PHOTOS: A rundown Gwinnett Place shopping center with big dreams

A group of developers has its eyes on the Gwinnett Prado shopping center for a massive mixed-use project. TYLER ESTEP / TYLER.ESTEP@AJC.COM

A group of developers has its eyes on the Gwinnett Prado shopping center for a massive mixed-use project. TYLER ESTEP / TYLER.ESTEP@AJC.COM

The Gwinnett Prado shopping center is an aging eyesore off Pleasant Hill Road near Duluth.

Most of the storefronts — and entire buildings — are empty, windows covered with newspaper or anything else that was handy at the time. Grass sprouts through cracks in the sprawling parking lots. Broken shopping carts litter medians.

It's this — a Texas-shaped, 32-acre property in the shadow of Gwinnett Place Mall — that a group of developers have identified for a massive mixed-use project they hope could turn the tide for the entire area.

Read more about that project here — but in the meantime, check out the photos below, which show the Gwinnett Prado shopping center as it currently exists.

Developers are hoping to bring new life to the aging -- and largely abandoned -- Gwinnett Prado shopping center off Pleasant Hill Road. SPECIAL PHOTO

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An aerial view of the 32-acre property.

A group of developers has its eyes on the Gwinnett Prado shopping center for a massive mixed-use project. TYLER ESTEP / TYLER.ESTEP@AJC.COM

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The former Rio Bravo location fronting Pleasant Hill Road has been empty for more than a decade.

A group of developers has its eyes on the Gwinnett Prado shopping center for a massive mixed-use project. TYLER ESTEP / TYLER.ESTEP@AJC.COM

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A group of developers has its eyes on the Gwinnett Prado shopping center for a massive mixed-use project. TYLER ESTEP / TYLER.ESTEP@AJC.COM

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A group of developers has its eyes on the Gwinnett Prado shopping center for a massive mixed-use project. TYLER ESTEP / TYLER.ESTEP@AJC.COM

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The Great Wall Supermarket caters to those seeking Asian products.

A group of developers has its eyes on the Gwinnett Prado shopping center for a massive mixed-use project. TYLER ESTEP / TYLER.ESTEP@AJC.COM

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A group of developers has its eyes on the Gwinnett Prado shopping center for a massive mixed-use project. TYLER ESTEP / TYLER.ESTEP@AJC.COM

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A group of developers has its eyes on the Gwinnett Prado shopping center for a massive mixed-use project. TYLER ESTEP / TYLER.ESTEP@AJC.COM

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Empty storefronts, and entire buildings, abound.

A group of developers has its eyes on the Gwinnett Prado shopping center for a massive mixed-use project. TYLER ESTEP / TYLER.ESTEP@AJC.COM

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A group of developers has its eyes on the Gwinnett Prado shopping center for a massive mixed-use project. TYLER ESTEP / TYLER.ESTEP@AJC.COM

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A group of developers has its eyes on the Gwinnett Prado shopping center for a massive mixed-use project. TYLER ESTEP / TYLER.ESTEP@AJC.COM

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A group of developers has its eyes on the Gwinnett Prado shopping center for a massive mixed-use project. TYLER ESTEP / TYLER.ESTEP@AJC.COM

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A former Gymboree location has seen better days.

A group of developers has its eyes on the Gwinnett Prado shopping center for a massive mixed-use project. TYLER ESTEP / TYLER.ESTEP@AJC.COM

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As has a former health food store.

A group of developers has its eyes on the Gwinnett Prado shopping center for a massive mixed-use project. TYLER ESTEP / TYLER.ESTEP@AJC.COM

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A group of developers has its eyes on the Gwinnett Prado shopping center for a massive mixed-use project. TYLER ESTEP / TYLER.ESTEP@AJC.COM

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A group of developers has its eyes on the Gwinnett Prado shopping center for a massive mixed-use project. TYLER ESTEP / TYLER.ESTEP@AJC.COM

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A group of developers has its eyes on the Gwinnett Prado shopping center for a massive mixed-use project. TYLER ESTEP / TYLER.ESTEP@AJC.COM

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A group of developers has its eyes on the Gwinnett Prado shopping center for a massive mixed-use project. TYLER ESTEP / TYLER.ESTEP@AJC.COM

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A former Sports Authority location, now with covered windows.

A group of developers has its eyes on the Gwinnett Prado shopping center for a massive mixed-use project. TYLER ESTEP / TYLER.ESTEP@AJC.COM

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A group of developers has its eyes on the Gwinnett Prado shopping center for a massive mixed-use project. TYLER ESTEP / TYLER.ESTEP@AJC.COM

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A T-Mobile store is still doing business in the shopping center.

A group of developers has its eyes on the Gwinnett Prado shopping center for a massive mixed-use project. TYLER ESTEP / TYLER.ESTEP@AJC.COM

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A group of developers has its eyes on the Gwinnett Prado shopping center for a massive mixed-use project. TYLER ESTEP / TYLER.ESTEP@AJC.COM

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A group of developers has its eyes on the Gwinnett Prado shopping center for a massive mixed-use project. TYLER ESTEP / TYLER.ESTEP@AJC.COM

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An Office Max store is holding a going-out-of-business sale.

A group of developers has its eyes on the Gwinnett Prado shopping center for a massive mixed-use project. TYLER ESTEP / TYLER.ESTEP@AJC.COM

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Ironically, it appears a new restaurant has recently opened among the shopping center's mass vacancies.

A group of developers has its eyes on the Gwinnett Prado shopping center for a massive mixed-use project. TYLER ESTEP / TYLER.ESTEP@AJC.COM

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A group of developers has its eyes on the Gwinnett Prado shopping center for a massive mixed-use project. TYLER ESTEP / TYLER.ESTEP@AJC.COM

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