The locally based Simon shopping mall empire has taken to building a new style of shopping centers in the more affluent suburbs in the area. Dubbed ‘Lifestyle Centers’, these shopping malls are generally laid out in a Potemkin village main street with all of the smaller stores occupying spaces along ‘Main Street’. There is street parking along Main Street, so a lucky few get to park in front of, or close to, the store of their choice.
The anchor stores are relegated to out lots behind or at the end of Main Street often separated from Main Street by a parking lot big enough to handle the anchor store and the overflow parking for the nearer parts of Main Street.
Now, I confess that I’ve never actually shopped at one of these new malls. However, as I rode through one on my weekly ride yesterday, I got to thinking about the merits of the layout. The upsides are that if you are just trying to visit a particular show on a lite shopping day, you’ll probably get in and out fairly quickly. Also, on beautiful spring days like yesterday, it is probably nice to window shop along Main Street. But, on a busy day, you’ll still be parking a decent hike from where you want to go, and, in the dog days of summer and in winter, you now get to make that hike and the strolling between stores exposed to the elements. Plus, instead of walking from one anchor to the other like most people do in traditional malls, it seems most would drive from one anchor to the other in this layout in all but the nicest weather.
This may be a misguided attempt visually copy some of the design elements of New Urbanism communities, but this isn’t a mixed used development. This is a destination shopping center with a car trip involved for the vast majority of the customers. It is not about reducing car trips. In fact, it likely increase car trips within the shopping center. I just don’t get it.
Anyway, today route: