2006年VOA标准英语-US Shopping Malls Begin Imposing Youth Curfews

By George Dwyer
Washington
03 July 2006
 
Watch Mall Curfew report
 
  
  
It is summer vacation season for many students around the world - a time for summer camps, blockbuster movies or just hanging out with friends.  But some business owners say an increasing number of students  are content simply to congregate¹ in  shopping malls.  And as VOAs George Dwyer reports, some retailers² say this is ruining business.

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Catherine O'Malley   
  
Like many U.S. shopping malls, suburban³ Detroit's Fairlane Shopping Center attracts large crowds of young people during the summer months.  Mall manager Catherine O'Malley says some days are busier than others. 

"We would see numbers anywhere from 2,000 to 2,500 youngsters," she says.

 
Sherrita Wright 
  
The influx⁴ of youthful shoppers results in higher sales for certain items, but some retailers say the throngs⁵ of teens can be disruptive. Shopkeeper Sherrita Wright says the kids are cutting into sales and bothering her customers.

"Noisemaking, profanities, which was a bother to a lot of older couples, mallwalkers, just people who want to shop," she says.

Retailers also complained there have been problems with shoplifting and security. So now many malls, including some of America's biggest, are imposing⁶ curfews on unchaperoned teenagers - something that has met with surprising and welcome results.

 
Joe Castaldo 
  
Joe Castaldo manages a shopping mall in New York says when they come with parents they usually spend more.

"Instead of kids coming in unattended and maybe spending $15 or $20, they are now coming with their parents in the same stores, $70 or $80," he says.

Across the U.S. there are already more than 100 shopping malls with some form of curfew in effect, and that number is growing.

  
  
At Michigan's Fairlane, the number of seniors strolling through the mall has doubled since a curfew went into effect. And other mall operators say they are now seeing better sales. Still, there remains⁷ one group that finds the curfews objectionable - the teenagers themselves.

1 congregate   

v.(使)集合，聚集

参考例句：

• Now they can offer a digital place for their readers to congregate and talk.现在他们可以为读者提供一个数字化空间，让读者可以聚集和交谈。
• This is a place where swans congregate.这是个天鹅聚集地。

2 retailers   

零售商，零售店( retailer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• High street retailers reported a marked increase in sales before Christmas. 商业街的零售商报告说圣诞节前销售量显著提高。
• Retailers have a statutory duty to provide goods suitable for their purpose. 零售商有为他们提供符合要求的货品的法定义务。

3 suburban   

adj.城郊的，在郊区的

参考例句：

• Suburban shopping centers were springing up all over America. 效区的商业中心在美国如雨后春笋般地兴起。
• There's a lot of good things about suburban living.郊区生活是有许多优点。

4 influx   

n.流入，注入

参考例句：

• The country simply cannot absorb this influx of refugees.这个国家实在不能接纳这么多涌入的难民。
• Textile workers favoured protection because they feared an influx of cheap cloth.纺织工人拥护贸易保护措施，因为他们担心涌入廉价纺织品。

5 throngs   

n.人群( throng的名词复数 )v.成群，挤满( throng的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• She muscled through the throngs of people, frantically searching for David. 她使劲挤过人群，拼命寻找戴维。 来自辞典例句
• Our friends threaded their way slowly through the throngs upon the Bridge. 我们这两位朋友在桥上从人群中穿过，慢慢地往前走。 来自辞典例句

6 imposing   

adj.使人难忘的，壮丽的，堂皇的，雄伟的

参考例句：

• The fortress is an imposing building.这座城堡是一座宏伟的建筑。
• He has lost his imposing appearance.他已失去堂堂仪表。

7 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。