How to Transform the Humble Strip Mall

As the strip mall—that ubiquitous, car-oriented feature of American cities and suburbs—falls out of favor with planners and developers, many of the structures are being demolished and redeveloped. But in a piece on Strong Towns, Addison del Mastro asks, "are there ways for strip malls to be reinvented or reimagined in inexpensive, low-tech, incremental ways?"

According to del Mastro, the answer is "absolutely." del Mastro points to several examples, including a strip plaza in Montgomery County, Maryland where the parking lot fronting a now-vacant discount store informally hosts a variety of small businesses catering to local residents, many of whom do not own cars.

A more formal example, Falls Church's Eden Center, shows how communities can reclaim the physical strip mall form to better serve changing demographics. Located in one of Northern Virginia's most car-oriented areas, Eden Center manages to transform a traditional strip mall into a vibrant, human-oriented space. While the shopping center still requires driving, the small storefronts, lack of vacancies, and inviting public features makes Eden Center an excellent example of how a "substandard form" can still yield an impressive public and commercial space. del Mastro provides photos of the center, showing the small-scale interventions that can improve on an outdated design that will likely remain with us.