shoppingcenter

shoppingcenterAmallasacollectionofstoresexclusivelyforpedestriantraffichasatleastthreeantecedents:thebazaarsoftheMiddleEast,thedepartmentstore,andthecentralcity(ortown)downtownshoppingarea.TheMiddleEasternbazaarsdatebackseveralcenturies.OneofthelargeststillstandingistheGrandBazaarofIstanbul,Turkey.Thestructurewasbegunin1461.Fireshavedestroyedpartsofitmorethanonce,butitisoneofthelargestenclosedshoppingareasoutsideofNorthAmerica.Itconsistsofseveralroofed-overcityblocksthatcontainmorethan4,000shops,nearly500stalls,storagerooms,smallmosques,andrestaurantsandcoffeehouses.Onamuchsmallerscale,theGalleriaVittorioEmanueleinMilan,Italy,isalsoanenclosedmall.Builtin1865–67,ithasfarfewershopsandisoutsideMilan'smainshoppingarea.Whenthefirstfixed-pricedepartmentstoreopenedinParisin1852,itchangedthetraditionalstyleofmarketinggoods.Nolongerwastherehagglingoverpricesbetweensellerandbuyer.Departmentstoresalsohadtheadvantage,asthetermsuggests,ofbringingwhatwereessentiallydifferentkindsofstorestogetherunderoneroofasseparatedepartments—clothing,cosmetics,furniture,appliances,toys,andmore.Theconceptofthedepartmentstorewascarriedintothemoderndevelopmentofmalls,withmanystoresunderdifferentownership.Centralshoppingareashavelongdominatedcitiesinallpartsoftheworld.Despitetheinconvenienceofheavytraffic,downtownstoreswereconvenientlylocatedclosetooneanother.Withthewidespreaduseoftheautomobile,however,parkingnearbybecameaproblem.Theadventoftheparkingmetermadestreetparkingevenmoreofanuisancebecausedriverswhowantedtospendtimeshoppinghadtoreturntotheircarstoputmoremoneyinthemeters.Thisledtothedevelopmentofgaragesorotherareasforcustomerparking,usuallyatadiscount.Themallhadanevenbettersolutiontotheproblemofscarceparkingspaces:hugelotssetasideforall-dayfreeparking.ThefirstlargeunifiedshoppingmallintheUnitedStateswasCountryClubPlazainthesouthpartofKansasCity,Mo.FoundedbytheJ.C.NicholsCompany,itopenedin1922.Itisanopenmall,consistingofbuildingsinasimilarSpanish-styledesign.ThenextmajoropenmallwasHighlandParkShoppingVillageinDallas,Tex.,completedin1931.OneofthefirstopenshoppingcentersbuiltafterWorldWarIIwasNorthgateMall,whichopenedin1950nearSeattle,Wash.Itconsistedoftworowsofparallelstoreswithadepartmentstoreatoneend.Itsoonbecamecustomaryforcentral-citydepartmentstorestolocatebranchesinoneormoremalls.TheoutdoorshoppingcenterinOakBrook,forexample,ishometoMarshallField's,Lord&Taylor,SaksFifthAvenue,Nordstrom,NeimanMarcus,andSears,RoebuckandCompany.Majorstoresalsoanchortheverticalmallsthathavebeendevelopedadjacenttodowntownshoppingareas—forexample,Field'sandLord&TaylorinChicago'sWaterTowerPlace.ThefirstenclosedmallintheUnitedStateswasSouthdaleinEdina,Minn.,nearthesouthwesterncornerofMinneapolis.DesignedbyAustrian-bornarchitectVictorGruentobeacombinationretailareaandcommunitycenter,itopenedin1956.ItwasimmediatelysuccessfulandinspiredthebuildingofenclosedmallsthroughoutNorthAmericaandinsomeEuropeancities.Itsmuch-imitatedfloorplanconsistsofarectangularbuildingwithanopenatriuminthecenter.Thestoresarelocatedonallfoursides.Asenclosedmallshavegrownlarger,theymayhavecenterswitharms,ortheymayhavenosinglecenteratall.