SCHUYLKILL COUNTY -- Rue21, the teen fashion retailer, will be closing its doors inside Fairlane Village Mall near Pottsville, joining other empty spaces inside the mall. It is one of hundreds of Rue21 stores closing nationwide.
"I really think it's a shame, like what's happened to our county because I grew up here. I remember coming to Rue21 when I was 12 years old," said Gabrielle Burke of Tresckow.
It's the latest bad news for malls in the area.
Just six miles from Fairlane Village is Schuylkill Mall where there is also plenty of empty space. Last month, anchor store BonTon announced it was closing its store there.
People tell Newswatch 16 when they have to shop, they travel to other counties.
"Wyomissing, about 45 minutes from where I live,” said Kelly Brensinger of Schuylkill Haven. "When I was younger and I would come up here, there used to be a lot more traffic, a lot more people, and there's really nothing here anymore."
"It's not busy. I don't think I've ever seen it busy. I don't think I've ever seen a lot of people ever. I've always been able to quick go in,” said Zak Testerman of Minersville.
Some shoppers say it may not seem like the biggest deal to have a vibrant mall in the area. They said it's actually more important to the community than you may think.
"When I was younger, like we used to all come hang out at the mall and now there's nothing really to do and you see in the paper all this crime and all these younger kids and it's because they don't really have anything to do. People don't even want to walk around because there's nothing to look at anymore. It's a shame I think. It's really sad," said Burke.