In the post-pandemic age of convenience where online shopping and ordering food straight to your home rule supreme, one institution of American culture has not fared well: shopping malls.
According to an article from Atlas Obscura, there were around 2,500 malls across the country during their peak in the 1980s. Now, there are only around 700 left nationwide, with that number expected to drop further. According to PBS, no new indoor malls have been built in the U.S. since 2006.
With their large and imposing size, swaths of vacant stores and declining interest, there is little reason to keep most indoor shopping malls around. As they continue to shut their doors, they leave behind the shells of retail past, taking up valuable space in our cities and neighborhoods.
Using the measure and area features on Google Maps, one of the malls that is somewhat close to me, Great Lakes Mall in Mentor, Ohio, has a total area of around 83 acres including parking lots. The mall I grew up going to, Glenbrook Square in Fort Wayne, Indiana, covers over 81 acres of land. With all this space, there are many things that could be put in the place of malls that would benefit cities.
Without removing the structure itself, one option is to convert the large parking lots surrounding malls into green spaces and parks. As I mentioned in a previous column on the need for urban green spaces, these areas help to absorb carbon from the atmosphere and provide shade, bringing down temperatures.
Moving inside the buildings and utilizing that space, cities and private companies could convert vacant storefronts and food courts into apartments, schools, concert venues, offices and other public and private spaces. In Providence, Rhode Island, the Arcade Mall, the oldest indoor shopping mall in America, was partially converted into 48 affordable apartments aimed at college students and young professionals.
Along with the apartments, the city of Providence reduced taxes, incentivizing smaller, local businesses to move into spaces previously occupied by national retailers who moved out. By having local businesses move in, the city was able to draw more shoppers back to a previously deserted space.
The other -- albeit more costly and time consuming -- option is demolition and rebuilding from the ground up. Especially in malls that have been completely abandoned, there is truly no reason to let the buildings sit and rot when we as a country are experiencing a housing shortage.
The 80 -plus acres occupied by malls could easily be home to walkable neighborhoods with high density, affordable housing, shopping and more. Not only is higher density housing more space efficient than the single family homes so common in North America, it reduces overall cost of utilities and transportation for its residents. By mixing dense housing with shopping, restaurants, and other public spaces in this small area, the need for every person to own a car is reduced.
Instead of letting the ghosts of retail past rot away and take up valuable space in our ever growing cities, they need to be transformed into something used for good. By converting unused storefronts into apartments, local businesses and restaurants, and ripping up massive parking lots to build parks and green spaces, we as a country can help ease our housing crisis along with pushing for a more vibrant economy and city.
Ethan Herx is a sophomore studying photojournalism at Ohio University. Please note that the views and opinions of the columnists do not reflect those of The Post. Want to share your thoughts? Let Ethan know by emailing or tweeting them at eh481422@ohio.edu or @ethanherx.
