Ghost town

A ghost town is a town or city that is normally populated, but which is empty for some reason. Downtown Chicago was a ghost town during the Polar Vortex. While it is normally full of office workers and shoppers, it was empty during the coldest temperatures. In another situation, you might comment that the mall was a ghost town if there were no shoppers, or your downtown was a ghost town if you took a walk in the center of your city at midnight.