

[82SiouxGuy]

Wanna talk Fargo growth? Stanford is building a new half billion dollar hospital! Wow! Didn't know they had such demand. Sanford is pretty sure the states largest private sector employer with over 7,000 employees in Fargo alone.

Wish they had bought Altru.

Altru will be building all new facilities over the next 10-15 years. They are going to replace the hospital and all the clinic buildings on the main campus. The hospital will be significantly larger (but not nearly as big as what Sanford is doing in Fargo). I would prefer to have an independent medical provider in Grand Forks that has an affiliation with Mayo rather than have Sanford be the only significant provider between Omaha and the Canadian border and between Minneapolis and Billings. Sanford isn't perfect and they have plenty of their own issues to deal with.

[Cratter]

Ten to fifteen year away is a pretty good chunk of time. I will believe it when I see it. They announce those plans to "appease" the public. High pressure on being voted the worse hospital care satisfaction in the state.

I prefer competition. Doctors Hospital.

Not sure what you mean by significant provider but Innovis Hospital in Fargo looks significant when compared to say at least Altru.

[82SiouxGuy]

Ten to fifteen year away is a pretty good chunk of time. I will believe it when I see it. They announce those plans to "appease" the public. High pressure on being voted the worse hospital care satisfaction in the state.

I prefer competition. Doctors Hospital.

Not sure what you mean by significant provider but Innovis Hospital in Fargo looks significant when compared to say at least Altru.

The construction will begin on Altru within 2 or 3 years at the latest. It will be completed in 15 years or less. The last plans I've heard include the hospital being among the first to be replaced because they are short of procedure and operating space. Also, people really want single rooms so they want to get new patient rooms as soon as possible. Then they will move on to clinic space.

You say you want competition, yet you would have preferred to have Sanford buy out Altru. That would have left no competition. Sanford is trying to buy out all of the competition in the region. Innovis will be a minor player in Fargo if Sanford has anything to do with it, and compared to Sanford they already are. And Sanford looks at Altru as competition. That's why they would like to buy out Altru.

Do you think Sanford would have cared about Grand Forks at all if they have Sioux Falls and Fargo as their main locations, and Bismarck as a 3rd. They would have tried to funnel as much as possible to Fargo rather than treat here in Grand Forks. Your options for being treated in Grand Forks may have decreased if Sanford had purchased Altru. And if you want to be treated by Sanford you can go to the clinic in East Grand Forks or the hospital in Fargo. Nothing is stopping you. There is plenty of competition for medical treatment in the Red River Valley.

[The Sicatoka]

With Sanford going into Bismarck (MedCenter1), don't be surprised if Mayo adds an affiliate in that direction.