Is it the end of an era for enclosed malls?

Blogger Heather Strang at Retail Design Diva is mourning the apparent death of the enclosed mall, noting that a new one hasn't been built in the United States in two years. Taking their place, it seems, is the open-air "lifestyle center" format.

"Lifestyle malls just feel, I don't know — better," she writes. "Even in the rain. It feels like a community — a big, bright shiny community filled with an assortment of activities and stores. Who wouldn't love that?!"

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