Every time I exit Market Street on 50th, I’m greeted with that big, empty CVS building.

And every time, I wonder the same thing: what happens now in Lubbock?

I have no idea why CVS decided it needed to build “superstores” in the first place. Even if you factor in all the personal grooming stuff, medicine, seasonal items, and whatever else they had going on, there was never a need for a store that big.

There were always entire aisles that seemed to just sit there gathering dust. If I called out to my wife from across the store, I’d hear an echo before she answered.

Now we have a big empty store that still looks exactly like a big empty CVS, complete with those weird trademark windows way up high in the front.

So who takes over and reuses a space like that?

The likely answer is… no one.

If that property has value to another tenant, there’s a pretty good chance the whole thing has to be knocked down and rebuilt.

Can you imagine the waste and cost of rebuilding something like that? It has to be in the millions. Then, after all that, you’re still sitting on 50th Street, which is already showing signs of empty storefronts and decline.

So what do we have?

Well, I guess I have no idea.

How about this? Let’s turn it into a chicken mall.

Seriously. Portion the place off and let every chicken restaurant fight it out like competitors in the octagon. Put them all under one roof and let the sauces, sandwiches, and waffle fries determine the winner.

Read More: Another Knockout In Lubbock’s Chicken Fight

It’s certainly not big enough for a haunted house situation (yes, I checked in my brain), and it’s not really built right to house something like a garage.

It looks far too expensive for a mom-and-pop shop. It could maybe host a furniture store, but even then, that probably just means someone moving from cheaper rent somewhere else.

This is going to be interesting to watch, and the reason it matters is because when a big business tanks, the smaller businesses around it tend to suffer too.

It changes the whole feel of an area.

What used to be a shopping destination slowly turns into a few random places people drive directly to, instead of somewhere people spend an afternoon bouncing around from store to store.

It’s a pretty terrible indication that Lubbock may eventually move on from 50th Street as one of its main shopping areas.

Hopefully being right next to Monterey High and surrounded by decades of Lubbock history keeps that stretch alive a little bit longer.

Or maybe I’m wrong.

Maybe someday I’ll be walking into the old CVS to enjoy the world’s first chicken mall.

And if that happens, I want credit.