Re:Mall department stores were struggling; the pandemic has ...
by cabacon on Saturday April 24, 2021 @12:46AM
(#26922319)
The story I read (https://andrewdamitio-92271.medium.com/the-decline-of-the-am...) says that there was a shift post-WWII that encouraged building real estate, the accelerated depreciation from the article.
Then as things shifted back to linear depreciation, it made building/running malls much less attractive, and we're seeing that play out over the 20-30 year capital lifecycle you mention.
So now malls are facing envelopement from discount stores and big box, plus the ever growing threat of Amazon and other e-commerce.
The malls that get investment are pivoting to supermarket anchors and entertainment.