Northlake Mall

[monsoon]

There is no room in BV for a store like that so no, it won't go there.

BTW, there is still space in Northlake that has never been leased out.

[MZT]

I've never felt like Northlake has good visibility from 77. You just need to "know it's there".

[DigitalSky]

I've never felt like Northlake has good visibility from 77. You just need to "know it's there".

Not only that, I think still a lot of people are unaware of Northlake in general. You'd be surprised at whom you ask

[StevenRocks]

This mall is taking a tumble fast. NCDOT better get on the ball with I-485 or this place could be toast in five years.

[mallguy]

I was at a real estate meeting a few weeks ago and we looked at north Mecklenburg's future; the population in that area is projected to soar in the next few decades. I don't have the exact figures handy but I'd think that the mall will have a very bright future ahead, even if it doesn't do particularly well now. I'd say its main risk is becoming known as the Eastland of the North; once Northlake becomes known as the ghetto mall, it'll be tough to shake that image.

BTW does anyone much shop at the Northlake Dillard's? It's a nice store, but it's so far away from I-77 that people probably don't know it's there, and since it's at the far end of the parking lot, nobody much seems to park near it, either, so it always seems pretty empty.

PS: Thanks for the info about Storehouse- I was wrong about that chain then and it's sad to see it go!

Edited October 22, 2006 by mallguy

[monsoon]

This mall is taking a tumble fast. NCDOT better get on the ball with I-485 or this place could be toast in five years.

The section of 485 that connects to the east where the vast majority of the population lives in this county and to 85N, isn't expected to even start construction until 2013.

[MZT]

Not only that, the NW section of Charlotte from 85 to 77 is where much of the starter home development goes. The buyers there may shop at Northlake, but won't be as interested in high end stores.

It's too early to call this mall a flop, but I strongly suspect that the demographics and growth are not playing out as Taubman envisioned.

And I might add, getting to the mall along Stateville or WT Harris make for ugly entrances. Cheap shopping centers, signage all over the place, light industry. You don't feel like you're in an affluent area already.

Edited October 22, 2006 by MZT

[monsoon]

Yes, when this mall was orginally proposed, and this is in some of the earlier posts in this thread on the subject, we were led to believe this mall would be different, more like Birkdale Village rather than the typical mall. I think based on that the city council approved it. Now that it is built, it's not even close. As you said MZT, it is an area that is comprised of 100% automobile inspired development with a mall surrounded by a bunch of strip mall big box retail.

This is another example of the city not doing its job to protect the city from really bad development. It should be noted the Huntersville city council did not want this mall built, and even protested to the Charlotte city council, but they approved it anyway.

[StevenRocks]

The section of 485 that connects to the east where the vast majority of the population lives in this county and to 85N, isn't expected to even start construction until 2013.

That's not good. Not good at all. The mall's reputation will probably be heavily damaged by then.

It's too early to call this mall a flop, but I strongly suspect that the demographics and growth are not playing out at Taubman envisioned.

Very true. They were expecting a North Meck version of SouthPark. At best, it's Carolina Place and sliding.

Yes, when this mall was orginally proposed, and this is in some of the earlier posts in this thread on the subject, we were led to believe this mall would be different, more like Birkdale Village rather than the typical mall. I think based on that the city council approved it. Now that it is built, it's not even close. As you said MZT, it is an area that is comprised of 100% automobile inspired development with a mall surrounded by a bunch of strip mall big box retail.

I agree. I think we all were expecting this mall to be a break from the norm, but it hasn't lived up to those expectatitons. When they delayed the outdoor portion at a time when those sort of setups are at their peak of popularity, I got more than a little concerned. Now hearing the mall is slowly emptying out has me even more worried.

[mallguy]

Turnover is pretty common among stores in new malls. Losing stores is typical; if no stores fill the vacancies, and if that Dillard's remains quiet, then I'll start to worry.

I expect to see Z Gallerie move to SouthPark as soon as space there opens up.

Edited October 22, 2006 by mallguy

[monsoon]

I think the mall needs a more unique major anchor to attract more people there. Dicks can be found anywhere in the city, and the 3 big department stores there are basically clones of each other and feed off the same limited set of customers. I am not sure what effect the huge SuperTarget strip mall will have on NorthLake and the other 200K+sq ft place across Harris from it. Maybe they will attract more people to the mall, or will suck away customers. What do you guys think?

[Temeteron]

I think the mall needs a more unique major anchor to attract more people there. Dicks can be found anywhere in the city, and the 3 big department stores there are basically clones of each other and feed off the same limited set of customers. I am not sure what effect the huge SuperTarget strip mall will have on NorthLake and the other 200K+sq ft place across Harris from it. Maybe they will attract more people to the mall, or will suck away customers. What do you guys think?

I agree, they need something different than all the other malls.....Belk, Dillard's and Macy*s(once Hecht's) are like the 3 stooges in Charlotte malls.....and Dick's is starting to stalk those 3 now.....something new and different would definately work......i say either Dillard's or Dicks leaves.....and bring in a Saks for crying out loud!

[nyxmike]

If I remember correctly, aren't there suppose to be condos included in the SuperTarget development? I think the city needs to attract high end housing near the mall. There really isn't anything else around the mall right now - the office development across from it is expanding and that new shopping complex is still being built. It may not seem like a high end area, but it doesn't look poor either. Northlake isn't even an upscale mall, which is why I find it kind of pathetic that sales there have been depressing. Once I-485 opens to I-77, I think it will help the mall out a lot. It will make it more accessible to people in the Lake Wylie area. I used to work at Southpark and there are times during the week when that mall is DEAD.

I think people give this mall a hard time, mostly because it is just more sprawl. Storehouse is closing all of their stores, so that doesn't really mean anything. A restaurant in the food court closing doesn't really mean anything either. A lot of new tenants have been moving in since the mall opened. Yes, there are still vacant spots, but I am sure it takes time to find the right store to fill a certain spot (each vacant spot has a different square footage). With the huge amount of projected growth in the near future, I would think retailers in the mall would hang on a few more years to see what happens.

[spectacle21]

Last weekend, I went to Northlake for the first time. In my opinion, I think that its a very nice mall with an even more inviting environment. The attention to detail with store design caught my eye and I was overall pleased with my shopping experience there. The Banana Republic Store has a wayyyyyy better selection than the Concord Mills store & is more visual captivating. I went to Northlake on a Saturday afternoon and was there well into the nite - the mall was pretty packed and far from dead. I'm sure it has its 'up-and-down' moments like every mall.

As far as this mall attracting high-end stores...hmmmm....that's a maybe. The vibe I got from the mall was more of a clean, family-oriented destination....not super-stylish, ultra-chic, 'I-have-to-dress-up-to-come-to-this-mall" vibe (i.e. Lenox in ATL & SouthPark). Northlake reminds me more of a mix b/t Perimeter Mall & Gwinnett Place Mall (both in the ATL area).

Edited October 22, 2006 by spectacle21

[spectacle21]

I think the mall needs a more unique major anchor to attract more people there. Dicks can be found anywhere in the city, and the 3 big department stores there are basically clones of each other and feed off the same limited set of customers. I am not sure what effect the huge SuperTarget strip mall will have on NorthLake and the other 200K+sq ft place across Harris from it. Maybe they will attract more people to the mall, or will suck away customers. What do you guys think?

I agree....the mall could use a more "stand-out" anchor. But, the present set-up is just fine for Northlake. The mall is still very new & its going to be a few years before its able to obtain a set identity.

[StevenRocks]

Turnover is pretty common among stores in new malls. Losing stores is typical; if no stores fill the vacancies, and if that Dillard's remains quiet, then I'll start to worry.

Point taken. Some of the stuff that opened at Northlake was on its last corporate legs in the first place.

I'm not as concerned at the turnover as I am that there's just not a lot that people can look to Northlake to that isn't found elsewhere in the region. Not having I-485 yet is hurting them as well. Getting customers to the door is supremely important, and the current access routes aren't very promising.

Coming in from out of town of I-85, I either have to take Route 73 through exurbia, Harris Boulevard through a lot of unattractive suburbia and stoplights, or through the center of town to I-77. It's not worth the effort when I can find the same stuff at Carolina Place by taking two exits, or better stuff at SouthPark (which is somewhat hidden but worth the search)

I think the mall needs a more unique major anchor to attract more people there. Dicks can be found anywhere in the city, and the 3 big department stores there are basically clones of each other and feed off the same limited set of customers. I am not sure what effect the huge SuperTarget strip mall will have on NorthLake and the other 200K+sq ft place across Harris from it. Maybe they will attract more people to the mall, or will suck away customers. What do you guys think?

I agree. The mall needs a unique attraction. Temetron's suggestion of Saks has legs, but Northlake's not attracting that kind of demographic yet. Saks has a solid core of fans, but it's not the kind of broad-based customer traffic that the mall needs. Target would have worked, but it's across the street.

As more stuff gets built across the street, the traffic will increase, but probably not for the mall proper. I've said before that Northlake's developers needed to recruit some big-boxes onto mall property so that the sales wouldn't go across the strreet.

[mallguy]

Northlake reminds me of Triangle Town Center in Raleigh- a nice exurban mall; some high-end stores but not SouthPark or Phipps Plaza nice. I'd imagine that at some point Saks will want to come to Charlotte, and perhaps it could end up at Northlake due to lack of available space at SouthPark, just as it couldn't get into Crabtree Valley.

It would be a mistake, but who says Saks makes good real estate choices these days?

[DigitalSky]

I agree with Northlake being like Triangle Town Center. What keeps TTC alive is the Saks.

[DigitalSky]

http://www.charlotte.com/mld/charlotte/liv...od/15952636.htm

A sort of dining guide to Northlake's food court

[monsoon]

According to Channel 9 this mall now has the distinction of have the most violent crime of the 5 malls in the Charlotte area.

[DigitalSky]

So the article said that Northlake Mall and Eastland Mall had the fewest incedents overall, but that is because they both have the fewest attendance overall too. Violent Crime, however as you mentioned, is the key factor to be looked at.

Edited November 28, 2006 by cantnot

[voyager12]

I have only been to Northlake three times since it opened but I am surprised about the crime ranking. I did notice increased loitering outside and around the movies the second time I was there in the evening. Movie theatres at malls can be very disruptive if the kids that are dumped there by careless parents get out of control and want to make trouble.

[voyager12]

The Bravo at Northlake is pretty good.

Edited November 28, 2006 by voyager12

[StevenRocks]

The last thing Northlake needs is a violent crime rep.

[monsoon]

The Storehouse is definitely closed in this mall. Unfortunately it makes for a rather sizable space that is now covered by sheet rock walls. Oddly enough they did not take down the Storehouse sign. This end of the mall is basically a few places to get stuff for your hair, a lot of blank walls, Hello Kitty, and the entrance to Dillards. In other words, it looks worse than it did when it opened.

The Steak Escape place has also been sheet rocked over. They did remove the sign for the place but there is still a sign that claims the place is just like a piece of Philly. To compensate, d'Mustard has opened. This is a place were you can get a hotdog for a base price of $3.

The mall had also knocked the dust off its Narnia Christmas decorations it had last year, but it has converted them to Happy Feet the penguin movie decorations. It looks a bit shabby. Maybe they did not store them in a good place.

It's rather sad as I liked the idea and concept behind this mall, but it does seem to be headed in the wrong direction in terms of leasing and quality of tenants. Ironically the outparcels of this mall seem to be quite popular and there is an amazing 600,000+ sq/ft of retail under construction around NorthLake.