In episode 54, we look at the time when Duluth wanted to build downtown mall over I-35. The Harbor Square mall would have stood on pillars, with two to three anchor stores spanning several lanes of traffic and linking downtown to the Duluth Arena Auditorium.

In the late 1970s, downtown was struggling. Businesses and shoppers were heading to the new Miller Hill Mall, the Interstate 35 extension was on its way and the city’s unemployment rate was high. Another shopping center, Ridgewood Mall, was proposed for Hermantown. But downtown advocates proposed something to lure department stores back to the city’s center: a mall built on pillars over I-35.

0:00-0:33 Intro

0:34-2:27 Discovering the plans for Harbor Square mall

2:28-8:45 Why do the plans exist and what happened?

8:46-14:23 Legal battle with city of Hermantown

14:24-16:33 What parts of the plan carried through to today

16:34-24:13 Future I-35 replacement project

24:14-28:58 Why Northlandia?

You can read the full story here. You can find the column for Northlandia, which features articles, photos and sometimes video, at duluthnewstribune.com/topics/northlandia.

The Northlandia podcast is a product of Forum Communications Company and is brought to you by reporters at the Duluth News Tribune. If you enjoy this podcast, please consider supporting our work with a subscription at duluthnewstribune.news/podcast. Your support allows us to continue providing the local news and content you want.