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For several decades, Americans have been pronouncing the mall shopping experience either dead or on the verge of such an end.
The Southern Alleghenies region has not been spared from witnessing and experiencing that unfortunate, long-evolving development. Anyone familiar with the problems of Altoona's Logan Valley Mall and Johnstown's Galleria -- as well as the demise many years ago of Johnstown's Richland Mall -- can attest to how shopping habits and interests have changed over the years and reshaped the local-level and regional retail climates.
The centerpiece of a mall with many stores and other businesses has given way, in multiple places, including in the Southern Alleghenies, to stand-alone businesses or relocation to a small shopping center housing just several businesses.
Blair County's Logan Township, adjacent to the city of Altoona, is a prime, organized example of how downtown business districts and malls have given way to vibrant business strips offering plenty of amenities.
Very soon, of course, businesses throughout the Southern Alleghenies will be shifting gears, so to speak, to meet the needs and challenges of the end-of-year holidays.
As shoppers pursue holiday gifts in person, rather than via their computers or phones, some will reflect on malls' heydays and wish, perhaps, that they again could accomplish most, if not all, of their holiday buying under one roof. At the same time, they probably will quietly acknowledge and lament the fact that the current shopping "layouts" won't ever again afford them the buying conveniences that they formerly enjoyed at the time malls were at their peak.
The news is not all bad at this time regarding malls, however, although the good news that's "out there" isn't likely to impact directly the Southern Alleghenies very soon, if ever.
But there is nothing wrong with hoping.
"Real estate investors fall back in love with the mall" was a headline on the front page of the Wall Street Journal's Sept. 15 edition. The Journal reported that "after years of lagging behind the commercial-real estate recovery, malls are outperforming every other property type as more investors conclude that enclosed shopping centers have more staying power than previously understood."
The Journal followed that information with the news that real-estate analytics firm Green Street has determined that mall values are up 13% over the past year.
Resilient consumer spending and limited retailer bankruptcies have put malls on their strongest footing in years, the Journal noted. The newspaper added that the most successful mall owners have continued to draw crowds by renovating their properties and adding tenants that are less vulnerable to online competition.
As people living around Altoona are well aware, the issue of renovating is alive regarding the Logan Valley Mall, which has been dealing with problems emanating from the fact that upkeep over the years has not kept up with the property's needs.
An important question is whether Logan Valley will eventually join the list of the estimated 200 malls that, according to Green Street, have closed since 2008, leaving about 900 malls remaining in operation across the U.S.
It's important to note that many mall owners have replaced vacant-department-store space with entertainment and restaurants and, as the Journal reported, despite recent gains, mall values "still remain far below peak levels reached a decade ago."
That has left plenty of investors remaining skeptical.
There's hope for malls but, honestly and unfortunately, here in the Southern Alleghenies, that hope must be judged dim.