Mayfair Shopping Centre — Local services in Victoria

UPDATE WITH PICTURES BELOW

CLAUSTROPHOBIA ALERT!!!

Boyfriend and I had nothing to do so decided to check out the new location of Chapters and buy some reading materials. Sure, it's Boxing Day, but we were willing to battle the crowds for the sake of books. Unfortunately we never got to see any of the stores due to the atrociously designed parking! First try was the underground parking which gave us a taste of what was to come. We marveled at how low the ceilings were and at how we couldn't turn down any of the parking lines because they were all one way in the same direction except for the last one. Gave up and headed for the exit. Made it to daylight only to find a gong show just outside where the exit from the underground had a stop sign but the other 3 ways; coming from the outdoor parking lot, the second floor parking level, and traffic from Finlayson all competed in a free-for-all in the middle of the intersection of all these directions. Cars from the underground had a stop sign but their drivers added to the general confusion by ignoring it completely and driving straight into the milieu and then stopping in the crossway such that no one could move at all. Mayfair had attempted to ameliorate this issue by deploying a flagger in full visi gear but to no avail as everybody ignored him too!

Now for the claustrophobic part. I did not think that I was claustrophobic. I turned up the ramp to the second level in an attempt to escape the mess at the intersection only to find myself stuck behind a wall of traffic. Worse, a wall of traffic stuck under the lowest parking garage ceiling I have ever seen! My boyfriend, from a seated position in the passenger seat of my car, not a truck, a car, COULD REACH UP THROUGH THE OPEN WINDOW AND TOUCH THE CEILING IN PLACES!

Full disclosure: my boyfriend has more than 20 years experience building parking garages and other large-scale commercial buildings. If he says the ceiling is too low, it's too low! The finished height before pipes are installed is supposed to be 6'9" at minimum. With pipes it can be 6'4". My boyfriend could touch the concrete ceiling above the pipes while still seated. Doesn't take a rocket scientist to realize there's a problem here.

PLUS! Oh yes, there's a plus. NO EXITS WERE POSTED. WHERE IS THE SIGNAGE? WHAT IF THERE'D BEEN A FIRE OR AN EARTHQUAKE?

WHERE WERE THE ENGINEERS AND SAFETY INSPECTORS AT ANY STAGE OF THIS MONSTROSITY?!

FOLLOW-UP We did end up going back. Quieter day. Parked on the old upper lot. As we made our way down towards the mall I realized we were passing near the spot we'd been stuck the first attempt so went into the parking garage to look at it without traffic. Holy hell. The pipes were so low that I had to warn my boyfriend so he wouldn't hit his head in places. I actually found an exit sign. Couldn't see it from a distance because the pipes hang in front! The sprinkler system pipes are held to the ceiling every 8-10 feet. Code apparently calls for them to be attached something like every 2 feet or less. If you tap the pipes they swing wildly. Gotta wonder how flexible these things can be without failing at the ends! I took video of them swaying. WHO DESIGNED THIS?!??!

1st picture: Can you spot the exit sign? Oh c'mon, it's bright green! Surely you can see it. It's right behind that big pipe right in front of you! I mean, what if there was an emergency?! Sheesh.

2nd picture: The top of my head relative to one of the pipes and not the lowest one. We just wanted to get out after seeing...

Once every two or three weeks, either myself or my wife take our daughter to Mayfair Mall to shop for a couple of hours. She likes to make her rounds to her favorite stores, while we wait on a bench or in the food court.

On the last visit, Paladin security gave my wife the bum's rush for sitting on a bench too long, embarrassing her in front of other shoppers. He didn't believe she was waiting for our daughter, so my wife texted our daughter to come back so they could leave the mall together.

When they got home and told me what happened, I called the store and left a message for the manager to call me and let me know what specifically triggered their security guard to profile my wife and discriminate [make unfair or prejudicial distinctions between people based on the groups, classes, race, gender, age, physical attractiveness or sexual orientation].

The next day I received a message from Paladin Security. Mayfair apparently decided not to have a conversation with me; no apology, no communication. Instead, without my permission, they shared my contact information with a security company that they contracted with. Mayfair should have addressed this incident directly with me.

Why was a well dressed, well educated, respected member of the Saanich community given the bum's rush? What triggered Paladin's security protocols to have one of their guards act so aggressively with my wife?

What did the guard discern from watching my wife? From a distance, you can see that she is an attractive, adult, white woman sitting on a bench, quietly texting on her phone. How long did he watch her? Why was he watching her? Why did he give her the bum's rush? Why embarrass her in front of other mall patrons? It comes across as bullying an easy target, so I am taking issue to find out exactly what happened and why.

For the sake of their retailers and patrons, Mayfair should want to know too. Maybe the Human Rights Commission can figure what happened here.

Mayfair management, who gave you permission to share my personal contact information with Paladin Security? I certainly didn't authorize it. Take note that "vicarious liability" makes you wholly responsible for the incident. You might consider taking responsibility, before I file with the human Rights...

Over the years, I’ve noticed that during various construction projects at the mall, a lot more space has been made for stores, offices, and other locations. However, my concern lies with what you don’t see. Specifically, I’m troubled by the large, egg-shaped openings in the ceiling that lead up to what looks like an enclosed sunroom or awning structure, designed to let natural light into the mall. One of these is located right in front of H Mart, and I’ll include pictures to show what the area looks like.

Instead of simply finishing the ceiling with drywall, they built a sort of awning structure around the opening — and it’s absolutely filthy. It’s filled with rat droppings, dust, and other debris. While they’ve nailed down a few sticky mouse traps, they’re so covered in layers of dust that they’re clearly ineffective. Rodents are freely running around inside the drywall frame that surrounds this egg-shaped dome.

Most people don’t look up, but if you do, the sides of the dome that let in sunlight appear relatively clean. However, if you go to the top floor of the parkade, you can look through large windows and see into these hidden areas. The view is disturbing. I’ll include more photos to illustrate — there’s a similar dome above the food court, surrounded by vents, and it’s clear that these areas are never cleaned.

I honestly don’t know how this mall is passing health or safety inspections. I haven’t contacted the proper authorities yet, but I intend to. After seeing the conditions from the roof, my friends and I no longer shop there. It’s no wonder e-commerce is thriving while small stores are struggling. In fact, my ideal day would be opening a newspaper to find that all malls are shutting down in two weeks. At this point, they’ve become a liability. You can’t convince me that exposure to rodent feces and urine isn’t making people sick — not just immediately, but with long-term respiratory issues.

Looks to me they’ve taken away the ability to add photos to this, but if you like dust all over you and all over what you’re eating in the food court this is a perfect place for you to...