Cineplex Odeon Spruce Grove

Quinte Mall turns 40 - Belleville Intelligencer - Ontario, CA

The year is 1971.

Bell bottoms, hot pants and platform shoes are all the rage and the cost of a Chevrolet Corvette was $5,472.

Amidst the fashion frenzy that was the early 1970s, the Quinte Mall opened it's doors to the public.

Originally there were just 40 stores that filled the halls of the Quinte Mall, and to this day six of the originals remain. They are Sears, Shoppers Drug Mart, Peoples Jewellers, Bank of Nova Scotia, Laura Secord and Famous Players (now Cineplex Odeon).

Throughout the 40 years, many residents of the Quinte area have held jobs and positions within the stores of the mall, however there is only one employee who has been there since the beginning.

In fact, he helped build the place.

Brian Sager was just 35 when he was busy framing the soon to be walls of the Quinte Mall, a year later, he became part of the maintenance crew. "It doesn't seem that long, really, 40 years," said Sager who was honoured at the festivities held in Kindness court Thursday.

"He never took a day off for 41 years" said Martha Farrell, marketing director of the Quinte Mall. She also commented on how Sager had knee surgery a few years ago and how his recovery was half the time it would normally take.

During the past 40 years, the Quinte Mall has changed quite a bit. First it was expanded in 1977, then again in 1984 when the food court and office towers were built. In 1999, K-mart was removed and the addition for Sport Chek, Chapters and Winners was installed. Currently up for viewing is a 20-foot wall of memorabilia, showcasing 40 years in the community.

Janice Vader, manager of Laura Secord, has worked at the mall for 26 years, 25 of them spent at Laura Secord. "There's lots of people that know the area, more so you hear the people say from out of town that they like this mall the most, it's nice, it's comfortable, and it's friendly, and that's the way we want it to be.

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