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// Workers AI · dad joke modeIs Livingston Mall alive? No, it's just a living area.

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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Livingston Mall
The northwest entrance to the mall, between the former Sears location and the Barnes & Noble.
Map
Location112 Eisenhower Pkwy
Livingston, NJ 07039
Coordinates40°46′37″N 74°21′14″W / 40.777°N 74.354°W / 40.777; -74.354
Opened1972[1]
ClosedFebruary 10, 2026
DeveloperN. K. Winston Corp.[2]
OwnerKohan Retail Investment Group
ArchitectCharles Luckman and Associates[2]
Stores0
0 (4 vacant)
Floor area968,820 sq ft (90,006 m2)
Floors2
Public transit
Bus transport NJ Transit NJ Transit bus: 70, 73, 873
Bus transport Community Coach bus: 77
Bus transport Livingston Express Shuttle

Livingston Mall is a defunct two-level shopping mall located in Livingston, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The mall had a gross leasable area of 968,820 sq ft (90,006 m2).[3] Located near the Passaic River close to neighboring Morris County, it served customers from Essex, Morris and Union counties.

History

[edit]

Livingston Mall was planned in the late 1960s and opened for business in stages starting with Bamberger's in 1971,[4] followed by the mall proper itself in 1972 with additional anchor stores Sears and Hahne & Company.[2] The mall benefited from the migration of population in Northern New Jersey to suburban and exurban areas, and the exodus of shoppers and stores from downtown Newark, once Northern New Jersey's premiere shopping destination, but that had been in serious decline since the July 1967 race riots.[citation needed] Both Bamberger's and Hahne & Co. had massive flagship stores in downtown Newark at the time of the mall opening. Sears also had a store on Elizabeth Avenue in Newark's once popular South Ward.[citation needed]

In 1986, the Bamberger's store was converted into Macy's.[5]

In 1989, Hahne's gave way to Lord & Taylor when its parent company, which owned both banners, decided to retire the Hahne's brand.[6]

In 2008, the mall underwent a major renovation, which included an addition of a new food court, a new center court with a new elevator, and new entrances.[7] Barnes & Noble and Applebee’s opened in the new wing of the mall in 2008 as part of the renovations as an expansion of the mall.[7]

Decline and redevelopment

[edit]

In February 2020, Sears announced that it would shutter as part of a plan to close 51 stores nationwide.[8]

In August 2020, Lord & Taylor announced it would be closing the Livingston Mall location as one of 24 stores nationwide as a result of the pandemic.[9][10]

A plan for the 50-year-old Livingston Mall to be refreshed was authorized by the Livingston Township in March 2021.[11]

In 2022, Simon sold the Livingston Mall to Kohan Retail Investment Group.[12] Any references to Simon in the mall were taped over with black tape and the TVs throughout the mall, which had been on to show Simon’s advertising, were either shut off or disconnected.[13]

Throughout Kohan’s ownership, the mall faced significant deterioration in its infrastructure over the recent years. Around 2023-2024, the mall’s HVAC system stopped working and was in need of repair, resulting in lack of air conditioning and heating.[14] As a result, various stores (such as Old Navy, H&M, and more) either temporarily (and eventually, permanently) closed, or had their own makeshift air conditioning/heating (though they eventually closed, as well) from summer 2024 and onwards.[14]

The parking lot is severely dilapidated, with numerous potholes prominent. In June 2025, a Florham Park resident, Laura Botwin, had her teenage son’s car badly damaged after the vehicle fell into a sinkhole. The victim later sued Kohan due to how big the pothole was, to the point the pothole was described as “a sinkhole”.[15] Water leaks have resulted in damage and stenches of mold permeating throughout the interior of mall, as reported by shoppers. The elevator has been shut off since 2024, and most of the escalators no longer work (with the exception of the one next to the former Macy’s). The mall was described by many locals in the area and state as a "dead mall".[16]

In March 2025, the Township Council adopted a plan for the mall to be redeveloped as high-density housing.[17]

In September 2025, it was revealed that Kohan owed over $8.7 million on taxes across its malls in the country, with Livingston Mall on the top of the list overdue on a staggering nearly $4 million on taxes.[18] Barry Lewis Jr., the Livingston Township Manager, said in an interview about Kohan being overdue on the taxes, saying “there hasn’t been one positive thing about the entire experience since Kohan took over in 2022.”[18]

With the numbers of shoppers diminishing and key anchors closing, the mall has been described by December 2025 as a "zombie mall" that was "quiet, dim and stripped of the crowds" during the holiday shopping season, making the mall seem "basically dead".[19][20]

In January 2026, it was announced that Barnes & Noble would be moving to the nearby Livingston Shopping Center by mid-to-late 2027.[21] However, their moving date changed and July 15, 2026 was the store's final day at Livingston Mall. The new store will open at the Livingston Shopping Center in August 2026.[22][23] That same month, Macy's announced that it would be closing as part of a plan to close 14 stores by the end of the first quarter, describing the location as "underproductive".[24][25]

On February 10, 2026, the mall was closed due to a burst pipe, with “temporarily closed” notices posted on the entrances, excluding the Macy’s and Barnes & Noble. According to a post by Hidden Treasures on Facebook from February 17, stores had to remain closed the following week “due to an ongoing maintenance issue involving a burst pipe in the Livingston Mall”.[26]

In April 2026, Macy’s closed its doors.[27] On July 15, 2026, Barnes and Noble closed its Livingston Mall location in preparation for its relocation, leaving the mall without any establishments.

The mall’s decrepit conditions have been popular among various social media influencers, retail/mall enthusiasts, urban explorers, and more as a prime example of how some malls in the country within the past decades have declined due to lack of investment and relevancy, changing consumer habits, and oversaturation of malls built. Local police have asked teenagers and influencers not to enter the Livingston Mall following mass social media trends of breaking into the mall, with local police citing that the mall is still private property.[28]

Location

[edit]

Livingston Mall is located at the intersection of Eisenhower Parkway and South Orange Avenue, and is accessible from Exit 4A off Interstate 280, Route 10, Route 24, Interstate 78, and Interstate 287. Bus service is provided by NJ Transit's 70, 73, and 873 routes. Coach USA's Community Coach 77 bus also serves the mall. The Township of Livingston operates the Livingston Express Shuttle which serves the mall and the South Orange station.[29]

References

[edit]
  1. ↑ "Major Shopping Malls - Four fast facts eight malls in 1996". The Star-Ledger. February 4, 1996. p. 282. Retrieved January 12, 2025.
  2. 1 2 3 "Livingston Mall debuts". The Herald News. August 2, 1972. p. 12. Retrieved September 14, 2020.
  3. ↑ International Council of Shopping Centers: Livingston Mall Archived 2007-03-13 at the Wayback Machine, accessed September 21, 2006
  4. ↑ "Bamberger's Opens Store". New York Daily News. New York, New York. October 10, 1971. p. 365.
  5. ↑ "Bamberger's officially declares name changes to Macy's". Asbury Park Press. Asbury Park, New Jersey. September 4, 1986. p. 98.
  6. ↑ "Hahne's changing New Jersey stores". Staten Island Advance. Staten Island, New York. January 12, 1989. p. 92.
  7. 1 2 "TILE-BREAKING CEREMONY MARKS CONSTRUCTION LAUNCHING MAJOR RENOVATION AT LIVINGSTON MALL" (PDF). Simon Property Group.
  8. ↑ Accardi, Nicolette (February 6, 2020). "Sears will close stores in Livingston and New Brunswick". NJ.com.
  9. ↑ Thomas, Lauren; Rattner, Nate (August 20, 2020). "Lord & Taylor is closing two dozen stores. Here's a map of where they are". CNBC.
  10. ↑ Accardi, Nicolette (August 20, 2020). "Lord & Taylor permanently closing 2 more N.J. stores". NJ.com.
  11. ↑ Santola, Danielle (March 21, 2021). "Livingston Township Authorizes Redevelopment Study of Livingston Mall Property". TAPinto.
  12. ↑ "Simon Sells North Jersey Mall to Kohan Retail Investment Group". CoStar. Archived from the original on July 22, 2025. Retrieved June 24, 2026.
  13. ↑ "Livingston Mall in NJ hastily removing all Simon references/logos with black tape. Some internet sleuthing shows that the mall was bought by Kohan which has quite the "controversies" section on Wiki". Reddit.
  14. 1 2 Kiefer, Eric; Staff, Patch (December 19, 2024). "Livingston Mall 'Falling Apart,' Shoppers Say; Condemnation Looms". Livingston, NJ Patch. Retrieved June 24, 2026.
  15. ↑ NJ.com, Nyah Marshall | (March 3, 2026). "This N.J. mall is so neglected a car got swallowed by a huge pothole, lawsuit says". nj. Retrieved June 24, 2026.
  16. ↑ NJ.com, Nyah Marshall | (December 6, 2025). "These depressing N.J. malls are basically dead, shoppers say. Can anything save them?". nj. Retrieved June 24, 2026.
  17. ↑ Ordinance 07-2025 An Ordinance Of The Township Of Livingston Approving The Livingston Mall Redevelopment Plan For Block 6002, Lots 1 And 1.01, Township of Livingston, adopted March 24, 2025. Accessed September 10, 2025
  18. 1 2 Ross, Ally (September 3, 2025). "WATCHDOG: Southern Park Mall owner owes $8.7M+ in property taxes across the country". WFMJ. Retrieved June 24, 2026.
  19. ↑ Marshall, Nyah. "These depressing N.J. malls are basically dead, shoppers say. Can anything save them?", NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, December 19, 2025. Accessed December 28, 2025. "But inside two of New Jersey’s largest indoor malls, it feels like the Grinch got there first. On recent weekday afternoons, Hamilton Mall and Livingston Mall seemed as though the season had passed them by. They were quiet, dim and stripped of the crowds and energy that once defined them."
  20. ↑ Munoz, Daniel; and Katzban, Nicholas. "A zombie mall is gasping in North Jersey, hit by a 'perfect storm'", The Record, February 9, 2026. Accessed February 10, 2026. "Google the phrase 'dead malls in New Jersey' and you’ll be hit with a few contenders — but a standout in North Jersey is Livingston Mall. With the Macy’s anchor store closing sometime in 2026, and Barnes & Noble expected to leave sometime in 2027, Livingston Mall is on its last breaths....But analysts interviewed by NorthJersey.com all agreed that Livingston Mall is a 'dead mall.'"
  21. ↑ Burd, Joshua (January 6, 2026). "Barnes & Noble leases 25,000 sq. ft. for new Livingston store in deal by RIPCO, VanRock". Real Estate NJ.
  22. ↑ "National Bookseller Is Moving Its Store At Livingston Mall To New Location".
  23. ↑ "Barnes and Noble Livingston's Post on Facebook".
  24. ↑ "Macy's shrinking again with new round of store closings". Axios. January 8, 2026. Retrieved January 8, 2026.
  25. ↑ Munoz, Daniel. "Macy's will close two North Jersey stores. See where and why", The Record, January 9, 2026. Accessed January 9, 2026. "Iconic Macy’s — an anchor department store chain for shopping malls across the U.S. — is closing two 'underproductive'” stores in New Jersey this year. One is at the Livingston Mall in Essex County and the other is a “small format” store that opened at the Interstate Shopping Center in Ramsey just over a year ago, a spokesperson confirmed by email on Friday, Jan. 9."
  26. ↑ "Hidden Treasures' Post on Facebook". February 17, 2026.
  27. ↑ "Shoppers have just days to snap up final deals at Macy's before first of 150 store closures". April 18, 2026. Retrieved June 28, 2026.
  28. ↑ Loder, Stephanie (June 23, 2026). "Police warn influencers to stay out of crumbling Essex County mall". nj. Retrieved June 24, 2026.
  29. ↑ Livingston Express Shuttle, Livingston, New Jersey. Accessed November 25, 2025. "Livingston Express Shuttle service offers round-trip transportation between the Livingston Mall and the South Orange Train station."
[edit]
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