The Hampton Plaza is a shopping center located in Hampton, VA, on West Mercury Boulevard, a major road that runs through Hampton. The shopping center is very old, but is still hip with people. It's also easy to spot, just look for the Krispy Kreme donuts shop, and across the street it is. The design had some red and blue stripes running on the top, and most of the small buildings have square windows.The entire strip was formally a GEX Tire store, which had been dead by 1979, if I recall. In 1980, the Plaza received a hip main anchor, Toys R Us, appealing to the kids in Hampton. I remember as a kid walking on the right side of the sidewalk, and there was play equipment laying out, which was fun to play on. The actual store was HUGE! I remember walking in a little lobby, and the carts were lined up, then you'd enter, and have some aisles facing you on the left. The checkout aisles were to the right.
The bathrooms were on the left, in a little area. After you walked through those aisles facing you was a big video section, filled with VHS tapes. We used to buy many from there. Beside them was video and board games. In the back was the books on the left and the bicycles on the right. The preschool aisle was on the very right of the store, with stuff I enjoyed back then.
In 1981, another children's place which has been an obsession of me moved in two building beside TRU: Chuck E. Cheese's Pizza Time Theatre. Large, yes, hip, yes. The gameroom was in the back, stage show in the front, and you get the drill.
At another 80s point, a T.J. Maxx moved in, along with the Hair Cuttery, Family Dollar, Pet World, and Blockbuster later on.
Boy was this a kids place: Toys R Us, Chuck E Cheese's, Pet World, Blockbuster, dang, it shouldve been named "Hampton Kids Plaza". However, in 1998 T.J. Maxx decided to move to the new Hampton Towne Centre nearby. So their owned store, A.J. Wright moved in in 1999.
So we still have clothes to get, right? Well, that wasn't a worry: In late 2001, Chuck E. Cheese's decided to move to the Hampton Towne Centre also, so in early 2002, they did. The old store was empty until 2004, when the Citi Trends clothing store moved into the old CEC.
So its more of a parent place now, but we still have TRU. Think again. In 2006, over 80 Toys R Us stores were going to close, one of them being in Hampton, VA. The old store had "Store Closing!" and "Huge Sale" signs in the windows to get people to buy Toys for cheap. In February, the store took its signs down, and was dead. How dramatic that was for kids and parents who loved the stores. The last time I'd been there was in Summer 2003, and I saw the dead CEC, and was like, "Mom, where's Chuck E Cheese?". Man I wish I took pics back then.
Anywho, if you were in the Plaza, a sign said to visit the Newport News location, but there were workmen inside. Maybe weeks later, Ollie's Bargain Outlet moved in, without even updating the outside. Man, it looks very cheesy with the tiles and enter/exit signs. The inside of the store still retains the original TRU look, though, there was a small long room you entered in with the carts behind you, 2 warehouses, a small hall leading to the bathrooms and employee room, a room in the right front corner of the store, and a tiny exit lobby with candy and toy machines.
Moving on, these are pictures of the other current stores below.
The Hair Cuttery occupies some of the space that was the Chuck E. Cheese's kitchen, and Family Dollar was apperantly once a Drug Emporium.
McDonald's is also an outparcel at the center. I've read that there was a restaurant called Po Folks there, then a Bojangles, then they tore them down and built McDs in 1998. The McDs was actually the first McDs in Hampton, in the 60s it was built a few blocks away which is now "Cap City" and re-located across the street which is now a Key Finance, and was used for Pomoco.
A Food Lion was also added later on.
So concluding, the Plaza is still strong, even if it isn't a kid's place. I loved it, and always will.
