Marvin's Marvelous Mechanical Museum says it will reopen in weeks at its new West Bloomfield Township location, ending a two-year hiatus that began when the beloved arcade and oddity collection was forced out of its longtime Farmington Hills home. Owner Jeremy Yagoda announced the news in a Facebook post, though the museum did not give a specific reopening date.
The museum will occupy the former Sav-On Drugs space at Orchard Mall on Orchard Lake Road just north of Maple, according to The Detroit News. That move nearly triples the arcade's footprint, expanding it from the 5,300-square-foot space it occupied at Hunter's Square to a 14,000-square-foot facility, according to Hour Detroit. Yagoda said he was excited about bringing visitors a bigger museum, per the same Detroit News report.
A Plumbing Problem Pushed Back the Timeline
The reopening had originally been targeted for late May, but the station's report notes it was delayed after crews discovered plumbing issues beneath the new location's floor. Yagoda said crews would need to trench the cement to fix the problem before the museum could open its doors. West Bloomfield Township approved the museum's plans to relocate to Orchard Mall in 2025, and the township's zoning board of appeals allowed exceptions for the site's distance from a residential area.
Yagoda asked for patience from supporters as the final work wraps up. Marvin's Marvelous Mechanical Museum, a mix of arcade games and memorabilia, operated at Hunter's Square from 1990 until it closed in 2024, when Farmington Hills approved a planned unit development that included demolition of the former mall to make way for a smaller-scale Meijer store.
Community Fought to Keep the Original Location
The closure did not come without a fight. An online petition titled “Save Marvin's Marvelous Mechanical Museum!” gathered more than 50,000 signatures from residents trying to stop the demolition of the Hunter's Square shopping center, according to ClickOnDetroit. The petition gained momentum after developers announced plans to replace part of the plaza with a grocery store. Despite the outpouring of support, the Farmington Hills City Council voted unanimously in February 2024 to approve the redevelopment, noting that municipal government cannot dictate commercial tenant choices to private developers, as detailed by Hour Detroit. The partial redevelopment represents an estimated $50 million to $70 million commercial investment, according to WCSX.
A Regional Family Legacy Continues
The museum was founded by the late Marvin Yagoda, Jeremy Yagoda's father, who began collecting coin-operated machines in 1960 before opening the arcade in 1990. Marvin Yagoda worked as a pharmacist for 50 years before his death in January 2017 at age 78, per Vending Times. The World Almanac once named the museum one of the 100 weirdest museums in the world, and the elder Yagoda served as an expert appraiser on History Channel's American Pickers. Jeremy Yagoda has said he is happy to carry on his father's dream with the expanded West Bloomfield space.
The collection's quirky reputation has long attracted more than just local families. Rapper Eminem held a surprise birthday party at the arcade, according to the Detroit Metro Times.
Wider Pressures on Metro Detroit Arcades
The forced move reflects broader commercial development pressures across Southeast Michigan.
The extra square footage is expected to allow for more games, private party rooms and a more spread-out setup. Owner Jeremy Yagoda has said he plans to use the expanded facility to restore and reactivate an animatronic Chuck E. Cheese show that has sat non-operational since the late 1990s due to degraded reel-to-reel tapes, according to Hour Detroit. For now, fans of the arcade will have to wait a bit longer, with Yagoda asking supporters for patience as the final repairs are completed before the doors reopen.
