mall vacancy

Shopping malls facing first-quarter fears

Richmond area shopping malls are holding steady, but trouble might be on the way as major retailers plan to close stores. A BizSense study found that the combined storefront vacancy of six area malls is 9.6 percent. Brian Glass, commercial retail broker for Grubb & Ellis | Harrison & Bates, said the percentage of empty… Read more »

Rough patch for malls

Out of five Richmond malls, only one has a vacant storefront rate below 7 percent – Short Pump Town Center, at 3.8 percent. The highest empty-store rate belongs to the Shops at Willow Lawn, at 17.4 percent. Malls might be in for a rough patch. Consumers are downsizing. They’re buying Smart Cars and hybrids instead… Read more »