Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I do think that Charlotte needs a large traditional mall on the east side, that would also serve Union County. Especially since Eastland has been closed, and since Union is one of the largest growing counties in the state. Either the proposed Mint Hill mall or some other concept should eventually be developed.
Columbus: Polaris Place & Easton- 2
Raleigh/Durham: Crabtree, Cary Towne, Southpoint, Triangle- 4
Norfolk/Virginia Beach: Lynnhaven, MacArthur- 2
Richmond: Chesterfield, Short Pump, Stony Point (although not over 1M, includes upscale stores)- 2/3
Indianapolis: Castleton Square, Keystone (not over 1M, upscale)
Charlotte: Carolina Place, Concord Mills, Northlake, SouthPark- 4
Charlotte is not "under-malled".
You left out several key malls in several of those metros, like Peninsula Town Center in Hampton, VA, Circle Center in Indianapolis, Regency in Richmond and Northgate in Durham. But I'm not having a debate with you. I wasn't speaking in terms of the size of the malls. I was speaking regarding the types of malls and their offerings.
Just want to chime in and say that, having just moved here from Columbus, OH, Charlotte has much less shopping and dining than Columbus, even though they are very similar in size, layout and demographics. More choices would be better IMO, but I can see how natives may not feel the need to have more shops, eateries, etc just to please us newcomers.
It's not the 1980s anymore. Malls are a mid-20th century concept. They are not really working out that well in the early 21st century.
In the post Internet revolution the need for shopping malls isn't there like it was 25 years ago. A lot of the traditional anchors are having a hard time staying in business and/or are already gone. Malls serve a purpose for "some" people, but IMO, a great number of people avoid them now especially since it is the place to go to pay the most money for the least quality and choice. (over shopping on-line) Their growth certainly is in decline relative to population growth. It's not just Eastland. There have been numerous malls closed in Charlotte over this time. Westpark Mall, Northpark Mall, Freedom Mall, Tryon Mall, Outlet mall at Carowinds, Eastridge, part of the Overstreet, CitiFare, CharlotteTown Mall, and numerous large shopping centers are either closed, in very bad shape, or re-purposed into something else.
Charlotte's last experiment with a regional mall, Northlake, hasn't turned out to expectations even though on paper it should be doing quite well. It's been there for years now yet there is still a significant amount of un-rented space in the place including places that have never rented. A number of the original tenants are also gone. This doesn't go unnoticed by developers. The only places that survive these days either cater to the high end (South Park) or the bottom of the barrel shoppers and those who are looking to maintain a lifestyle they can't afford. (outlet malls) or cater to notions of what was, (Birkdale Village)
You left out several key malls in several of those metros, like Peninsula Town Center in Hampton, VA, Circle Center in Indianapolis, Regency in Richmond and Northgate in Durham. But I'm not having a debate with you. I wasn't speaking in terms of the size of the malls. I was speaking regarding the types of malls and their offerings.
I did not "leave out" any malls, as I obviously only listed malls over 1M sq. ft... Peninsula Center, Circle Center, Regency and Northgate are under 1M. Listing every mall/shopping center in all of those metros with mall-like stores would have almost been impossible. I'm not sure what you mean by "types of malls and their offerings". There was at least one regional, mid-scale and upscale in the list.
Quote:
Originally Posted by frewroad
It's not the 1980s anymore. Malls are a mid-20th century concept. They are not really working out that well in the early 21st century.
In the post Internet revolution the need for shopping malls isn't there like it was 25 years ago. A lot of the traditional anchors are having a hard time staying in business and/or are already gone. Malls serve a purpose for "some" people, but IMO, a great number of people avoid them now especially since it is the place to go to pay the most money for the least quality and choice. (over shopping on-line) Their growth certainly is in decline relative to population growth. It's not just Eastland. There have been numerous malls closed in Charlotte over this time. Westpark Mall, Northpark Mall, Freedom Mall, Tryon Mall, Outlet mall at Carowinds, Eastridge, part of the Overstreet, CitiFare, CharlotteTown Mall, and numerous large shopping centers are either closed, in very bad shape, or re-purposed into something else.
Charlotte's last experiment with a regional mall, Northlake, hasn't turned out to expectations even though on paper it should be doing quite well. It's been there for years now yet there is still a significant amount of un-rented space in the place including places that have never rented. A number of the original tenants are also gone. This doesn't go unnoticed by developers. The only places that survive these days either cater to the high end (South Park) or the bottom of the barrel shoppers and those who are looking to maintain a lifestyle they can't afford. (outlet malls) or cater to notions of what was, (Birkdale Village)
The malls you listed closed before the 21st century, as did a lot of malls in the US. It's irrelevant to the conversation on outlet malls/malls now. At Northlake, Forever 21 is moving into a larger space, Chico's and White House/Black Market are new stores to the mall with H&M rumored. Plus, Northlake is very modern and has more of a new look despite it's crime problems and has semi-upscale stores.
I did not "leave out" any malls, as I obviously only listed malls over 1M sq. ft... Peninsula Center, Circle Center, Regency and Northgate are under 1M. Listing every mall/shopping center in all of those metros with mall-like stores would have almost been impossible. I'm not sure what you mean by "types of malls and their offerings". There was at least one regional, mid-scale and upscale in the list.
It was obvious you used the 1M threshold because that was the only way to support the point you were trying to make. If you want to know how biased and rediculous that was, just try to imagine having a conversation with someone from Indianopolis about their significant shopping malls and tell them you're going to leave Circle Center out of the discussion.
How do we know that the new mall on the east side of charlotte will not lure the same folks that lead to eastland becoming a "less than desirable" place for the yuppys to shop.?After all the same vision for development is being applied to the new mall that was visioned for eastland,is it not?
It was obvious you used the 1M threshold because that was the only way to support the point you were trying to make. If you want to know how biased and rediculous that was, just try to imagine having a conversation with someone from Indianopolis about their significant shopping malls and tell them you're going to leave Circle Center out of the discussion.
Actually, no. I used the 1M criteria because while looking at the other malls in all of the metros, I realized most of the malls under 1M were in decline and have under 100 stores. Feel free to try and make your point whenever.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
