Del. Mall mandates teen curfew.

[Crow The Robot]

A mall in DE, has mandated that all teens coming to the mall during the evening must be accompanied by an adult. Security guards will check the IDs of everyone coming in during those times. Teens that do come in will be issued a red armband. Not surprisingly several teens have decided to boycott the mall.
http://cbs3.com/local/Delaware.Mall.Teen.2.769257.html

[Chanlin]

Interesting. The one thing I would like to see is if they end up repealing the program if the businesses that complained don't get the apparent increase in sales that they are expecting.

The whole thing could be a very interesting case study to see how things turn out for the mall if for example the planned boycott hurts business or if the program itself has any real impact on what they are trying to achieve.

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

I went to that particular mall's Web site and the curfew is only in effect from 5 pm to 10 pm (closing time) on Fridays and Saturdays.

I don't think it will hurt business much, if at all. It may even increase business from other shoppers who may feel more secure that there won't be big groups on teenagers roaming the place.

One of the malls in Milwaukee (Mayfair) has a similar curfew that starts at 3 pm Fridays and Saturdays and I don't think they're hurting too much.

[lordlundar]

So the teens who can't piss around and be little punks can't do so anymore. Their recourse is to not go there anymore.

Sounds like a win/win to me.

[Soulstealer]

I don't mind the curfew but the armband is rather insulting. Isn't checking IDs enough?

[marasbaras]

We complain that kids just sit around playing videos ... yet, we continue to close everything that they want to do. When I was a kid, there were a lot of places to go. Now .. not even the mall? Good grief.

Someone will sue and win.

I think sales will depend on the local population. Times are rough. I'm not sure adults are out in force to go shopping.

Although, it might end up like the Washington State anti-public area smoking law. When smoking was banned in public areas like restaurants and bars, the restauranteurs were scared that they'd lose business. Turned out, non-smokers went out far more often and sales went up for most establishments.

[ditchdj]

You wanna know why malls are doing this???? Here's why....

http://www.wtol.com/Global/story.asp...6&nav=5UaidIWs

It would be a travesty if they could sue over this. A mall is PRIVATE property. They should be able to choose whoever they want to do business with.

[mattm04]

Recently I saw a late night move at the local mall. As i was leaving a group of about 30 teens in a massive blob was heading down the corridor. The knocked over a few signs ad a trash can. As i passed to one side of a fountain/planter (on side was blocked off as maintance people working in the ceiling, looked like some sort of HVAC problem) i was closest to the store side of the corridor the blob just kept walking and pushed me into the closed security gate of a store, hard enough to set off the alarm. When the alarm went off they ran off, and hit a few other people in their bid to escape.

[MoxisPilot]

If the teens were going there to spend money, I'd understand a boycott - but, from personal experience, I've found that all teens do is skulk around and generally act unruly. Yes, there is that small percentage that actually spends money, but we all know the majority of them aren't there to add to the economy.

There was a comment above about teens playing video games because they don't have enough to do. I disagree. Teens play video games because we've entered an age where we need to be constantly entertained. Back in the day, teens had even LESS to do outside the home than they have now. Now, there are cinemas, malls, miniature golf places, underage dance clubs, go-kart centers, arcades, theme parks...When my parents were teens, they'd hang out at friends' houses, go for a walk, go to the local fast food restaurant, etc. We need entertainment. We need distractions, because we, or the majority, have forgotten how to simply sit and talk with the television off, or read a book without being plugged in to an iPod.

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

Someone will sue and win.

Should that ever happen, it will be solely because the judge and/or the jurors were complete blithering idiots who don't belong as judges or on juries.

Last time I checked, malls were private properties and young kids weren't exactly a protected class. Should anybody try to sue a mall for age discrimination, the mall could just whip out their reports of incidents of fights, shoplifting and other offenses carried out by these same kids.

This isn't about kids' rights to hang out in a certain place. This is about a mall's right to stay in business. People are not going to shop someplace if there are lots of wayward teens ambling around looking intimidating and starting fights or committing robberies or carjackings.

Meanwhile, instead of getting angry at mall owners for protecting their businesses, the good kids should be getting on the troublemakers for subjecting them to curfews and parental guidance policies.

[Racket_Man]

I went to that particular mall's Web site and the curfew is only in effect from 5 pm to 10 pm (closing time) on Fridays and Saturdays.

I don't think it will hurt business much, if at all. It may even increase business from other shoppers who may feel more secure that there won't be big groups on teenagers roaming the place.

One of the malls in Milwaukee (Mayfair) has a similar curfew that starts at 3 pm Fridays and Saturdays and I don't think they're hurting too much.

I might be wrong but did't Mayfair get challenged in court for that????? I do not keep up with Milwaukee stuff but that did make the local (and maybe the national) news here in Green Bay about 2 (??) years ago when they started that after their big renovation

I know of several malls in the St/. Louis area have their "rules" posted as BIG posters right at each and every entrance to the mall defining a "code of conduct and consiquences" detailing what is allowed and not allowed in their particular mall. this ranges from certain types of behavior to some clothing codes

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

I don't remember of any court challenge to Mayfair's PGR policy, but I do know there were people claiming the policy was racially motivated and trying to organize a boycott.

I happened to drive down there shortly after the policy went into effect and found a few protesters waving signs around. Didn't seem to be hurting business any.

In any case the PGR policy is still in effect and they do have large signs throughout the mall informing shoppers of the policy. So if there was a court challenge it didn't get far.

[powerboy]

I would love to have that at my local malls. We have so many damn annoying teens at the mall just hanging out. They truly ruin my shopping experience.

[Hon'ya-chan]

Would be helpful given many of these kids just come in, throw some manga into a corner, and start reading. Then leave the mess behind.

[FuzzyKitten99]

The Mall of America here has a curfew rule for kids under 16. They need to be accompanied by an adult who is 21 or older, and no more than 10 minors to the one adult. Security personnel WILL ask for a valid ID/passport at EVERY entrance. This rule has been in place for several years now, although they changed the time it started from 6pm to 4pm back in 2005.

There haven't been any lawsuits in regards to this. I just don't think anyone around here would be stupid enough to attempt it. It has been for the better of the mall. Even when the park was "Camp Snoopy" (now it is licensed by Nickelodeon), the moniker everyone called the park was "Camp Shoot-Me".

Link to MoA's policy: http://www.mallofamerica.com/mall_hours.aspx