During four years, no one knew that a man had built a secret condo in a mall.
Like going to the mall? Though maybe not so much if you work in one! Just think about living in the mall itself! Well, there was a room in a shopping centre called the “accidental room,” and this man chose to live there.
Big Thought
It was 1999, and a big mall project was finished. The shopping centre was built in Providence, Rhode Island, and it had 160 shops spread out over 1.4 million square feet. A man named Michael Townsend ran by the mall every day. Michael was an artist and taught drawing at the time.
Michael liked to look around, and while the building was still being put together, he found what looked like an unplanned room. It looked like it wasn’t used for anything and wasn’t a shop.
I remember hearing radio ads for the Providence Place Mall around Christmas 2003 and 2004. They had a happy woman voice saying how great it would be to live at the mall. The ads mostly talked about how the mall not only had great shopping, but also everything you could possibly need to stay alive and be healthy.
The House on the Mall
In 2003, four years had passed, and Michael found that the room in the mall wasn’t being used. This is when he thought he would use it himself. He only meant to stay in the 750-square-foot room for a week. He lived there for four years in the end.
I found the 750-square-foot spot that the flat now takes up when it was being built. The area was used to store materials while the mall was being built, and it was left empty and rarely used after the mall opened.
Michael was able to stay in this room for a very long time without being seen. He had even planned to finish his kitchen, put in new floors, and add another bedroom. He was caught before those plans could happen, which was bad for him.
I was caught leaving the flat recently, so my plans to finish the kitchen, put down wood floors, add a second bedroom and replace the old silverware were put on hold for good. The security staff who handled the situation did so in a smooth and professional way. After four years, I must say I was caught off guard, and I’m sorry I wasn’t more open with information about my work right away.
Not punished
Michael was lucky that he didn’t get in trouble for sitting at the mall. But, of course, security wouldn’t let him into the shopping centre again for life. On his website, he also says that he is not poor and that he has a job.
We don’t understand how someone can live in plain sight for that long without being seen. No matter what, what a cool story!
