Mall Of America

Speaking in the hushed tones common to medical waiting rooms, receptionist Juli Velebir was struggling to sum up just what it is that makes the Mall of America such a dumbfounding and fascinating quirk of modern culture. Then she smiled and nodded. "Well," Velebir whispered, "you can get homemade apple pie, a vasectomy, and get married, all in the mall. And all in a short afternoon."

WASHINGTON (3-5) AT MINNESOTA (1-7) TV: NFL Network, 5:15 PST. Line: Redskins by 2 1/2. Over/under: 50 1/2. Sam Farmer's pick: Robert Griffin III is coming off his best game of the season, and he got good protection in that overtime victory over San Diego. He faces a defense that is missing three starters in the secondary and its two top nose tackles. Redskins 27, Vikings 24

On a drive from the site of the World Trade Center to the Pentagon to the Mall of America, a guy has a lot of time to think, look and listen. Flags hang from overpasses, farmers bale hay, summer turns to fall, and the newsreel is narrated by preachers, poets and pundits. Public opinion, called into radio shows from the far corners of 50 states, comes in every accent and runs from dove to hawk, with lots of strange birds in between.

The interactive Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle thrill ride debuting at Minnesota's Nickelodeon Universe will send riders spinning through the air like high-flying martial artists. PHOTOS: TMNT Shell Shock ride at Nickelodeon Universe Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Shell Shock, a first of its kind ride in the U.S., is scheduled to open on March 17 at the indoor amusement park inside the Mall of America in Bloomington, MN. The Gerstlauer Sky Fly tower will lift riders 70 feet in the air aboard single-seat gondolas at the end of a cantilevered arm rotating around a central tower at 25 mph.  Riders will control the pitch of the gondola's wings with their hands -- choosing to simply sit and spin, gently teeter-totter like a see-saw or wildly rotate like a plane propeller.

Connie and Bill Barnes and their two teen-age "I love to shop" daughters will pile into the family car next month for the 10-hour trek here from their home in Topeka, Kan., to buy school clothes. In northeastern Montana, farmers Elizabeth and Carl Sauskojus, who have to drive 60 miles just to get groceries, are laying plans for a 700-mile pilgrimage to Bloomington to explore the exotic new department stores.

Police closed the biggest shopping mall in the country for eight hours to search hallways, bathrooms and broom closets for a man wanted in three states. Anthony Zappa, 29, apparently escaped on a motorized cart at the Mall of America in suburban Minneapolis, Bloomington Police Chief Roger Willow said. Zappa is wanted on burglary, auto theft and weapon possession charges in Wisconsin, Iowa and Minnesota.

The world's biggest pension fund said it plans to put the U.S.' biggest shopping mall, the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minn., up for sale. The 4.2-million-square-foot complex, which includes more than 520 stores, an indoor theme park and an aquarium, could fetch between $650 million and $700 million, according to people familiar with the situation.

A teenage rite of passage--hanging out at the mall on weekend nights--ended when the Mall of America began enforcing a curfew for kids under 16. Officials at the nation's biggest shopping and entertainment complex hope to cut down on rowdy behavior by requiring youngsters to be accompanied by someone 21 or older after 6 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.

The interactive Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle thrill ride debuting at Minnesota's Nickelodeon Universe will send riders spinning through the air like high-flying martial artists. PHOTOS: TMNT Shell Shock ride at Nickelodeon Universe Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Shell Shock, a first of its kind ride in the U.S., is scheduled to open on March 17 at the indoor amusement park inside the Mall of America in Bloomington, MN. The Gerstlauer Sky Fly tower will lift riders 70 feet in the air aboard single-seat gondolas at the end of a cantilevered arm rotating around a central tower at 25 mph.  Riders will control the pitch of the gondola's wings with their hands -- choosing to simply sit and spin, gently teeter-totter like a see-saw or wildly rotate like a plane propeller.

Starting next fall, as many as 500 public school students will likely find themselves attending classes in an unlikely building--the largest enclosed shopping mall in the United States. Five Twin Cities-area school districts recently approved placing of classrooms inside the Mall of America, a 4.2-million-square-foot suburban Bloomington shopping complex due for August completion.

Speaking in the hushed tones common to medical waiting rooms, receptionist Juli Velebir was struggling to sum up just what it is that makes the Mall of America such a dumbfounding and fascinating quirk of modern culture. Then she smiled and nodded. "Well," Velebir whispered, "you can get homemade apple pie, a vasectomy, and get married, all in the mall. And all in a short afternoon."

On a drive from the site of the World Trade Center to the Pentagon to the Mall of America, a guy has a lot of time to think, look and listen. Flags hang from overpasses, farmers bale hay, summer turns to fall, and the newsreel is narrated by preachers, poets and pundits. Public opinion, called into radio shows from the far corners of 50 states, comes in every accent and runs from dove to hawk, with lots of strange birds in between.

Police closed the biggest shopping mall in the country for eight hours to search hallways, bathrooms and broom closets for a man wanted in three states. Anthony Zappa, 29, apparently escaped on a motorized cart at the Mall of America in suburban Minneapolis, Bloomington Police Chief Roger Willow said. Zappa is wanted on burglary, auto theft and weapon possession charges in Wisconsin, Iowa and Minnesota.

The world's biggest pension fund said it plans to put the U.S.' biggest shopping mall, the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minn., up for sale. The 4.2-million-square-foot complex, which includes more than 520 stores, an indoor theme park and an aquarium, could fetch between $650 million and $700 million, according to people familiar with the situation.

A teenage rite of passage--hanging out at the mall on weekend nights--ended when the Mall of America began enforcing a curfew for kids under 16. Officials at the nation's biggest shopping and entertainment complex hope to cut down on rowdy behavior by requiring youngsters to be accompanied by someone 21 or older after 6 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.

When Hiram Bonet ducks out of class at noon and heads for the Mall of America, he's not skipping school to shop or ride the roller coaster at the seven-acre amusement park. His trip is legit. The 17-year-old is learning business skills from the experts--those who run the nation's largest enclosed shopping mall and entertainment complex.

When Hiram Bonet ducks out of class at noon and heads for the Mall of America, he's not skipping school to shop or ride the roller coaster at the seven-acre amusement park. His trip is legit. The 17-year-old is learning business skills from the experts--those who run the nation's largest enclosed shopping mall and entertainment complex.

More steel than the Eiffel Tower. More than 2.5 million cubic feet of concrete. Rivaling the world's tallest office building in floor space. Welcome to Mall of America. With 400-plus stores, 14 movie theaters, seven restaurants and five nightclubs, it's soon to become the nation's largest shopping mall. A veritable $70-million amusement park. There's one big question: Will it succeed?

An attraction to rival Disney World or just an overgrown shopping mall? A little more than six months after opening its doors, the Mall of America seems to be somewhere in between. "I feel overwhelmed. It's decadent," said Jan Fernkes of Bloomington, a first-time visitor peering incredulously at the seven-acre amusement park. "I'm just stumbling around here trying to decide which way is up." She isn't alone. "I've been here three times, and I still get lost," Patrice Asleson of Burnsville, Minn.

It was the inaugural holiday season at America's mall, an occasion for stretching the limits of human experience. So they started early and big. There was a parade with the debut of Santa A. Claus, 52 (formerly J. Patrick Allen of Catasauqua, Pa.). Then promoters rounded up 10,000 people for a jingle bell choir, purportedly the biggest in history. The date was Nov. 13, burying the quaint notion that Thanksgiving is soon enough.