Then and Now: Brass Mill Center Mall in Waterbury

I've been walking down memory lane a lot lately. I get nostalgic when I drive past places that I used to love going to back in the day. One of my first jobs was at Record Town across from the old Naugatuck Valley Mall on Wolcott Street in Waterbury.

Get our free mobile app

When they tore the old mall down and built the huge Brass Mill Center Mall, at the time I thought it was great. Over the past decade, as with most shopping malls in America, it's slowly progressing into empty retail space. Now I find myself missing the formerly cozy Naugatuck Valley Mall and being sad about the big, empty Brass Mill.

I belong to a couple of Waterbury groups on social media and the big joke is that the Brass Mill Center Mall is going to eventually turn into an Amazon deliver hub or an indoor flea market-type of building.

What's in the mall now? Athletic shoes, nail salons, and cell phone stores. Sears closed down in 2018, Old Navy in 2021, but FYE is still there, Bath & Body Works, Spencer's, and Champs will never go away, but the loss of Macy's hurt. Who knows what's going to happen with the space? I do know that it's changed quite a bit in the past decade.

Here's a few photos that I found that shows you just how much it has changed.

Then and Now: Brass Mill Center Mall - Waterbury

I've been having fun comparing Google street view photos of familiar places in Waterbury, here's what's changed in the past 15 years at Waterbury's Brass Mill Center Mall

The 8 Best Smaller Grocery Stores/Markets in Connecticut

If you don't like walking three miles to get your milk and bread like me, here are my picks for the best smaller grocery stores/markets in Connecticut