I"ve been to Echelon quite a number of times. That mall is pretty dead, I only visit the Boscovs there. Other than that it seems the food court is quite popular there. It's in a pretty onscured area too
I think that's one of the biggest reasons why the mall has been dead for nearly 10 years. It's far from any major roads like how most malls are, the closest probably being Route 73, which is still at least 10-15 minutes away. Not even close to any major bridges or freeways like I-295 or the NJ Turnpike. The recently renovated the property by demolishing half the mall and adding adjacent stores with a town center-esque theme, but I doubt that will help much, at least for the mall portion.
I was there once in 2007, and like you said, other than the food court area, the mall has definitely seen better days.