SanTan Village: Is This The Future For Malls? | Retail Archaeology
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 3 มิ.ย. 2019
- In this episode we take a look at SanTan Village, an outdoor mall located in Gilbert, AZ. Are outdoor lifestyle centers the future for malls?
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DAMN STRAIGHT those outdoor malls don't belong in the Phoenix area. I live here. It's not just the heat, it's the intense sunlight pouring onto your skin. With indoor malls you are much more likely to stroll, browse, and discover more things to buy.
And you definitely don't want to be there when a duststorm (excuse me, a "haboob") hits.
Developers create these types of shopping areas because they don’t want to pay for high air conditioning bills....cheap asses.
@@bl6797 Yeah that is true (unfortunately...)
We have several of these "outdoor malls" in Texas too, they have their charm but I don't like them nearly as much as indoor malls, especially during the summer when it's near 100* here.
computerkid1416 Yeah and with the outside ones you have sunglasses on and off jacket on and off etc.
I can concur as a Texas Resident that when it is a 100 degrees outside. Being in an outdoor mall is not enjoyable.
Come to Garland and do Firewheel mall they just keep adding to it and have condos on sight
Yeah, indoor malls have a shopping ambiance with the escalator stairs and the fountains and the music while outside malls look like vacation spots, they don't have the shopping feeling. You feel like enjoying the sun and eat something but not shopping.
Well I live a a strip mall part of Florida which means there is no such thing as a downtown. The little shopping centers go and on and all have mostly the same supermarket, nail salon, pizza hut, etc. We have huge outdoor mall which I like because there are many small shops plus larger department stores and it feels a little more like real downtown streets. However...it's HOT here, so I also sometimes prefer out indoor mall. Something to say for both.
A Claire's next to a Hot Topic. I guess this is where good girls go bad
what about a Claire's next to a Spencer's gifts? Spencer's has become a hot topic with lava lamps and dildos
I go here pretty often, its a nice place. Just letting everyone know, during the day there aren't many people here. This place is lively at night.
Same. I've been on weekends and nights it's very busy. The splash pad is insane with kids (when it's on, I guess). I actually try to avoid this place because of the crowds
I imagine they go there at night instead of during the day due to the miserable heat?
I do miss Gilbert. I have many good memories at that mall. Sad to see it so vacant. I think it's because it's not a big resort area like Scottsdale that all the tourists flock to and know of.
I bet it's cause it's cooler at night.
@Franklin Sharp the guy lives in Arizona though, I'm sure he's aware of this.
This place legit looks like a level on Tony Hawk Pro Skater
A New Fresh Concept! Innovative! Yadda, yadda, yadda. Everyone jumps on the bandwagon, too many get built and away we go on the carousel of failure again. Can't you just hear the music? They're going to burn this concept out in 5 years. Then what? First it was the plaza. Then the strip mall, the indoor mall, the power centre and now lifestyle centres. Any bets on what will replace these things? Fulfillment centres?
My area is flooded with strip malls
@@APD9 So is mine.
These "Lifestyle Centers" here on the plains, even in nice weather are like massive wind tunnels and it's miserable most days. The wind rarely stops in this part of the midwest and they're starting to look the exact same way as Santan... some even worse.
As someone who can't stand 80 degrees in Massachusetts and is sensitive to the sun I don't like this style of malls. I prefer in door AC malls.
Imagine complaining about going outside
When I lived in Phoenix, my friends and I would make regular trips to this mall, specifically for Frost Gelato. It was usually very busy cause of the heat (I think heat is this mall's main problem too).
iOzznialt you lived in Phoenix and went to San Tan Village to get a Frost Gelato? That’s almost an hour drive my dude.
Serenity Trueblood Yep, Absolutely worth it. They had a biscoff cookie flavor gelato and a slightly alcoholic limoncello sorbet that was to die for.
OMG the fact that the "awnings" don't even provide shade is mind-blowing in a desert climate :0 Just so, so dumb!
Kalin Dokis it makes sense for the mall. Forcing people into the shops for shade, it’s a genius idea. Well, if it wasn’t so diabolical.
I was just there and It's hard to park near where you need to be. It's unbearable in the summer as it would be if it were in Chicago in the winter. Google maps was so confused once in there. This is about as useless as the Phoenix Outlet near Wild Horse Pass.
Chicago does have a few of these outdoor malls. Notably, they generally relegate all the parking to outside the mall, so you can't drive from store to store. Ironically, they are among the busiest malls in the area!
@@jeffammons912 Just outside of Chicago(like 30 minutes), I've noticed that The Oakbrook center is always crowded, and there's a sort of pleasantness about walking about when it's just cold enough for light snow to fall.
Elysian Aura I love Oakbrook! It was one of the malls I went to growing up.
@@jeffammons912 They are a hardier bunch!
An important reason developers are going to this style is that it makes it much easier to get new non retail tenants as they lose retail stores. They can also redevelop a portion of the mall for other use where the traditional malls are not finding any use. I live next to this mall and enjoy it more than the traditional malls, even in the summer, though I don't go in the middle of the day. They have misting systems all over and a fair amount of shade, so it's not too bad for short periods of time.
We have these shopping malls in Australia, but they are called “town centres” and they have built them as multi-storey buildings with shops on the ground level and apartments on the upper floors. This really seems to make a big difference to mall patronage - in addition to servicing the local suburbs surrounding the centre you also have people who live there and don’t have to drive anywhere around the town centre as everything is within walking distance. Also, the blocks of buildings are closer together with trees planted down the middle of the walkways to create shade so being out in the heat isn’t as oppressive. They hold regular events like markets and fairs for children to further encourage foot traffic. I find watching videos like these on what is happening to the malls in America fascinating. It seems that companies in Australia are paying heed to the slow death of the mall in America and they are taking steps to find new models of trade to ensure that the same thing doesn’t happen to the shopping centre in Australia.
The future is mixed commercial, residential and services. So large complexes for people to live in right near these stores. Everything in walking distance.
lightdark00 yes! The past is the future !
Doubt it. They've built 3 of them in my city already. 2 of them are complete failures.1 of them is doing okay but they're having trouble filling the residential units. I think they'd do better to add residential and office to some of the older indoor malls if they also added some essential services like grocery, gas, dry cleaning, beer & wine, etc.
@@equid0x I'm in Texas, in an area that can't keep up with the demand for housing... No matter what gets built it gets filled.
@@lightdark00 Same situation here in NV but these mixed use developments remain empty. Normal housing sells as fast as they can build it.
@@equid0x The difference is I'm in the top four growing population centers in the US and NV isn't even in the top 25.
"Open air lifestyle center"? I would go out of my way to avoid anyplace that I knew had that designation. Vomit in my hat.
Growing up in arizona we went to the mall to escape the heat. That mall looked too toasty for me. Yikes
Does anyone else besides me think outdoor malls are massively overrated and gimmicky?
Not necessarily, they have some good features and I guess not all are the same. I do think they have a lot of dinky small stores, little boutiques which I think are a waste of space...but that's just me.
The malls here in San Diego and are all like that. Most of them being Westfield except this one outlet mall close the Mexican border. That has a different good feel to it.
Yeah I think all of these outdoor malls (or "lifestyle centers"--as they want to call them) are kinda getting a bit overrated. I mean I wouldn't mind them in like areas like southern Cali or even Hawaii where there is a lot of good weather (at least, most of the time); but in like regions like let's say the northeastern states, like New England-area and stuff--or even like he said in Arizona where it is hot as hell; I'm not sure if it's a good or smart idea.
BTW, a little fun fact: I think the last enclosed-mall they actually attempted to build was that new Hudson Yards mall in NYC, or what they call the "Shops and Restaurants at Hudson Yards" (because apparently calling a mall a "mall" is such a bad thing today; as if it were any other four-letter word, like an "F"-bomb or the "S"-word), which like only opened a couple of months ago.
I think the idea is neat only if you right in the right area not all states can pull it off
Streets of Brentwood in Brentwood, California is one of the best lifestyle centers I have been to. It is always packed as well.
Love the streets! It'd be nice if they had a Forever 21 or H&M.
I've noticed that the traditional malls I've been in have had more success than the new outdoor malls. This is coming from what I've seen so it may be different in other places but I don't think outdoor malls are gonna last as long.
Yeah, within 30 miles of here there are 2 enclosed malls that are so busy its like sardines in a can. And 3 that are doing OK. All the dead ones are long demolished. It just comes down to proper management and remodeling.
They won't last that long because no one wants to walk in the sun like that in the heat lugging stuff from store to store and possibly getting sunburn
@@crowmigration8245 Also location of the mall.
This is basically the only mall I go to, but it's near impossible to go this time of year! The misters aren't enough to beat the heat
yeah an open air mall in that heat?! to paraphrase AVGN, "WHAT WERE THEY THINKING?!"
DarkTetsuya come on mall developers, get with it!
It only really works if you want to have vibrant nightlife instead of traffic during the day...
The Dick's Sporting Goods, & Best Buy moved to STV when they closed their stores at Fiesta Mall in 2016.
R.I.P. Fiesta Mall (1978-2018).
I live in Columbus Ohio and we Have one in Easton and your absolutely right it's no fun going there in winter however it's still stays busy
That’s one of my favorite malls. I agree, it’s not the most fun in the bitter winter, but at least they have a big indoor section.
We have these in Canada too, you should see them in the winter. Complete dead zone, no idea what they were thinking.
Same in Minnesota.
$168 for a shirt. That's why I shop at Goodwill or Salvation Army.
Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that shirt. It's just a stupid status symbol. Some of my shirts are from Wal-Mart.
so you can flip them on eaby
@@nomadcowatbk are you serious? I don't believe in spending enormous sums of money for clothes to wear.
The bear ones are very collectible, from a classic design. It's a "special" piece to many, but not worthy of that price.
I had a feeling you would make a video on this place!
This is my closest mall and I'm not a fan of the outdoor lifestyle centers. I much prefer the traditional malls.
Another great video!! I love the lounge area in the center court, most relaxing and inviting during July with temps hoovering near 120 and humidity at a moist 60%. No wonder online shopping is popular.
Though I can't see this being anymore inviting back east in the middle of December either.
Thank you for all you do!!
Marion.
That mall had the most bland Macy's on Earth.
It's also tiny. I don't go there for anything unless I know it's actually there. Since its not attached like a traditional anchor store, I don't find it useful to use it as a cool spot either.
I used to live in Texas and I was always avoiding these type of malls, it’s so hot almost year round.
Great video 👍🏻
Yea I agree I never understood why outdoor malls exist here in AZ. Plus last time I went there was no where to sit and just take a break.
For open-air malls / lifestyle center malls, I feel like you need a really strong attraction like a central plaza that makes people have to walk around instead of drive from one end to the other. For me, a great example is the Irvine Spectrum Center. It has enough combination of indoor anchor retailers and then a number of smaller shops based around a village design.
I'll visit it in the winter
I very much agree with you about lifestyle centers. From what I understand, a lot of developers build these to try and replicate urban main st./downtown shopping districts using suburban design principles (excess parking, little shade, mostly big box chains as opposed to local businesses).
Good video. Great commentary. Thanks for filming.
At 2:16, there's a store called Fossil. This store already knows what's about to happen, lol.
According to Charlotte Russes website someone purchased the company and they’re going to reopen 100 locations.
I live in Florida. We have such high humidity here in the summer. I don’t think a mall like this would do well here. Just like in Arizona, I think most folks would probably just go into a few stores but not walk around. However, it might work during the winter snowbird season when temperatures are delightful.
I thought AZ passed legislation that those pet stores were supposed to be converted into adoption centers... but apparently not... the pet store in Chandler Fashion is an adoption center yet places like Puppies n Love continue to operate...sad
I always came here on the weekends with my friends after school. We'd sneak into the harkins, always shoplifted from hot topic and got wetzels pretzels 🤣 I remember one day the whole food court was closed because there was no business. Alot of the original storefronts where gone without 5 years. I remember shopping at aeropostle when they were closing and everything was super cheap. It's so sad to see something you grew up with be forgotten and die.
Yes another great video keep up the great work! We take it things are slowing at work for you finally?
We had an outdoor mall in my hometown in a cold climate, and it was actually nice at Christmastime. It was partly roofed, and was like an inner courtyard so protected from the wind. It was lovely back in its day.
This was my early childhood mall lol. I used to have dreams that this place was some short or weird play ground thing lol.
I like SanTan Village, we had an open air section of the Westfield Santa Anita mall in Arcadia, CA that was like this, called the Promenade
Some stores closed as time went on, notably, the Bose store, and the Teavana, I liked getting iced tea from there every time I'd go.
Thanks for the tour.
Great video...Thanks!
Joe
Holy crap. Nice to see the mall I go to on this channel.
I agree 100% with your complaints on open-air malls in hot areas. They recently opened one here in Vegas (Downtown Summerlin), and I just don’t see the point in this hellish weather
We have a few here that have taken the place of our wonderful indoor ones and they suck! The spring & fall here in Missouri is the only time I would even consider going. Not out to bake in the 100 degree heat of a Missouri summer unless it's by the water, and I'm not about to freeze to death in our -2 degree winters! Yuck! I have been to these "lifestyle centers" about two times each since they were built in the late 2000s & I used to frequent the regular malls. A whole different vibe...I miss it. LOVE your channel & your voice!!!♡♡♡
Yeah we had a big outdoor malls pop up in my city about 2 years ago with all the big brand name stores and a bunch of individual stores all around it.
Problem is I live in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada we're it gets to
- 40 below in the winter months.
But it seems to be doing pretty well parking lot seems pretty full here around.
Kevin Lupanko Probably a stupid Wal-Mart “Powercenter”
HELLO ... from NORTH DAKOTA!!
You'd think with all those over hangs along the store fronts they would have misters to cool things down and get foot traffic moving. Palm Springs has that on their main shopping street and it makes a big difference in keeping the foot traffic.
We do have several malls like that in California one good example is Victoria Gardens in Rancho Cucamonga.
They also have a similar mall like that in Vegas call downtown Summerlin but like Arizona, Vegas gets really hot.
Developer: "How about we build a mall... but you can DRIVE through it!"
Bank: "Here's your signed check. Fill in the amount."
"But...its pedestrian centered!"
Seriously, they might as well have not had streets through this mall as many times as I have almost run over people/been run over/been run into at this mall. It's a mess.
There's a huge outdoor mall near Niagara Falls here in Canada. It's an outlet mall and it gets miserable around winter time. Me and my family only go there during the summer months when it's sunny and warm.
Jace Beleren The Winnipeg Outlet Collection was built as an indoor “Climate-Controlled” Mall
they are starting to come into CT even they are not bad when the weather is nice but sucks the couple real bad months. I also stayed at a hotel a couple years back in one of the suburbs of Houston it was right next to one of these outdoor lifestyle centers which seemed to have office space, Apartments/Condo's and a couple other hotels located with in it. It was not a bad way to waste the time I needed to between what I came there for.
Two things I did not see: loitering and teenagers. The two biggest reasons why one goes to the mall!
Its cause its open air, and no shade outside as far as I can see
Please, come to Texas. The outdoor mall craze is here as well. If you think 100° in AZ is bad; Just wait until you’re in 100° with high humidity. Good video though.
got a few of those in the Cleveland Ohio area. they suck in the winter. you're right. when I go there if I need to go to Target I park by target. then I drive over to the next place. there's no walking
Dude I live in Gilbert and I love this mall! Such a cool vid!
This place is pretty popular with teenagers going to have a good time, however in the evenings the mall is overrun by them. All in all it’s a great place to walk around and have a good time with your friends but be sure to pick a time of the day when the weather is bearable. I often find it fun just walking around and going to the puppy store. They also have a really good ice cream place called Frost. You should check it out!
The Westminster Promenade in Colorado was out door mall like, but most of the stores closed in 2014 so a lot of the retail buildings were zoned for more parking space for the AMC that's there. Now they're building a "lifestyle center" where the original Westminster Mall used to be, they just put in some luxury apartments there and are now working on the theater (probably a Harkin) and all the frame work for the retail buildings.
We have a few older outdoor malls in the Chicago area I'll be filming in coming weeks for the channel. They are only good for a few months out of the year, but this year the weather has been very shitty. Old orchard sits by the lake, then oak brook center, and the aurora outlet mall which I'll be releasing soon. Then you have these lifestyle centers such as Geneva commons which I have on my channel and Algonquin commons that just look like strip malls. Outdoor malls are nice but it just depends on the weather.
There’s an outdoor shopping center like this in Farmington Utah. It’s absolutely gorgeous and I love shopping there when the weathers nice.......like only 3-4 months out of the year.
In Indianapolis, we have three major outdoor centers. Two of them are anchored by JCPenney with Dicks anchoring all three. The anchors do really well, but many of the small shops are struggling. In the warmer months, the malls are always bustling and busy. But in the winter, they’re basically abandoned (other than the anchors). When it’s snowing or raining, no one is browsing the small shops.
Great video
I worked at an open mall like this and it’s fairly popular but the weather here is cold in winter and hot in the summer so it’s rare to have a few nice days to be outside. The sister location is bigger but has a lot more closed store fronts.
Most excellent video. And you are correct about the habit of desert dwellers. That's a beautiful mall but there's no such thing as a pleasant stroll half of the Year here. Heck I wouldn't even live up there where it is so hot LOL Viva Tucson!
We have a couple of these in the Metro-Detroit area in Michigan and they are as busy/popular in the cold weather as they are in the nicer weather. They do pretty well compared to most of our enclosed malls.
Texan, here. When I have to shop at one of these outdoor malls (not recently), I always have an umbrella to give a little shade. You just have to raise it higher when someone walks too close.
Where I live we have a place called Woodbury commons and its just all stuff like guchi and whatever. It reminds me of this. its outdoors , with assorted buildings.
(cars cant drive through though)
Oh shit jason heine! I love his channel
I don't think they make sense in southern arizona, especially during the summer months. During the winter and fall season they probably do well but during the hot season, I don' t think they are a good fit. In places like California, Hawaii, and places where it is sunny a lot and not too hot I think they would do very well.
But yes the trend of the mall is the lifestyle center. It is a center that focuses on more than shopping. In addition to stores, lifestyle centers bring in a variety of mixed use. The concept is to create a center where one can live, eat, shop, be entertained, and experience the fullest of life. To do this, lifestyle centers bring in many types of establishments which may include things such as, but not limited to: the following: restaurants, bars, fitness gyms, carnival rides, arcades, bowling centers, movie theaters, skating rinks, go-kart tracks, climbing walls, trampoline parks, live music, and others. The idea being give people experiences they cannot get on their cell phone or web browser on Amazon. Some lifestyle centers are adding apartments as well to bring in revenue.
Fort Myers, Florida is big on open air malls, which are fine "during season" but useless for me in the summer. Edison Mall is the only enclosed mall here, and with Lee County's booming population all to itself it's doing very well.
A very good video thank you! We have one of these types of lifestyle malls where I live in SC and it has apartments built on top of the stores. It was built about 10 years ago I think. It has never been fully leased and if you know anything about SC you know it is very hot in the summer and very humid. I have gone out there a good many times because I am a sales rep for a major tobacco company and had to visit stores there and in the area and I noticed that lots of the stores are closing and the ones that are still open need to be remodeled. This shopping center has never really taken off like it was supposed to even though it is in an upscale area.
"Not a lot of people actually walking around doing the mall thing". Interesting that you finally understand what drives truly strong towns. It's people. People walking around, giving vibrancy and life to cities. Go on a trip one day to old cities in Europe. Highly pedestrian areas in Paris, London, Istanbul, Berlin, Barcelona. You know what they all have in common? They are starting to clamp down on the amount of space cars are allowed to have. Until America gets over it's love of the car, your ability to adventure around your own neighborhood will continue to be severely limited. Support public transit, bicycle infrastructure and high density housing developments in city centers.
I haven't been to SanTan Village in over a year, but last time I was there that big glass "food court" building was a Lexus showroom with like, 4 cars in it and no customers.
i don’t understand how we can’t build for people, there are roads and parking thru the alleyways, where they should just have been walking spaces with nice shading, i definitely don’t want to be in the sunlight, or even outside honestly
They built Firewheel Town Center in my hometown in Texas. Too damn hot 1/4 of the time and raining for another 1/4. Surprised that they are still doing decent for now.
And they 1/4 it gets unbearably cold.
this was my mall as a teenager. everyone hated it! we'd still hang out here, because teenagers have nothing better to do, but as soon as we began learning to drive we'd just drive to farther, better malls. this is where we went when our parents would only drop us off somewhere close lol
I live in Knoxville, Tennessee. We have a stupid outdoor mall type thing in Farragut, out western suburb. The actual indoor mall in Knoxville is definitely more popular. In a warm climate during the holiday season, an outdoor mall might make more sense, but in Knoxville it is generally cold in December.
Been here a bunch of times. Its a pretty nice mall for a first date where you can grab something quick like ice cream and walk around. The baked bear makes some really good ice cream sandwiches.
The most popular mall here in Columbus Ohio is an outdoor type mall just like this. And you are right, it is horrible during Christmas and in the winter time in general. Its freezing and sometimes snowy and unpleasant. I wish the old school indoor malls would make a comeback
Eastern shore shopping center in Spanish fort, Alabama is one of those lifestyle centers. There's little shelter from the elements. It's hot, humid, and rainy most of the time here. The heat index today is 100F. Nope.
Don't buy a dog at a puppy mill. Adopt an animal from a rescue shelter instead. Thank you.
Both of mine are rescues 🙂
My sister attempted to adopt a dog from a rescue shelter, but found the experience intrusive. The shelter would have required her to complete an involved form, be interviewed, and have to provide a video tour of her home. She gave up and adopted a dog from an online source instead.
I like indoor malls but especially in the winter when it is snowing and 0 degrees outside. I think this is why indoor malls in the Chicagoland area do very good.
When I lived in Phoenix, i got to where i couldn't stand Airconditioning. Shade and Misters can keep you comfortable.
I remember when the "outdoor" retail centers were called downtown.
The only lifestyle centers I've actually enjoyed are either next to a traditional mall or a smaller scale physical wing of a traditional mall. The one i frequent most often is the one where the center is an additional wing to a traditional mall and they make it work as a concept with tenants that are more date night/nightlife-centric so you're there when it's dark and not 100°F. And if it is daytime the traditional mall is right through the doors at on end of the lifestyle wing.
That reminds me of the Pavilion Mall 90 miles away from me. I live in Arkansas and it’s very hot here in the Spring through fall. I don’t think this year we have even had a Spring. It’s been humid and almost always in the 80-90s. This mall I don’t go to often and when I do it’s only to go to a particular store.
we have a store like this in texas! its called h mart. its not as big as this mall i think and its more geared towards being a market but theres definetly lil gift shops, makeup stores, and furniture stores. i love it.
I went to a mall similar this in Colorado. It was very nice to walk through it and stuff, it felt like I was walking through a small town. But yes, the downside will be when it is super hot during the summer or during bad weather. I think that is more of the trend now with online shopping, people are specific about what they want and they already know what they want, so there is really no need to gingerly walk by other stores when you know what you want.
Back in DFW, several of these were being built, and there was a large one by time I moved to Tampa Bay in Arlington. It was nice, but in the summer they do get oppressive, and it doesn't actually really promote walkability like these newer ones do.
Over here in TB, there's the Premium Outlets in Tampa that is, again, quite nice, but still carried that summer problem. There's Hyde Park Village too but... it really isn't a mall, it's just too small, more like a small grouping of stores that just happened to band together and build a pair of parking garages more than an actual mall.
There is one mall here that manages to create a wonderful compromise, the Westfield Brandon. It attempts to create the vibe and feel of an outdoor mall, while still being a traditional one. I'd say it does it quite well!
It's sad to see the mall looking like it's beginning to struggle. I used to go to this mall, haven't been there in a few years though. But you are right, on hot summer days, my family usually would just go to the mall to go to 1 store and that's it, no walking around.
Down here in Houston we have an outlet mall just outside of cypress but you actually have to walk it you can't park go in and the park again
We have a few of these in Wisconsin. They actually do pretty well during the holiday seasons because they embrace the Christmas theme with slay rides and lights and such. Plus around December people usually embrace the colder weather and snow because it just started and it’s pretty mild with usually a dusting of snow and it being around 30-40 degrees. They also have giant space heaters that follow the paths for when it gets below 30. These malls are generally dead in January and February which I think is the slowest time in retail anyway but it’s also when our weather gets terrible.
Some of them have started to struggle around Milwaukee but that’s because they over built them. We had 1 that was built in 2006 and now we have 5 of them and it seems pretty clear that they are cannibalizing each other’s business. Bayshore Town Center, The Corners at Brookfield, Drexel Town Center, 84south, and the Mayfair collection. The last two are kind of a hybrid between a strip mall and a life style center and have been adding additions to become more like life style centers.
You should check out Fresno's Fulton Mall, where they just took out the outdoor walkway and put in a street with automobile traffic.
being from Arkansas which experiences ~all four seasons~ it's really hard to hang out at our outdoor mall in the winter and in the summer... aka the only times I have a lot of time off from college. plus, as cute as the outdoor mall is it doesn't have that special mall feeling... too bad all the major Arkansas malls are dying or just aren't good. This SanTan Village is way prettier than the Little Rock Outlets, but I can imagine how awful it must be to walk around in the Arizona summer.
I'm not a fan of outdoor malls, not here in Phoenix, not anywhere. You should go check out the outlet mall at Westgate sometime. It's another outdoor mall, but it's pretty cool. It always seems busy whenever I go.
I only know of one “mall” like this in Canada, it’s the opposite problem of too cold in the winter (ironically it replaced a dead indoor mall) but it seams to do well
When I lived in Mesa, I spent many weekend hours at the Scottsdale Fashion mall, just to stay cool. My apartment was too hot and my car got fried in the sun.
One downside for this mall that wasn't mentioned is that it's pretty decentralized / spread out. Lots of outdoor malls follow traditional mall layouts with a second or third floor which helps keep things compact. Here there are literal roads with parking on both sides between basically every store you want to go to so it doesn't feel like one cohesive space. If you want to walk around the mall you have to stop and watch out for traffic. And some stores are basically on their own little island out in the middle of a parking lot, completely disconnected from everything else. Depending on where you parked you also might not have any sidewalks leading to your store / restaurant destination. Sometimes the shortest path is through a parking lot, over a dirt mound, through some gravel, and then balancing on a raised curb alongside a busy road. Driving through it also feels kind of bad because it's kind of cramped / chaotic for cars. It's like they tried to design their mall for both kinds of traffic and as a result neither feels great. Most people I know go there purely for the theater or maybe for a restaurant every once in a while.
I live in Delaware, which has a generally moderate climate thanks to the Atlantic Ocean (although some heavy humidity as well as plenty of rain) so outdoor strip malls and lifestyle centers work fine here. I could not imagine them in places with extreme weather like Minnesota or Arizona.
There's a outdoor mall where i live, Clay Terrace, that has been operating for at least a decade with heavy traffic mostly doing the summer time and some traffic during the winter.