The regional mall is rapidly being replaced by the more attractive, and more profitable new urbanist "lifestyle center."
"Meanwhile, the era of the regional mall is coming to an undignified end. More than 300 malls currently stand vacant, and last year only nine were being built, nearly all of them contracted for long ago... The lifestyle center, on the other hand, is excitingly 21st century. It is easier to say that than to specify what one of these creatures actually is, but the International Council of Shopping Centers has helpfully come forward with a definition of sorts. A lifestyle center is an open-air mall with at least 50,000 square feet of specialty shopping, usually without a full-scale department store but nearly always with at least one sit-down restaurant... These centers arent sprouting up because developers have become acolytes of Andres Duany and the New Urbanists. They are sprouting up because they make money. A study by the consulting firm of Piper Jaffray found that lifestyle centers returned 60.8 percent on their investment after three years. During the same period, conventional malls were returning less than 50 percent."
Thanks to Chris Steins
FULL STORY: Learning to Love Lifestyle Land
Depopulation Patterns Get Weird
A recent ranking of “declining” cities heavily features some of the most expensive cities in the country — including New York City and a half-dozen in the San Francisco Bay Area.
California Exodus: Population Drops Below 39 Million
Never mind the 40 million that demographers predicted the Golden State would reach by 2018. The state's population dipped below 39 million to 38.965 million last July, according to Census data released in March, the lowest since 2015.
Chicago to Turn High-Rise Offices into Housing
Four commercial buildings in the Chicago Loop have been approved for redevelopment into housing in a bid to revitalize the city’s downtown post-pandemic.
Chicago Awarded $2M Reconnecting Communities Grant
Community advocates say the city’s plan may not do enough to reverse the negative impacts of a major expressway.
New Park Opens in the Santa Clarita Valley
The City of Santa Clarita just celebrated the grand opening of its 38th park, the 10.5-acre Skyline Ranch Park.
U.S. Supreme Court: California's Impact Fees May Violate Takings Clause
A California property owner took El Dorado County to state court after paying a traffic impact fee he felt was exorbitant. He lost in trial court, appellate court, and the California Supreme Court denied review. Then the U.S. Supreme Court acted.
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Licking County
Barrett Planning Group LLC
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Mpact Transit + Community
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
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ULI Northwest Arkansas
Town of Zionsville
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