Grey Desert Wind

Our home was just a few blocks south of University Mall when the Mervyn’s store was built there in 1981. We were frequent mall visitors in those days. In good weather I walked there and back with my two preschoolers. Their dad was still attending BYU; most of the regular prices at Mervyn’s didn’t fit our budget. But they did have nice sales. We routinely picked up sheets, towels, socks and pajamas there at less than half their original price. Mervyn’s filed for bankruptcy and was liquidated in 2008, and the University Mall store has been vacant ever since. This month the former anchor was finally demolished to make way for a new park. “A mall needs to reinvent itself every 17 to 20 years. Mervyns served us well for 27 years,” said Orem mayor Richard Brunst. “Today the wind is blowing, and Mervyns is blowing away for a new park. This is exciting.”