I screencapped this photo off Twitter a few months ago, of a building in Akron, Ohio:

It’s a Tesla showroom—but of course it isn’t, or rather wasn’t. There’s a good chance you’ll recognize what it used to be right off the bat, but maybe not, because there were several standard model buildings for the old tenant, and this is one of the newer ones.

Here are a couple of older ones I’ve photographed, also repurposed. You’ll know the answer after these.

You can still buy a new toy, just a more expensive one, and a different kind!

Like Borders, Toys ‘R’ Us left behind a huge physical footprint of “medium-box” stores, which are increasingly difficult spaces to fill as retail goes the way of either big-box warehouses or boutique shops. It’s no wonder that many of these buildings end up seeing unconventional second lives for retail structures.

Of course, some tweaks are in order. “The building is 30,629 square feet, including a concrete loading dock, on 2.79 acre,” writes a local newspaper. “Interior improvements are to include a 20,886 square foot primary service floor area with 10 vehicle bays. Other improvements include a wash area, storage space and a customer lounge.”

It’s somewhat unusual to see car dealerships in old stores, or for that matter to see stores in old car dealerships. However, I’ve seen and featured both here! Here’s a former Safeway in Seattle that’s now a Toyota dealer, and here’s an old dealership near Doylestown, Pennsylvania that’s now an Italian deli!

In fact, this is apparently not even the only former Toys ‘R’ Us to become a Tesla dealer! Here’s one in Oregon outside of Portland in the works, and Tesla also wanted to open a location in an old Toys ‘R’ Us in Naples, Florida.

I’ll end with my usual observation on these things: the land use and the buildings range from unremarkable to poor, but it’s always cool to see something we often think of as disposable find new life. It’s the stuff of placemaking, the balance of change and continuity. It’s only a shame our raw material for that human impulse is so substandard.

Related Reading:

What Do You Think You’re Looking At? #7

What Do You Think You’re Looking At? #20

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