Northlake Mall

[kayman]

The irony is this shows Charlotte is a lot like Atlanta. Stonecrest there is like Northlake here. Both 2000s constructed indoor shopping malls in greenfield areas that rapidly declined due to economic conditions and rapidly shifting demography.  

Northlake can be saved but not in its current form as a super-regional,  indoor shopping mall though. 

[PuppiesandKittens]

When Northlake first opened, the upper level was higher-end chains (Brooks Brothers, Anthropologie, etc.) and the lower level was moderately-priced chains (I forget what they were as they didn’t appeal to me, as an uptown resident at the time).

If Northlake had not even bothered with a lower level, and had only higher-end stores on one level, I wonder if Northlake would have made it.

I read that Northlake is only 59.5% occupied with permanent stores, and another 14% or so is occupied by temporary stores.  With those statistics, and seeing the directory (pretty much nothing there seems to target Lake Norman suburbanites), I wonder which department store will leave first and when the mall will have a date with the wrecking ball.

[KJHburg]

Here is something that would be good for vacant mall space especially anchor space:  Pickleball courts.

from Phoenix:

""A newly formed Texas company that aims to insert massive pickleball facilities into cities across the U.S. is putting its first location in the Phoenix metro.

Picklemall will debut its first U.S. location in July at 5000 S. Arizona Mills Circle in the Arizona Mills shopping mall in Tempe. Picklemall will occupy a 104,000-square-foot space previously occupied by At Home Stores, which closed in 2019.""

and this would be ideal for Carolina Place Mall empty anchor spaces as well.  

[PuppiesandKittens]

Northlake’s eventual destination is the wrecking ball.  It’s Eastland Mall II.

[KJHburg]

I really hope that is the not the ultimate fate of Northlake.  The city needs to take steps to rezone or help the center in any way.  I wish they would add tons of apartments around perimeter of the mall where they once proposed an open air street of shops and retail on the existing mall property.  Add  a hotel. Increase security.   There is far more retail around this mall than there ever was around Eastland and that is a sizable tax base that could wither if the mall fails.  As for security why not open a police substation inside the mall like Concord Mills.  other option would be de-malling it but that in itself costs money.   But allowing a mall to decline is not in this city's best interest as it will take down far for than the mall itself. 

 

[PuppiesandKittens]

Apple is opening at Birkdale Village.

That won’t help Northlake.

[CLTProductions]

The movie theater has been closed for almost 2 months for "AC issues" 

[Professor]

On 5/28/2023 at 7:59 AM, KJHburg said:

I really hope that is the not the ultimate fate of Northlake.  The city needs to take steps to rezone or help the center in any way.  I wish they would add tons of apartments around perimeter of the mall where they once proposed an open air street of shops and retail on the existing mall property.  Add  a hotel. Increase security.   There is far more retail around this mall than there ever was around Eastland and that is a sizable tax base that could wither if the mall fails.  As for security why not open a police substation inside the mall like Concord Mills.  other option would be de-malling it but that in itself costs money.   But allowing a mall to decline is not in this city's best interest as it will take down far for than the mall itself. 

 

 

Edited June 30, 2023 by Larry Singer

[Temeteron]

5 hours ago, Larry Singer said:

Someday, Southpark Mall will suffer the same fate as Freedom Mall (years ago), the Charlottetown Mall (not so long ago) Eastland Mall (more recently) and Northlake Mall (in the process).  You can pick the stores and the location, unfortunately, you can't pick the people. 

I can understand anything is possible but I feel that SouthPark has gotten to a point where it’s very much established as a luxury destination so even though some stores close I don’t know if it’ll ever be on the same path as Eastland or NL per say since those malls weren’t really “luxury retail” malls.  NL did have several upscale stores though when they opened like Swarovski, Brooks Brothers, and Banana Republic.  But the location i think is another big factor.  South Park is surrounded by some of the most wealthy zip codes in the Carolinas.  NL and Eastland didn’t have that advantage.  

[Madison Parkitect]

6 hours ago, Larry Singer said:

Someday, Southpark Mall will suffer the same fate as Freedom Mall (years ago), the Charlottetown Mall (not so long ago) Eastland Mall (more recently) and Northlake Mall (in the process).  You can pick the stores and the location, unfortunately, you can't pick the people. 

SouthPark will be fine, if you don't like seeing "those people" that go there, just don't go.

[Professor]

13 hours ago, Madison Parkitect said:

SouthPark will be fine, if you don't like seeing "those people" that go there, just don't go.

Thanks for your advice for which I didn't ask, but I intend on going where I wish as I always do.   Obviously, you are unfamiliar with the history of shopping centers in the area. There is a history of their initial success and eventual failure. 

 

 

Edited June 30, 2023 by Larry Singer

[Professor]

On 6/29/2023 at 6:36 PM, Temeteron said:

I can understand anything is possible but I feel that SouthPark has gotten to a point where it’s very much established as a luxury destination so even though some stores close I don’t know if it’ll ever be on the same path as Eastland or NL per say since those malls weren’t really “luxury retail” malls.  NL did have several upscale stores though when they opened like Swarovski, Brooks Brothers, and Banana Republic.  But the location i think is another big factor.  South Park is surrounded by some of the most wealthy zip codes in the Carolinas.  NL and Eastland didn’t have that advantage.  

I really hope that SouthPark maintains its reputation as an excellent shopping center. I agree that its location is a factor in its survival and success. Additionally, the surrounding area seems to be getting even better. When Eastland was first built, it was a great area and a great mall for the time with the ice skating, etc. The area demographics began to change dramatically in the 1980s and Eastland became a place where you needed to park close to the entrance or a light after dark. Later, it became overridden by gangs and incidents that forced its unfortunate closing. The same happened to "uptown" in the 70s. Uptown is recovering, I hope something good is able to come out of Eastland. Northlake is surrounded by lots of excellent stores and descent neighborhoods. I hope that some sort of miracle interface between the mall and police department can resolve their issues. Unfortunately, it is close enough for thugs to make it a destination. They have at least banned uncompanied youth from hanging out. Unfortunately, the chaperone only has to be 18 if I am not mistaken. 

Edited July 1, 2023 by Larry Singer

[PuppiesandKittens]

On 6/30/2023 at 10:10 AM, Larry Singer said:

Thanks for your advice for which I didn't ask, but I intend on going where I wish as I always do.   Obviously, you are unfamiliar with the history of shopping centers in the area. There is a history of their initial success and eventual failure. 

 

 

SouthPark is now about 53 years old and it and the surrounding area have gotten only better.  And it's not near any transportation that quickly transports thugs to it.  I would think that Simon and the area's homeowners and businesses would do pretty much anything to keep SouthPark desirable and safe if it ever started trending downwards.  There is only a finite number of thugs and they can't take over the whole city; there simply aren't enough of them.

Edited July 2, 2023 by PuppiesandKittens

[Professor]

6 minutes ago, PuppiesandKittens said:

SouthPark is now about 53 years old and it and the surrounding area have gotten only better.  And it's not near any transportation that quickly transports thugs to it.  I would think that Simon and the area's homeowners and businesses would do pretty much anything to keep SouthPark desirable and safe if it ever started trending downwards.  There is only a finite number of thugs and they can't take over the whole city; there simply aren't enough of them.

I agree with you, but I believe there are plenty of thugs but easier targets elsewhere. I hope it's around another 53 years.  

[PuppiesandKittens]

I see that Northlake has numerous new stores, but they're either temporary (Spirit Halloween) or "mom and pop" stores.  American Eagle is listed as "coming soon", but sorry, Northlake, it's been there for years--we aren't going to fall for that.

[rancenc]

27 minutes ago, PuppiesandKittens said:

I see that Northlake has numerous new stores, but they're either temporary (Spirit Halloween) or "mom and pop" stores.  American Eagle is listed as "coming soon", but sorry, Northlake, it's been there for years--we aren't going to fall for that.

I believe another national retailer, Michael Kors, has closed up shop at the mall!

[PuppiesandKittens]

40 minutes ago, rancenc said:

I believe another national retailer, Michael Kors, has closed up shop at the mall!

Can we safely assume that all of the higher-end ones that are still there will be closing as soon as they can: waiting either (1) for their leases to expire or (2) for a lease termination event to be triggered by other closures or the like?  

I wonder how long the anchors will stay.  Belk and Dillard's are still at Eastridge Mall in Gastonia, and they were both at Eastland after it went bad, so perhaps they'll both stick around.

[TheOneRJ]

Mall vacancy is down from a year ago which is good news regardless. 

[FLOSC843]

On 8/19/2023 at 12:35 PM, PuppiesandKittens said:

I see that Northlake has numerous new stores, but they're either temporary (Spirit Halloween) or "mom and pop" stores.  American Eagle is listed as "coming soon", but sorry, Northlake, it's been there for years--we aren't going to fall for that.

https://www.wsoctv.com/news/local/northlake-mall-has-new-tenant-spirit-halloween/YU4D7EZUBVASNG2ZGKGUVUNOD4/

"Spirit Halloween’s takeover of the ghosts of past box stores continues."

[KJHburg]

Reported last week by WSOC about some tenants at Northlake.

""The exodus of retailers from Northlake Mall is causing a domino effect for the struggling retail property, as having fewer shopping destinations results in reduced foot traffic for the stores that remain, according to its management company. That, in turn, leads to more closures.

That's the gist of arguments made by Spinoso Real Estate Group in lawsuits filed against several retailers that have shuttered stores at Northlake in recent months, according to CBJ news partner WSOC-TV. Spinoso was appointed receiver for the mall in 2021, following missed debt payments and a loan default, and has been working to turn around the property in preparation for a sale. However, the firm said earlier this summer that a sale is unlikely in the near future due to lingering concerns about safety at the mall and headwinds for commercial real estate in general.

In late July, Spinoso filed lawsuits seeking damages against American Eagle, Michael Kors, Chico’s, Soma and White House Black Market, claiming that they are in breach of their leases by not operating in their spaces.   Those are just a few of the stores that have closed at Northlake in recent years, however. The mall recently reported that its occupancy had improved to 85%, up from 71% in March of this year — but that includes temporary tenants, and Spirit Halloween has just returned to the anchor space once occupied by Dick's Sporting Goods.""

https://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/news/2023/09/08/cbj-buzz-northlake-mall-lawsuit-lowes-sprouts-savi.html

 

[CLT2014]

Spinoso sounds like they are getting desperate to get some sort of return out of their failed investment in this mall they planned to just flip. When you don't know how to operate the mall itself, just sue people!

[Crucial_Infra]

CHARLOTTE — In the battle over a broken lease, clothing retailer American Eagle says Northlake Mall was “reminiscent of a warzone.”

 

https://www.wsoctv.com/news/local/american-eagle-calls-northlake-mall-reminiscent-warzone-counterclaim-over-lease/C44OJVA2PNHXTJJBBRUZTE4ODQ/

[Temeteron]

1 hour ago, Crucial_Infra said:

CHARLOTTE — In the battle over a broken lease, clothing retailer American Eagle says Northlake Mall was “reminiscent of a warzone.”

 

https://www.wsoctv.com/news/local/american-eagle-calls-northlake-mall-reminiscent-warzone-counterclaim-over-lease/C44OJVA2PNHXTJJBBRUZTE4ODQ/

The sad thing is they could’ve prevented this. They should’ve learned from Eastland Mall and had better security.  

[videtur quam contuor]

If I go to a bank and there are numerous armed guards outside the bank I do not feel that is a safe location. I will go to another branch.  Same for a shopping location with security inside and out making it feel less secure. This is without the disruptive behavior, counting only the "enhanced" security appearance leading to a feeling of entrapment within.

[KJHburg]

On 9/12/2023 at 3:22 PM, videtur quam contuor said:

If I go to a bank and there are numerous armed guards outside the bank I do not feel that is a safe location. I will go to another branch.  Same for a shopping location with security inside and out making it feel less secure. This is without the disruptive behavior, counting only the "enhanced" security appearance leading to a feeling of entrapment within.

same way I felt when I went to Phipps and Lenox Square malls in Atlanta last year.  They actually have metal detectors that they  use.