Failing malls didn’t get into trouble overnight: most began their descent long before the tough climate.
"The enclosed shopping mall, an uniquely American retail innovation, was the 'future of retail' in the 1950s and 60s. Shopping centers became an icon of suburban living in the 1970s and 80s, before beginning their slowly accelerating decline in the 1990s. Today, the growing number of dead or dying shopping malls and centers are seen as symbols of the downside of 'suburban sprawl.'
Finding new uses for old shopping centers will likely be a significant challenge for planners and real estate developers over the next decade. While revitalized downtown areas are making use of 19th Century buildings and neighborhoods to generate new businesses and profits, the iconic, post-World War II shopping mall design of the 20th Century too often fails to offer the same flexibility."
Thanks to Rodney C. Nanney, AICP
FULL STORY: Dead Malls: Suburban Planning Nightmare or Opportunity?
On the Life Cycle of Suburban Malls
Using Greenwood, Indiana as an example, Eric McAfee discusses how the value of individual suburban malls depreciates over time. Shiny new shopping centers compensate for inevitable vacancies in older ones.
Dead Mall? Convert it to a Health Clinic
Closed and struggling malls around the country are being repurposed as healthcare centers.
Santa Monica Garage-to-Affordable-Housing Conversion To Receive $2 Million
The city has been awarded $2 million in federal funding to support the conversion of a downtown parking structure into an affordable housing project.
Planning for Congestion Relief
The third and final installment of Planetizen's examination of the role of the planning profession in both perpetuating and solving traffic congestion.
Minneapolis Housing Plan a Success—Not for the Reason You Think
Housing advocates praise the city’s move to eliminate single-family zoning by legalizing triplexes on single-family lots, but that isn’t why housing construction is growing.
Car Noise Is Killing Us
It’s not just traffic collisions that kill—a new study from researcher at Rutgers finds that the loud noises emanating from cars has direct impact on heart health in Americans.
Parks as a Weapon Against Climate Change
The 2022 ParkScore finds that cities are increasingly employing green space as a tool for mitigating heat and extreme weather effects, but the distribution of parks remains inequitable.
Louisiana Capital Shifting to Electric Transit
The Baton Rouge area is now served by a fleet of nine all-electric buses.
New Community Engagement Practices for Seattle’s Comprehensive Plan Update
A major update of Seattle’s comprehensive plan is just getting under way, with new opportunities for local groups to get involved with outreach and engagement.
City of Malibu
EMC Planning Group Inc.
Jefferson Parish
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Harvard GSD Executive Education
City of Rohnert Park
City of Hot Springs
City of Lakeway, Texas
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Hand Drawing Master Plans
This course aims to provide an introduction into Urban Design Sketching focused on how to hand draw master plans using a mix of colored markers.
