For more than 30 years, the mall industry has depended on department stores -- which are now struggling against discounters and specialty stores.
"So, can the shopping center industry live without [Department Stores]? The answer is no or at least not yet and not for conventional malls. However, new mall formats are cropping up around the country that don't depend so heavily on department store anchors.. That makes the evolution of the department store a vital development for owners, developers and investors to follow. After all, nobody wants to be stuck with empty anchor stores and the chances of that continue to rise thanks to bankruptcies and consolidation."
Thanks to Chris Steins
FULL STORY: Future of the Department Store

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

In Urban Planning, AI Prompting Could be the New Design Thinking
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Cal Fire Chatbot Fails to Answer Basic Questions
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Sean Duffy Targets Rainbow Crosswalks in Road Safety Efforts
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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.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Appalachian Highlands Housing Partners
Gallatin County Department of Planning & Community Development
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
Mpact (founded as Rail~Volution)
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
City of Portland
City of Laramie