Throughout southeast Michigan, malls are reopening as Twelve Oaks in Novi and Great Lakes Crossings in Auburn Hills, and Briarwood Mall in Ann Arbor reopened at 11 on Thursday. The Somerset Collection is set to open on Friday.
The malls were forced to shut down in mid-March as Coronavirus spread in Michigan but the reboot is in full force for the buildings. But the stores can still decide to reopen or not.
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Malls in Michigan start to reopen but stores not quite ready
The malls were forced to shut down in mid-March as Coronavirus spread in Michigan but the reboot is in full force for the buildings. But the stores can still decide to reopen or not.
At Twelve Oaks in Novi, many shoppers walked in - only to walk back out.
"I called Victoria Secret because I wanted to make an appointment - no one answered - and then I go into the mall and there's nothing opened," said Debbie Rowe.
Many were frustrated by guidelines that require an appointment
"I don't understand that. I go to the supermarket don't need an appointment to get in there," said Terry Green.
General Manager Dan Jones understands the frustration but just urges shoppers to be patient and check out their site for updated lists of open businesses.
"A lot of retailers are trying to digest and understand how they will operate within thee guidelines so it's definitely a slow process," Jones said. "Each day we are going to update our website with a list of open stores."
Some stores could not wait to get their doors open
"Took advantage of the opportunity to open as soon as we could. Making sure everyone has an appointment before they come in, keep it at capacity, and use our distancing around the racks and rounders to keep it as safe as we can," said Colin O'Brien, the manager of Zumiez.
Despite not finding many stores open shoppers tell us they feel safe in this new normal.
Below is a breakdown of modified hours for malls reopening:
Twelve Oaks in Novi will open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. from Monday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sunday
Great Lakes Crossing will open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. from Monday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sunday
Somerset Collection in Troy will open on Friday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. all week
Briarwood Mall in Ann Arbor will open from 11 a.m to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday, 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Sunday