Portside Festival Marketplace in 1984. (Mark Snyder/City of Toledo)

When it opened in 1984 along the Maumee River, the Rouse Company’s Portside Festival Marketplace was supposed to revitalize Toledo’s downtown. However, what worked for Rouse in Baltimore (Harborplace) and Boston (Fanueil Hall) had no impact on the continued decline of this rust belt city. During its first year, the $14.5 million, 100,000-square-foot festival marketplace attracted 4.5 million visitors. Yet, two years later it was attracting half as many and in 1990, it closed for good.

Inside Portside Festival Marketplace in 1984. (Mark Snyder/City of Toledo)

Portside Festival Marketplace along the Maumee River in Downtown Toledo in 1984. (Mark Snyder/City of Toledo)

Portside Festival Marketplace in 1984. (Mark Snyder/City of Toledo)

Next Page: A New Use For Portside Festival Marketplace