How To: Makeovers for Struggling Malls

Lean Urbanism recently released a "lean" guide to sprawl repair—focusing on how to bring struggling shopping malls back to life.

1 minute read

March 26, 2016, 5:00 AM PDT

By James Brasuell @CasualBrasuell


End of the Mall

Nicholas Eckhart / Flickr

David Friedlander introduces "one of the more clever mall retrofits we’ve seen," urban planning firm Duany Plater-Zyberk's proposal for the Oak Hollow Mall in High Point, North Carolina.

According to Friedlander, the proposal would have turned the mall into "a mixed-use, small-business village to be known as 'Inc.Pad.'"

"The mall itself would be turned into artisan workshops and storage. Some stores would be turned into residential and work studios, and the food court would be converted into a certified kitchen and culinary institute," writes Friedlander.

For a detailed account of the project, check out the original post on the Lean Urbanism website, written by Galina Tachieva. Tachieva also includes a list of recommendations for how communities should approach a retrofit of underperforming commercial properties.

Wednesday, March 23, 2016 in Lean Urbanism

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I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

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