Tuesday, January 26, 2016
Make That Seven Retailers Departing Circle Centre Mall In The Past 30 Days
Add Abercrombie & Fitch to the growing list of retailers exiting Circle Centre Mall. That makes it the seventh store since the first of the year to announce its departure from the taxpayer-subsidized mall. Johnny Rockets announced its departure yesterday. Gap and Gap Kids made earlier announcements, as did Johnston & Murphy, Yankee Candle and American Greetings. Simon Property Group is getting the exact result it desired. Jack lease rates, watch the retailers flee and then tell the city to either pony up tens of millions in new tax dollars to re-purpose the large downtown footprint or watch it become a blight on the area.
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Whatever happened to letting the market drive business? Those in charge of downtown seemingly do everything possible to drive people away, like making it expensive and difficult to park.
Was the lease increase something that occurred recently ? I haven't lived in the city since 2013, but I assumed the new football stadium and "redevelopment" of downtown has kept traffic coming to the mall.
On the other hand though, these downtown type of malls are very delicate because you have to pay for parking, and there are many other shopping centers around the city as alternatives.
The whole idea of a Down town Mall simply went against all the economics. There were a variety of reasons down towns began folding up. As a Boomer I remember the down towns were a center of white collar employment and shopping. It was to degree a mark of pride and prestige to have an office or store down town.
All this began to change with the interstate system, and various improvements in technology. The big stores went to the Malls. Why go down town pay to park, when the Mall was a few miles away with free parking?
The only way Circle Center could be constructed or exist was with an enormous amount of Corporate Welfare. The McMega-Media here in town along with the Republicrat Party have tried all these subterfuges that if we build MSA, if we build the Hoosier Dome, if we give away millions in subsidies to hotels, if we build a new field house, if we build Lucas Oil Stadium, if we expand the Convention Center and yada, yada it will all fall in to place. The Crony-Capitalism has certainly benefited some, but not us tax payers.
Well it fell, not in place but on it's face. It reminds me of the old cartoon where the donkey is trying to reach the carrot extended in front of it's mouth on a pole. The McMega-Media is just dangling that carrot out once again.
I suspect the Marion County Republicrat Party will take a brisk walk up to the State House to figure out a way to leverage more tax dollars for the Simon Mall.
What else is new another democratic run city going down the tubes. Do the words Detroit Baltimore Chicago Marion County is looking more like Lake County every day
The departing retailers aren't free to speak about the reasons for their departure because they know how Simon Property Group punishes retailers who speak out of turn. Some of their employees weren't as tight-lipped and complained about their lease rates being jacked despite sluggish sales in the mall. I guess they're forced to make up for the sweetheart lease deal the Simons entered with Gannett for its newspaper. It wasn't an arms length transaction, and the newspaper's management isn't about to make it public to prove otherwise, but it's more important in this case to have the local rag writing press releases for you than getting the most bang for your buck.
Why don't they stick around, to soak up the statism & failure?
Just tossing an idea out there... Suppose the plan is to empty the mall, tear it down and expand the Convention Center yet again? The CC is basically land-locked now so how do they grow? *shudder* imagine what that would cost us mere taxpayers!
I believe Simon has already expressed its desire to convert at least some of the space into high-end condos and apartments.
They can definitely separate the building because the parking garages access from both the north and south sides. Let Simon redevelop it himself.
The Simons - slumlords of the shopping mall (Eastgate before sale, Washington Square, Lafayette Square, among others)
Look, I don't blame the Simons: the ones to blame are the politicians of both parties who dole out tax abatements & TIF funds like candy for "redevelopment." The pols control the purse-strings, so the fault lies with them.
Perhaps the mall could be filled with faux stores and merchandise? A veritable Potemkin Shoppers Paradise--not as a venue for shopping,but as a museum. Future generations can look upon the mall as an anachronism,proof that this city and the nation once had a thriving middle class.That middle class--and working class as well- at one time shopped and could afford things found at these once thriving venues devoted to consumerism.
Re: LamLaw: Yes ,the pols are to blame,but elite welfare queens such as the Simon's and Irsay's deserve blame as well.
Speaking of politicians. Ballard was the worst mayor ever. He sure loved his junkets to exotic lands. It's too bad Ballard only thought of Marion County as limited within the boundaries of North St. to the north,South St. to the south (well,Lucas Oil Stadium actually) West St to the west and East St to the east (with the exception of the Turkish businessman's desire for a soccer stadium).
Come to think of it,If the Simon's would ask the city to finance my idea for the mall as museum,I would bet the politicians of this city would grant the Simon's their wish and somehow the city would find the funds to finance this idea. Not only would the monies be found to prop up the project,but the pols would find a solution as to how Simon Properties would be given multimillions of dollars over many decades to manage the museum. A museum that would never see a profit under Simon management.....Just like MSA.
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