Despite threats like online retail, upscale sectors of the mall market are prospering. This is good news for what are, perhaps, the only walkable 'streets' in some parts of the country.

Some shopping malls are closing, but many more remain entirely viable. Amanda Kolson Hurley reports on the specifics. "Most malls are owned by a handful of publicly traded real-estate investment trusts (REITs), and the big players who specialize in higher-end malls are doing well. The top three—Simon Property Group, General Growth Properties, and Macerich—have seen their stock prices rise since 2012."
To succeed today, malls need to be interesting. And they do that by projecting affluence and "lifestyle" options. From the article: "Meanwhile, malls are working hard to drum up more foot traffic. Increasingly, higher-end shopping malls peddle an experience, not just goods. They have real restaurants and cafes instead of wan food-court fare, ritzy salons, and maybe a Whole Foods where a department store used to be."
Counter-intuitively, any real loss of public interest in mall spaces may not be a good thing: "Urbanists like to think that the American mall is a relic. But the truth is that until more suburbs redevelop to become denser and walkable, the mall is the best communal—though not really public, alas—space that we've got."
FULL STORY: Shopping Malls Aren't Actually Dying

Rethinking Redlining
For decades we have blamed 100-year-old maps for the patterns of spatial racial inequity that persist in American cities today. An esteemed researcher says: we’ve got it all wrong.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

Walmart Announces Nationwide EV Charging Network
The company plans to install electric car chargers at most of its stores by 2030.

New State Study Suggests Homelessness Far Undercounted in New Mexico
An analysis of hospital visit records provided a more accurate count than the annual point-in-time count used by most agencies.

Michigan Bills Would Stiffen Penalties for Deadly Crashes
Proposed state legislation would close a ‘legal gap’ that lets drivers who kill get away with few repercussions.

Report: Bus Ridership Back to 86 Percent of Pre-Covid Levels
Transit ridership around the country was up by 85 percent in all modes in 2024.
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