POLL: Are Chains Gentrifying Fulton Mall?

With , and on the way, locals are wondering if national chains are gentrifying the Fulton Mall, according to the Brooklyn Paper.

“The Fulton Mall is definitely changing to cater to a more upscale crowd,” Lateef Juwara, an art vendor at Gallatin Place, told the Paper. “Is that a good thing? That’s up in the air.”

The report says that the Mall was once a busy shopping district for working-class people, but when major department stores shut down their locations in the 1970s, vacant storefronts where the norm, until recent efforts at revitalization.

This year, one of out Patch bloggers even

So we wanted to hear what you think – are the big chain stores a good thing, bringing more options to Brooklyn, or are they hurting the older small businesses that have helped to keep the Fulton Mall alive? Vote in our poll below, or leave us your thoughts in the comments.