Photo courtesy of the Albemarle Charlottesville Historical SocietyThirty-eight years ago one of Charlottesville's biggest projects began tearing up the streets. According to the city of Charlottesville website, on August 20, 1974 preparations began for the construction of Charlottesville's downtown mall.
In the decades since, things have changed for the downtown area but closing off busy Main Street might still have made it easier for Charlottesville to hold onto its history.
Bob Stroh of the Downtown Business Association said, "What was really preserved was an atmosphere, an ambience that was part of the old downtown, the historic downtown, and is now something that we can all enjoy because we haven't destroyed it."
The mall celebrated its official dedication two years later, on July 3, 1976.
