North Texas Daily

Preston Mitchell | Staff Writer

@presto_mitch

Open nearly every day from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., located in the northeast corner of Interstate 35 and Loop 288, Golden Triangle Mall is one of Denton’s best known shopping centers. But, best known does not exactly mean it’s the best option.

Many citizens agree their biggest shopping center leaves less to be desired. All it truly has to offer are kid-friendly activities, one food court and free Wi-Fi hotspots. Construction in Denton has become a staple, and restructuring the Triangle is the city’s safest bet to bring in more customers and new money.

The center needs a more notable array of stores. Granted, it has Dillard’s, Barnes & Noble, Sears and Macy’s to its name, but not much else. Beyond those, we have the same requisite Spencer’s and cheap accessory stations that every mall has. This makes for a local thrifting experience without originality.

To be blunt: our mall is very bland. Events for the whole community are held so sparsely there that whenever they do happen, it comes across as a relevance check. The majority of the mall’s attractions – primarily the baby grand piano and the children’s play area – aim to attract families and people with children. In a growing college town like Denton’s, there’s no wonder why one walking trail and a giant piano straight out of “Big” has some students driving elsewhere across North Texas.

We know malls in the Dallas-Fort Worth area have taken a beating lately, but this should offer Denton investors an opportunity. The Vista Ridge Mall in Lewisville has faced the threat of foreclosure for quite some time, and Plano’s Collin Creek Mall foreclosed a year ago. Once the Vista Ridge is gone, the Triangle’s biggest competition from traditional retail stores will be The Shops at Highland Village. So, why not offer a better shopping to bring in all those potential customers?

Individual stores price matching with e-shoppers would heavily increase mall traffic. Additionally, lessening the toddler-geared activities and putting that money toward college conducive stores would benefit everyone greatly.

In the meantime, the Triangle Mall has shown slow (but sure) improvements by acquiring an H&M and Francesca’s. Both are traffic-inducing clothing chains that consistently satisfy their markets in the nation, which is a quality that the whole center should focus on.

In reality, the entire mall needs to follow in Denton’s fashion (pun intended) and build more accessible stores that support children as well as the enrollees of UNT and Texas Woman’s University. The beauty of the community mall, in theory, is that its stores and attractions fulfill the needs of all ages and offers a place to socialize with friends and family.

Ultimately, the tone and mood of the Triangle feel equally dated. Therefore, if it wants to keep up with the Joneses, our mall should follow suit and make better attempts to market its relevancy to all of us in Denton and beyond. If not, it won’t be long until Denton investors find something else to build there.