- The complex, the developer says, will also include both North America’s largest indoor amusement park and largest indoor water park, the first indoor ski hill in the Western Hemisphere, and the world’s steepest roller coaster and tallest twin-body water slides.
Just don’t call it a mall.
Just what the world needs: an indoor ski hill.
I'm not sure if this is the best use of our new tag thenewgreen -- except that the indoor ski hill kind of justifies it.
I live right near that "mall" and that whole thing is a mess. Over a decade of construction and all it is an eyesore. Who knows if it will ever open?
If you'll humor my speculation, mega construction like this may be a reaction to internet sales. The article mentions smaller nearby malls are likely to close when this one opens. Where the internet may win against a mall with 75 stores, the allure of 500 stores grouped together may still get people into stores. Add to that gimmicks like an amusement park and indoor skiing, and this may be the the reaction of retailers faced with people fleeing to the convenience of the internet. I really dislike malls, personally. It's probably been a year since I've been in one, and that's only because REI didn't have iPhone armbands for running. I've been to the big mall in Edmonton. My reaction was it's just a big mall. It was like if you took a more average mall and multiplied it three times over. Just a big mall. I suppose malls are intended to appeal to impulse buyers, and I'm not an impulse buyer.
I think they mainly appeal to people who like to spend money as a hobby, similar to when my wife and I will hit up a small town downtown for coffee, books, antiques, and what have you. We're not huge impulse buyers ourselves, but we love to discover and support small businesses. That said, your argument seems very sound and I have to admit that I don't know much about economica or financing. Do you think 500+ stores and a few gimmicks will get them out of a 5 billion dollar hole and allow them to turn a profit? I honestly find that hard to imagine.I suppose malls are intended to appeal to impulse buyers, and I'm not an impulse buyer.
I suspect the economics of a $5B investment look good for the first five to ten years, and beyond there they have to take on faith that the marketplace remains favorable. Huge projects like nuclear power plants and airports can and do operate into the black after a couple decades. I'm not an economologist, though it does seem possible for this to be profitable in the long run. (Some nuclear power plants and airports have been total money pits, though.)
I see this and the cynic in me wonders how much taxpayer cash is being funneled into the project. It is a tax dodge? Are they being paid by the state to build this thing? I cannot recall the last time I was in a mall. The things I enjoy buying are only found online, not locally, and the last big purchase ($200 or more) I made at a local store, maybe four years ago now, was a tent that I use for when I am out in the country with my telescope gear. Someone out there ran some studies, crunched some numbers and found an audience for this mall, then made a business case for $5 Billion. People who live on the internet do have a prism that we see the world through, and we tend to forget that 90% of society is not us.I really dislike malls, personally. It's probably been a year since I've been in one, and that's only because REI didn't have iPhone armbands for running. I've been to the big mall in Edmonton. My reaction was it's just a big mall. It was like if you took a more average mall and multiplied it three times over. Just a big mall. I suppose malls are intended to appeal to impulse buyers, and I'm not an impulse buyer.