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Charlotte dead/dying malls


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Eastland is also a sad property, yet there are some newish strip centers around it that look OK and seem to be well-leased; I can't remember the names of those strip malls but maybe Eastway Crossing is the name of one of them?

I think the stores in those two Eastway centers continue to stay in business because of the Walmart. Some stores have already closed and it will be interesting to see what happens after the new Walmart on Independence opens and that Walmart closes.

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I think the stores in those two Eastway centers continue to stay in business because of the Walmart. Some stores have already closed and it will be interesting to see what happens after the new Walmart on Independence opens and that Walmart closes.

Good point, as the Winn-Dixie in one of those strip malls has also been turned into another chain (?). Just as losing anchors hurts regular malls, that must also hurt strip malls. I'd expect that they'd have problems.

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Northlake will be, Live right by this new mall and was excited about its prospects but again it seems Charlotte is spending its money trying to be something its not.

This mall is on the wrong side of RT 77, then this is compounded by the fact that it is an overpriced mis-targetted mess.

The mall is a slew of high end stores and jewelery stores in a neighborhood that is "working class" at best.

If the main target buyers need to drive 10+ mintes to get to this mall they will all go to Concord instead.

Concord is an excellent mall, and what people actual want in a mall.

Northlake is a dead or never going to thrive mall apparently built and decision minded by those who had no idead what the neighborhood could really use.

I have many relatives working there, teens who spend time in that mall, and all comment on how empty it is and those there are not looking to overpay at the mountain of yuppie stores in this type of neighborhood.

Valet parking? come on people, stop pretending and just be Charlotte.

In the end, the mall is good looking enough, and the Northlake AMC movie theater is decent and a VERY welcome adition to this area, AND THE CHILD play park inside the mall is great!....

but the store selections are so misguided.

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To clarify- the dead/dying mall I was mentioning is NorthPARK, a tragic property on North Tryon Street.

NorthLAKE- the Taubman mall off I-77- is a different mall.

Yep northlake is different, but needed to be mentioned as the newsest and had gone through the entire thread unmentioned.

Concord is excellent, and has stores to match the natural demographic of visitors, it will be cool for a long time to come, northlake is a ticking clock already, unless the new birkdale like development alongside of it draws them in.

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Hasn't Concord Mills been there since 1999? How long does the jury have to deliberate on that one. It is the most visited attraction in all of NC.
Yes, it has, but age and current popularity have little to do with wether a mall will contiue to be around in 10 or 20 years.

Its prospects are good considering it's in a growing area right off the beltway and next to the speedway, but Concord Mills has a tendency to turn over stores pretty quickly and its parent company is having a lot of financial trouble these days. Stay tuned.

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By 2031 UrbanPlanet will be UrbanGalaxy.org hehe

Yes possibly! I am not an expert on Charlotte history, but take most of the malls from the 1960's or 1970's around here and look where they are now. Eastland, Midtown Square (Charlottetown), Freedom Mall, Monroe.) All these are in DECLINING stages while Carolina Place, South Park, Northlake, and Concord Mills are all on the rise. Though I suspect as I said in 20-30 years those malls will have seen their prime. A case can be made that Carolina Place has actually reached it's peak, if not for it's current addition of stores.

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Yes possibly! I am not an expert on Charlotte history, but take most of the malls from the 1960's or 1970's around here and look where they are now. Eastland, Midtown Square (Charlottetown), Freedom Mall, Monroe.) All these are in DECLINING stages while Carolina Place, South Park, Northlake, and Concord Mills are all on the rise. Though I suspect as I said in 20-30 years those malls will have seen their prime. A case can be made that Carolina Place has actually reached it's peak, if not for it's current addition of stores.

Well actually SouthPark opened in 1971. It is one of Charlotte's oldest enclosed malls. Overstreet Mall also opened in the 1970s, and I believer that Cotswald might even go back to the 1960s. And of course the Asian Mall, once known as the Tryon Mall also goes back to the 1960s. It's not the age of the mall that causes the decline, but rather, what happens to the area around it and/or investment to keep it going.

We all know about the demographic changes that have cause Northpark (not Northlake), Eastland, Westpark and the Freedom Malls to fail, but even city actions can cause it to happen. Charlottetown mall died when they built I-277 which eliminated square miles of neighborhoods around it, separated it from downtown, and made it difficult to get to. And being hidden away from traffic is a great way to kill a mall. When it opened bustling Independence Blvd when right by the mall. Remember the redevelopment that is taking place there now would not have happened without some serious financial incentives from the city.

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Good points about malls- and two big things happening in general in the US are (1) sizeable population growth and (2) growth mainly on the edges of cities but also, to a smaller extent, in downtown areas; middle-ring suburbs are having a lot of problems.

Thus malls at the edges of cities (thus I think Northlake and Concord Mills) and close in should generally have good futures, while malls in inner-ring suburbs will have problems, just as Eastland has had recently. SouthPark is in an inner ring suburb, which doesn't bode well- although it's in a very affluent area, and I don't see that changing anytime soon, so hopefully the mall will be "the" mall for a long time to come.

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Malls tend to come and go. Most enclosed malls have an average life of about 25 years or so. So, in 2031, look for Carolina Place, South Park, and yes even Concord Mills to be completely different, or even gone.

Does anyone really think that we will be shopping and living in the same way by 2031? There is no way that the past 25 years will be repeated in the next. I say malls will not make it for another 25 years, at least not in a way that we would recognize them by today's standards.

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When the Back to the Future movies came out I thought everything would be the way it was in the 2nd movie by 2015....seems as if things have since evolved a bit but alas no flying cars or $300 bottles of Pepsi lol

I think that by 2031 there will probably still be a few malls of the mega mall variety but most of the smaller malls will probably have been turned inside out by then...

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When the Back to the Future movies came out I thought everything would be the way it was in the 2nd movie by 2015....seems as if things have since evolved a bit but alas no flying cars or $300 bottles of Pepsi lol

I think that by 2031 there will probably still be a few malls of the mega mall variety but most of the smaller malls will probably have been turned inside out by then...

Compare the growth rate and expanse of technology from 1975-1985 and from 1995-2005 and you'll see what I mean. Exponential technology growth will change the way we live and is just now being evident. For references pick up Ray Kurzweil's book, "The Singularity Is Near: When Humans Transcend Biology."

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SouthPark is in an inner ring suburb, which doesn't bode well- although it's in a very affluent area, and I don't see that changing anytime soon, so hopefully the mall will be "the" mall for a long time to come.
SouthPark is safe for the forseeable future. Most of the city's wealth is within a five mile radius of it, as well as the better-paying jobs. There's always room for error of course, seeing as nothing exists in a vacuum in retail, but it also boasts the most exclusive selection of stores between Washington and Atlanta, which definately works in its favor.

Does anyone really think that we will be shopping and living in the same way by 2031? There is no way that the past 25 years will be repeated in the next. I say malls will not make it for another 25 years, at least not in a way that we would recognize them by today's standards.
I don't think we will be living or shopping the same way by 2031. It's going to be similar to what we do now, but things will probably be more streamlined and less labor intensive, including shopping.

I think shopping centers will survive, but I think there will be less of them overall, and the ones that do survive will be more inclusive and "smarter" by design. They'll have to be, because the pool of retailers to fill them will inevitably be smaller and people will demand more out of their shopping trip than the same old things. That is, if recent trends continue.

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South Park is in an "affluent" area, but it is situated between some lower income "inner city" neighborhoods. Such as Park South to Archdale Dr. to the west and the areas from Cotswold to the east isnt the greatest. My point being, crime has already spread to this mall, and if people really want to make a killing being theives, they will figure out where that area is eventually. I mean if someone was looking to break in somewhere, or rob someone, wouldn't you choose South Park area over Eastway?

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Human beings are bad to the core. Every neighborhood, town, and family has something bad happen eventually.

If there is wealth, there will be property crime. If there are roads, there will be speeders and reckless drivers. If there are immigrants, there will be gangs. If there are sports, there will be gambling and cheating. If there are countries, there will be wars. It is just humanity, and you can't escape.

If you try to build a utopia, you'll need to fill it with parakeets, because people will just wreck it.

All that to say: of course South Park has some property crime... sheesh.

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South Park is in an "affluent" area, but it is situated between some lower income "inner city" neighborhoods. Such as Park South to Archdale Dr. to the west

Er, like these new low income houses in that area? http://www.simonini.com/communities/conservatory.html

There isn't much lower income until you get to within a block or two of south blvd on archdale, and even that is stable and middle class, if not exceeding that in some neighborhoods due to the light rail influenced appreciation of land around there.

Even Starmount to the south of there is looking good - it has become part of one of my weekend bike riding routes due to the nice hills and lack of thru traffic.

About the only thing I'm wondering about is wether the large flyovers/ light rail in general will amplify the 'good side of the tracks/bad side of the tracks' disparity on that side of town.

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No matter if there are low-income areas within range of SouthPark, still, there are and will be plenty of upper-income shoppers nearby and they need somewhere to shop. Look at the main Bloomingdale's in Manhattan at 59th & Lex- with a Ghetto Express subway stop (the N/R/W and 4/5/6 subway trains, which start in bad areas and bring plenty of low-income passengers) in the basement, but which also is surrounded by upper-income areas; it does well.

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Er, like these new low income houses in that area?

About the only thing I'm wondering about is wether the large flyovers/ light rail in general will amplify the 'good side of the tracks/bad side of the tracks' disparity on that side of town.

In my opinion (because I watch the MLS every day for zip code 28210) the schism of South Blvd is very apparent. A split level may sit for weeks at $125K that would sell for $175K on the east side of the tracks.

Also, it is clear that Montclaire and Madison Park are rising in value. You could find a nice 3BR2 in Madison Park for $160K easily two years ago. Now most of the homes are going over $200K and even pushing into the $250K range. This is not the staid, single digit per year appreciaition that traditionally happens in real estate.

Maybe these neighborhoods are "lower income" by South Park standards, but they're becoming upper middle class compared to the rest of town.

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I drove all the way to the Monroe Mall today. I didn't really think it was that bad; it was a '70s mall (obviously, due to that lovely beige brick) that has been kept up OK, with new carpeting and new paint. Odd in that even the stores were straight out of a '70s mall- how often do we see Waldenbooks or K-B Toys in malls these days? I thought the mall was fine, although quiet.

That Belk home store is just sad, and losing a Fashion Bug Plus is even sadder.

That mall is on par with the Rock Hill Galleria, and is way upscale compared to the Gaston Mall at exit 21 on I-85, with the fabric store anchor.

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