Main Mall

South Hills Mall, located off Route 9, drew both shoppers and businesses away from central City of Poughkeepsie's downtown.

The closure of the Luckey Platt department store on Academy Street in early 1981, one of the City of Poughkeepsie's iconic retailers, dealt a final blow to the Main Mall.

Later that year, the Dutchess County Department of Social Services relocated their offices to the South Hills Mall on the opposite side from the former Luckey Platt building.

The departure of the county government offices further evidenced the shifting vitality from the City of Poughkeepsie downtown to the suburban mall.

Lafuente had a plan to revitalize the City of Poughkeepsie by a process that would replace blighted areas with new housing and businesses.