Randhurst

[trainman8119]

With the impending doom of Randhurst, as we know it, is it likely that Pace will

take the 234 out of the Mall and just run it up Elmhurst Road without the detour???

This would save 5-7 minutes a trip if that were to be done. Once the demolotion

starts there, all that will be around would be Cosco and Home Depot to the east

and Borders on the Elmhurst Road side. It doesn't seem all that necessary to

route that bus around that area, unless the idea would be to make it a transfer

point with the 696 (should that still be around).

[Busjack]

I didn't know about the end of Randhurst Mall until you mentioned it, but based on your post, I did find a story in the Daily Herald. The mall part was certainly dead.

The Daily Herald indicates that while the mall will be demolished, Carsons and Bed Bath and Beyond will be staying. See also the developer's site map.

With regard to what Pace is doing, there is the Customer Alert that the stop was being moved, due to redevelopment, to outside Steve and Barry's, which, of course is a chain in deep distress, and its site is marked as "future anchor" on the site map.

The developer's video also seems to depict a bus stop.

While I don't know what Pace will be doing, the interesting question is what is Pace's policy with regard to these "lifestyle centers" that have become 2000s answer for the 1960s malls, in that apparently people don't go into stores that are not visible from the parking lot. I assume that Randhurst Village will be something like Willow Festival at the corner of Willow and Waukegan in Northbrook.

What has me ruminating is that at the time of the North Shore restructuring, I asked the Pace planner if there would be a timed transfer point between 422 and 423 as then conceived (at that time, the Northbrook leg was assigned to 423), and the answer was basically no, even though the Kohls/Target shopping center could have provided one.

Now, if I had my way (and especially since 422 and 423 often use 2600s), I would have both of them go into the two centers (and probably also the Patriot Marketplace Costco) and try to get some patronage, instead of speeding by on Willow Road.

So, the question basically becomes whether 234 and 696 become like 422 and 423. Maybe the treatment will be more like 564 and 568 in Waukegan, where the buses no longer head into the nonexistent Lakehurst Mall, but still go into the general area, and one sort of serves the successor WalMart. We also don't know if a Yorktown type problem will arise with the new owners of Randhurst.

Another aside is that Carson's seems to survive despite the associated mall dying (similar situation to Woodmar in Hammond, but the Hammond and East Chicago buses now go to WalMart, a half mile south).

[trainman8119]

I didn't know about the end of Randhurst Mall until you mentioned it, but based on your post, I did find a story in the Daily Herald. The mall part was certainly dead.

The Daily Herald indicates that while the mall will be demolished, Carsons and Bed Bath and Beyond will be staying. See also the developer's site map.

My wife will be glad to hear that Carson's is in the plan. They had signs all over that they were closing (I want to say in October). Although their sign is there, Steve and Barry's are long gone. Many of the smaller shops inside the mall have moved to other locations. The old Comic book shop is on Central Road, just west of Elmhurst Road....Regis Hair is in Randhurst Commons (behind the old minnature golf course, by Starbucks), and a few other things have popped up here and there. I do think that parts of the proposal are in trouble...money issues, of course. The total scale is down...I think some of the condo development there is in trouble....and that was a big part of the entire proposal. I guess we'll just have to see what happens as time goes on. It just seems that, at least in the 234's case, it would be wiser to just have the bus go up and down Elmhurst for the time being.

[Busjack]

Many of the smaller shops inside the mall have moved to other locations.

I basically quit going inside when the Japanese stand in the upper level food court closed (more than a few years ago).

[Guest]

So far the Pace #696 and 234 routes are temporarily rerouted to the west side of the mall. It is a possibility that this rerouting will become permanant.

[Busjack]

A passenger notice now says that they are not pulling into Randhurst and to board on Elmhurst Road. Given how they have cut up the parking lot with fences around the various construction sites, I can see how that happened.

[Busjack]

I went by Randhurst and it looks like major construction is done. However, it looks from the 234 and 696 Passenger Notices that the buses aren't going into Randhurst, and this is now on a permanent basis.

I saw that some driveways have small traffic circles, but it didn't look like all access was blocked.

[Paul Fortini]

What's interesting at Randhurst is that AMC opened a new multiplex cinema there circa 2001. Then they closed it and built a whole new one earlier this year. With fewer screens too!

[Busjack]

What's interesting at Randhurst is that AMC opened a new multiplex cinema there circa 2001. Then they closed it and built a whole new one earlier this year. With fewer screens too!

While technically off topic, I noticed that, too. I can see the point that a patron of "main street" wouldn't want to walk across the parking lot, but those buildings must be real cheap to tear them down in 10 years. Meantime, there are still all sorts of buildings (like the one with Chipotle) oriented to the street.

Probably more on topic is that the original Internet presentation showed bus shelters, but they built the drives in such a manner that Pace says it can't get a bus in there. You wouldda thought that, even though the roundabout would keep big vehicles off "main street," they would have conferred with Pace about at least reinstating the service they had that stopped near Bed, Bath, and Beyond, or picked up the Pace Development Guidelines.