“Since it started in New York in the 1950's, the #Sbarro fast #food chain had grown to well over 1,000 locations, many of which inside of shopping #malls. The chain became a staple in casual, Italian food and was one of the most recognizable shopping mall institutions in America. However, by the 2010's, the brand would ultimately declare #bankruptcy... twice.”
Suburban sprawl and public transport deserts
"From the 1950s, sprawling low-density suburbs have been built on the assumption that households would own cars and that public transport was unnecessary."
“It’s really too late to do much in the short term, because we’ve spent 70 years planning in the other direction...The hole has been dug.”
“If we’re interested in equity and justice in our cities, then we need to be providing people, no matter where they live, with a good quality level of public transport access that allows them to get jobs, services and education that are available to people in inner-city areas." >>
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2026/apr/10/fuel-crisis-australia-public-transport-not-an-option
#FossilFuel #petrol #CarDependency #Suburbia #sprawl #biodiversity #extinction #PublicTransportDeserts #MobilityDesign #inequality #war #ClimateDisruption #CarMinds #malls #parking #obesity #walking #infrastructure #SmallShops #TyrannyOfDistance
I visited Crystal City (in Arlington VA) about a year ago, and at time the underground Crystal City Shops was almost, but not quite, abandoned. (Most storefronts were closed but a few low-profile ones persisted.)
Has anybody been there more recently? What's it like now?
“Like many suburban #malls in America, Westminster Mall was the classic indoor shopping experience when it opened in 1974. It lasted through renovations, recessions and major store closures, all continuing to be a local community hub. However, it would ultimately close in 2025 and in just a matter of weeks, it's interiors were completely trashed. After making headlines for it's steep decline, it seems now that the mall will best be known for the destruction that followed its closure.”
Love stuff like this.
#MakingPlaces #Placemaking #Gentrification #malls #Art #Artists
Secret Mall Apartment (2024)
https://www.netflix.com/us/title/82677429?s=i&trkid=260108134&vlang=en&trg=cp
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