(Excerpt) Shopping centers have existed in some form for more than 1,000 years as ancient market squares, bazaars and seaport commercial districts. The modern shopping center, which includes everything from small suburban strip centers to the million-square-foot superregional malls, had its genesis in the 1920s.The concept of developing a shopping district away from a downtown is generally attributed to J.C. Nichols of Kansas City, Mo. His Country Club Plaza, which opened in 1922, was constructed as the business district for a large-scale residential development. It featured unified architecture, paved and lighted parking lots, and was managed and operated as a single unit.
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Keith, did you ever read William Severini's "Malling of America, a look inside the great consumer paradise"?
ReplyDeleteIt's great.
-matt