| Comment | I think they have their place in cities, usually only when they are incorporated as part of major transport hubs.
Lots of European cities Glasgow's size have something like this: a large, high quality indoor mall, which direct connects the main train station to the main bus station close by for example.
I think this format works, cause it has a constant flow of potential customers for the retailers. These are usually busy, perfectly enjoyable places to be.
The trouble with the model used in Glasgow, around the centre in particular, is that these are large monolithic blocks, largely only accessible from one or maybe two sides max, not all sides. They're not permeable, and they don't invite pedestrian traffic to the other side, cementing blight and inhibiting the growth of nearby neighbourhoods (for St Enoch Centre this is everything south, towards the Clyde).
I think Buchanan Galleries could have a reasonable future if incorporated more fully with the bus station, but then, you're still left with the impact on the area to the north east being completely cut off from the city centre.
Hopefully most other shopping malls' days are counted too. Since all they succeed in doing is sucking footfall away from local town/neighbourhood centres, and the city centre itself. |
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