Can we bring back the downtown regional "mall" discussion?

[NorthCoast]

For the Monroe Center "bookend" I would love to see an iconic marquee. A Grand Rapids version of Times Square. So when people walk out of the front lobbies of JW/Amway they will see a lot of bright lights which will indicate "that's the place to be!" Then as they walk down Monroe Center they will stop at all the tiny boutiques, coffee houses, restaurants, and galleries along the way. Maybe even a video board and/or news ticker? Just brainstormin here.

[tamias6]

My only suggestion so far would be to add some sort of architectural flair to the section on the SE corner of Division and Fulton to act as a beacon to people at Pearl & Monroe and down Monroe Center. Something that will grab at people's eyes, cause them to think "what's that?" and walk down Monroe Center to see.

[GRDadof3]

See the new thread HERE regarding a mall idea for the Fulton&Division and JA sites.

If you want to talk about malls downtown in general, you can continue to post here.

[Rizzo]

Is the absence of higher-end retail, because there's not a sustainable market here -- is that a cop out? Or, is the region not reaching a crucial threshold?

I always assumed that if the Metro area did attract these higher-retail brands that it wouldn't be downtown because the city wasn't conducive.

[Prankster]

They didn't have any problems with the proposed 240 Ionia project and that was a good 10-12 stories