A MALL in Montgomery County is taking proactive measures to curb unruly behavior by enforcing a new curfew system.
Minors under 18 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian if visiting the mall after 5 pm Monday through Saturday and after 3 pm on Sunday.
The new policy taking place at Willow Grove Park Mall in Philadelphia will also extend to parking lots and garages.
Mall security will check IDs at the entrances and escort unaccompanied minors out if necessary.
The decision comes after consulting with city police, who advised the mall to take action during peak hours when they’ve seen an increase in shoplifting, fights, and general disturbances, per WPVI-TV.
While there hasn’t been a significant incident, the mall hopes this new rule will prevent future issues.
The reactions from shoppers have been polarized, with some seeing the move as necessary to maintain a peaceful shopping environment, while others feel it alienates teenagers.
MIXED REACTIONS
Maureen Feeney, a Montgomery County resident, welcomes the new rule.
“It would be like, ‘Oh, I’m back in high school again,’” she said to the outlet, explaining that groups of teenagers can often make the shopping experience chaotic.
“They’re running around everywhere, running amuck.”
Other shoppers like Olivia Simmons, a school counselor from Mount Airy, express more mixed feelings.
“I understand, but maybe let them have some freedom. Not all kids are the same.
“I’m a school counselor, so I know kids are different. They should be able to make choices.”
Megan Schmidt from Lafayette Hill takes a more practical stance, suggesting that this move could actually boost the mall’s struggling business.
“I don’t think those kids are buying anything anyway. I think they are just hanging out.
CURFEW POLICIES
In response to rising concerns about unruly behavior among teens, malls and entertainment venues across the US are reintroducing curfew and escort policies that date back to the 1980s.
The Mall of America, the largest mall in the country, was among the first to limit after-hours youth activity, implementing a strict teen escort policy in the 1990s that was revised in 2012 to impose even tighter restrictions. Recently, numerous shopping centers, amusement parks, and restaurants have adopted similar measures.
The Westfield Garden State Plaza in New Jersey announced that anyone under 18 must be accompanied by an adult after 5 pm on Fridays and Saturdays due to “large crowds of teens” who were “not just enjoying the property.”
Other venues following suit include the Mall at Robinson in Pittsburgh, Trumbull Mall in Connecticut, the Fashion District in Philadelphia, and Columbia Mall in Maryland, all of which have implemented similar restrictions this year.
The trend isn’t limited to malls; even retailers and amusement parks are joining in. A Target store in the Valley Plaza Mall in Bakersfield, California, will soon enforce a chaperone policy requiring teenagers to be accompanied by a guardian after 4 pm.
Additionally, Knott’s Berry Farm and Kings Island Amusement Park have enacted bans on unaccompanied visitors aged 15 and younger after 4 pm.
In an unexpected move, even Chik-fil-A has introduced a teen escort policy, highlighting the widespread concern about managing youth activity in public spaces.
“It might help the industry if people know someone is policing whether or not kids are coming in and acting up.”
The Willow Grove Park Mall is not alone in implementing such a policy.
Other regional shopping centers like the Cherry Hill Mall in New Jersey and the Fashion District in Center City Philadelphia have adopted similar curfew systems.
Both hope to attract more serious shoppers by reducing rowdy behavior in their spaces.
SOME BACKLASH
Despite some local support, the policy has faced backlash online, with many criticizing the mall for potentially driving away future customers.
On Facebook, one commenter remarked, “Translated, the mall’s not dead yet, but we’re determined to alienate our future customers to ensure that it will be in the future.”
Another expressed nostalgia for their own mall-going days, noting, “I can understand why they are doing this, but when I was a teen we would go to the mall to hang out and we bought a lot of stuff.”
