CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF)- When it was developed in 1968, Northgate Mall was the economic center of Hixson.

One customer, Doug McDougal, said he was around for the mall’s early days, working in various stores in the 1970s.

He described, “ We had locals that came out here, and opened their stores, even from the other side of the river, we had other folks that came in, and it was really a packed mall. We even had a bank.”

However, the owners of the mall, CBL Properties, admit it’s had better days, as numerous stores inside of the mall are currently vacant, as roughly 20 stores are open inside of the mall, including the lone anchor store Belk.

John Meshel of CBL Properties said, “ The mall in its current format is not sustainable, there’s where we are at today, it’s a failing mall. It

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