Birmingham's Century Plaza mall was a consumer mecca when it opened in 1971, drawing shoppers from outlying suburbs and even from other states. Over the years, however, people moved outward from central Birmingham, and new shopping centers sprouted around them. Sales at Century Plaza declined. Three of the mall's four big "anchor" tenants eventually left, and smaller retailers followed. By 2008, Century Plaza was a shadowy hulk with more shuttered stores than open ones. Then the last anchor tenant, Sears, announced it was leaving. The mall finally closed for good in early June.
Malls have a natural lifespan, as population centers shift, architecture evolves, and shopping habits change. But a sharp recession is clearly accelerating the demise of vulnerable retailers--and some of the shopping centers they inhabit. Plunging sales are one obvious reason. Many retailers are also saddled with heavy debt taken on in recent years to fund aggressive growth. And the credit crunch has made cash scarce for firms that need it most.
Those tough conditions have already driven retailers like Circuit City, Linens 'N Things, and Steve & Barry's out of business. Other chains are closing stores and slashing costs as they fight to survive. General Growth Properties, a Chicago firm that operates more than 200 malls--and owns the remnants of Century Plaza--declared bankruptcy in April and is working on a restructuring plan.
[See America's most profitable malls.]
The churn is transforming America's retail landscape. "During times like this, good malls tend to get better and bad malls tend to get worse," says Steve Sterrett, chief financial officer of Simon Property Group, the nation's largest mall operator. The first sign of trouble is often the departure of department stores and other anchor tenants, especially if those spaces stay vacant. High-quality, name-brand merchants often follow, with discounters--or nobody--replacing them. Shoppers sense the ennui, and gravitate toward malls that feel more vibrant, which only deepens the distress at troubled properties. By some estimates, about 10 percent of the America's malls could close within the next few years.
To gauge which malls are in trouble, U.S. News analyzed data from Green Street Advisors, an investment research firm in Newport Beach, Calif., that specializes in publicly owned real estate companies. Their data includes occupancy rates, sales per square foot, and quality grades for about 650 of America's biggest shopping centers. The average property in the data set has sales of about $420 per square foot and an occupancy rate of 92 percent, good for an A- grade.
[See how to tell if a mall is in trouble.]
The malls at the bottom of the list earn grades of C- or D, with falling sales at many stores and a high proportion of discount retailers that tend to draw the least lucrative consumers. As a rule of thumb, malls with sales of $250 per square foot or lower are struggling. "It's hard for many retailers to be profitable at $250," says Jim Sullivan of Green Street. And nine out of 10 malls at the bottom of Green Street's list have sales at or below that threshold.
The data we used doesn't cover strip malls and other shopping centers owned by private firms, which tend to be smaller, less profitable, and more vulnerable to a bad economy than regional malls. But the following 10 malls still represent bleak snapshots of some of the weakest spots in the nation's retail economy.
Century III Mall, Pittsburgh, Pa. (Occupancy rate: 70 percent; sales per square foot: $200*). About 30 of the 120 stores at this suburban Pittsburgh mall have closed recently, including anchor tenant Steve & Barry's and KB Toys (both of which have declared bankruptcy), Old Navy, Ruby Tuesday's, and Macy's Furniture Outlet. The 30-year-old complex targets value shoppers but competes with nearby discounters like Wal-Mart and Kohl's. Other area malls with more upscale stores are doing better. Century's owner, Simon Property Group, may be looking to sell Century III.
Chambersburg Mall, Chambersburg, Pa. (62 percent; $234). Sales have held steady over the past year, but a bucolic location 60 miles southwest of Harrisburg makes this sleepy mall a perennial underperformer. K.B. Toys, Value City, and B. Moss closed their stores after declaring bankruptcy. Newcomers include discounters like Bolton's and Burlington Coat Factory, which are likely to generate little excitement.
Crossroads Mall, Omaha, Neb. (68 percent; $200*). Shoppers are fleeing this 50-year-old mall in central Omaha for suburban shopping centers that feel safer and more vibrant. The departure of Dillard's in 2008 left one of three anchor slots vacant. The Zales and Gordon's jewelry chains are also gone, along with Gap and most of the mall's food-court restaurants. According to press reports, owner Simon Property Group recently put the property up for sale. A buyer could try to resuscitate the mall or convert it to a different kind of retail or commercial complex.
Hickory Hollow Mall, Nashville, Tenn. (82 percent; $187). Dillard's has left, and other departed tenants include Linens 'N Things and Steve & Barry's, two of the biggest casualties of the recession. Two of four anchor slots are vacant, and the theater recently switched from first-run movies to late-run discount flicks. With a lack of retailers, the mall may convert some of its space to office use. One new tenant: the local police, who recently opened a recruiting station at the mall.
Highland Mall, Austin, Tex. (61 percent; $150*). While gleaming new stores have been springing up in some parts of Austin, this 38-year-old mall along I-35 has struggled to keep stores open--and avoid embarrassing controversies. Anchor JCPenney left in 2006, and this year Dillard's sued the mall's owners, claiming they let the mall become a "ghost town." The owners countersued, claiming that the suit is part of a scheme to help Dillard's get out of its lease early.
Palm Beach Mall, West Palm Beach, Fla. (82 percent; $250*). A year ago, the plan was to renovate this fading 42-year-old property. But that changed with the recession. Anchor tenants Dillard's and Macy's bolted within the last year, and in April, the mall's owners defaulted on a big bank payment, triggering a foreclosure lawsuit that could force the sale of the property. The power company even threatened to shut off the mall's electricity, but the bill was paid at the last minute. While remaining tenants like Sears and JC Penney await the outcome of litigation, other nearby malls are adding space and gaining customers.
[See why more companies are likely to fail this year.]
SouthPark Mall, Moline, Ill. (84 percent; $225). The owners spent a couple of years trying to sell this Quad Cities landmark, built in 1974, but they finally gave up late last year. Local officials would like to see the aging property converted to a more modern "lifestyle mall" with boutiques, lounging areas, and an upscale ambience. But modest local incomes probably can't support the major investment that would require. For now, the only upgrades at SouthPark are the construction of a few strip centers on "outlots" surrounding the mall, to be occupied by cheap restaurants and local service businesses.
Southridge Mall, Des Moines, Iowa. (84 percent; $168). The 2007 arrival of Steve & Barry's was supposed to mark a revival for this 34-year-old complex on Des Moines's South Side, which has been losing shoppers to more gentrified suburban malls. Then the discounter went bankrupt and closed its stores. The mall's owners have been trying to sell the property, and city officials have been working on ways to revitalize the entire area. They better hurry: At $168 per square foot, Southridge's sales are among the lowest for big malls.
Towne Mall, Franklin, Ohio. (49 percent; $207). This aging structure between Cincinnati and Dayton has been troubled for years, as the owner, CBL & Associates, and local officials have deliberated over whether to tear it down and build something more modern. Towne Mall has one of the highest vacancy rates of any operating mall, with more closed stores than open ones. A decision on the mall's fate is supposed to come soon.
Washington Crown Center, Washington, Pa. (70 percent; $265). Three of its biggest retailers--Macy's, Bon-Ton, and Gander Mountain--have suffered deep losses as consumers have cut spending. The mall's owner, Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust, is revamping some of its properties--but not Washington Crown Centre, one of the weakest malls in its portfolio. PREIT could end up selling some of its subpar properties, which leaves this mall vulnerable.
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
America's Most Endangered Malls
Friday, April 10, 2009
Kelantan - Place in Malaysia You Shouldn't Miss
Malaysians will recall the tempting Nasi Kerabu, Nasi Berlauk, Nasi Tumpang, Laksam or Solok Lada that is synonymous with Kelantan and can satisfy even the most difficult to please palate.
Then there are the Malay cakes and sweetmeats, some with unsavoury or strange names like the Tahi Itik, Kuih Kartun, Badak Berendam, Abang Balik Gelisah, Che Abang Guling, Lompat Tikam, Lidah Buaya and many more. Despite their unappetizing names, they taste great.
RICH IN TRADITIONAL FARE
According to the Kelantan State Tourism Director Muhammad Zaki Talib, Kelantan is rich in cuisines that cannot be found elsewhere.
The traditional Kelantan fare serves as a major crowd puller to Kelantan, especially the tourists.
Added with a rich cultural heritage and unparalleled hospitality of the locals, Kelantan is ever ready to receive visitors from within and outside the country, he said.
To showcase Kelantan's culinary offerings the 2009 Kelantan Food Fair, a four day event that began on March 12, was held.
The event organised by the Kelantan State Tourism Action Council was held at the grounds of the Sultan Muhammed IV Stadium and saw the participation of 24 agencies and culinary masters from Kelantan, Terengganu, Perak, Sabah, Sarawak and Thailand.
UNENDING MENU
The food festival served as an important avenue to highlight Kelantan's unique gastronomy with more than 200 type of food to be sampled by visitors. Among others are the Kelantan traditional cakes and sweetmeats, Sarawak layered cake, rendang tok, lemang periuk kera, ayam percik, lauk-pauk and numerous types of rice dishes and pengat.
One of the specialties dished out at the event is the nasi uduk ayam solor, a typical Kelantanese delight with the chicken grilled with sugar cane and this makes the chicken to taste sweet. Initially ducks were used, but later changed to chicken which is much preferred by the locals.
The list seems to be never ending added with appetizers like cek mek molek, jala mas, akok, puteri mandi, pulut bakar, buah tanjung and ketupat sotong.
Not only the visitors were awed by the vast spread but also the colour, shapes and their alluring presentation that are bound to make anyone drool.
One thing for sure, the food fest was well received by visitors who were all too eager to witness and savour Kelantan's fare.
GREAT TASTE TO SAVOUR
The tourism authority in Kelantan also took the opportunity to invite members of the media to join the fest.
The media members were taken for a three day visit to Kelantan and given the opportunity to savour numerous delights like kerabu jantung pisang, sambal pauh, serunding, kelapa jeli and all the appetizers.
In Kota Baharu alone, there are many locations where one can enjoy the local delights at cheap prices.
Head to the Buluh Kubu food court here and the old market of Majlis Perbandaran Kota Baharu (MPKB) to sample some of the best offerings.
Visitors can also try 'the special steamboat' at Food Village, that provides a different gastronomy experience as they not only get to dip the seafood and tofu in the boiling sup but also grille the meat.
A PLACE TO SHOP
A visit to Kelantan is incomplete without a stopover at Pasar Besar Siti Khadijah, a famous shopping area in Kelantan. For those who love to bargain, it is the place that you should not miss.
The three-storey complex is the clear testament of Kelantan women's dominance in entrepreneurship and here visitors can find a myriad of keropok (fish crackers), handicraft and batik, cloth and clothing, and key chains apart from the traditional delicacies.
This market operates daily from 6am to 7 pm and all business activities will cease for 15 minutes during prayer times.
Another place of interest in Kota Baharu is Wakaf Che Yeh. This market is open after Maghrib and offers merchandise, food, clothing and others at cheap prices.
In a nutshell, Kelantan is a well recognised gastronomical destination that offers its own unique spread and is a value for money shopping destination.
Sunday, November 16, 2008
10 top ugly buildings and monument
"Some of these picks have all the charm of a bag of nails while others are just jaw-dropping in their complexity. Love them or hate them, the list is certainly entertaining," said General manager Giampiero Ambrosi.
While it was hip for it's time, this concrete structure now gets routinely criticized for its dreary facade and incongruity with the rest of the city's more genteel architecture. Luckily, it's very close to more aesthetically pleasing attractions.
While it's almost universally agreed that this ominous stick is a blight on the landscape of the world's most stunning city, its detractors admit that there is one very good reason to take in the view from the building's observation deck: it's the only place you can go to get a view of the city without it.
It may be over-the-top, but there is something to be said for the giant, golden horseshoe that looms over Finland's second-largest shopping center. The shoe, and, in fact, the entire town in which it is situated, is said to bring good luck.
The people who work here must be sick of the space capsule jokes. Even those who find the building's shell a bit "spacey," have to admit the circular interior is pretty spectacular.
Those who pass by this iron monstrosity might be tempted to ask about a completion date, but alas, this is the finished product.
Like a set of giant salt-and-pepper shakers, these matching towers loom over the city to the dissatisfaction of many area residents. The buildings are also known as "El Enchufe" or "The Plug" for the plug-like structure that holds them together.
Some feel the building's minimalist box design is a triumph, others say it's an eyesore.
Stone, oak, and bamboo are part of the make-up of the Scottish Parliament, a building that is the subject of much debate.
One look and it's easy to see how this genre of architecture came to be known as the "Brutalist" style. Not surprisingly, the issue of its possible demolition has been looming for years.
Some 15 stories high, the larger-than-life monument was designed by controversial artist, Zurab K. Tsereteli, whose statue of Christopher Columbus was repeatedly rejected by the United States.
Thursday, August 21, 2008
Urban Robin Hood from Las Vegas
An expert Blackjack player in Las Vegas wants to use his skills to help a selected poor family, settle all his/her debts through gambling table in one of the Casino in Las Vegas. This man has set up a webpage http://robinhood702.com recently to welcome the candidates submitting him a 1 to 3 minutes short script, explaining their difficulties, and reasons why they deserve to be the one.
Once you are the lucky one, Robin Hood 702 will provide an all-expense paid weekend, which includes a true high-roller suite with 24-Hour butler service at a posh Casino, show tickets to the hottest shows in town, spa appointments and meals in the city's finest restaurants. You will live like the high roller Robin Hood 702 is, then watch him win the money you need to become debt-free. He has made a guarantee that if you're selected, at least half of your bills will get paid no matter what happens at the Blackjack table. The whole event will be documented by the Fox News crews.
I'd discussed this offer with friends, but most of them suspected it is only another form of scam. They believed there must be some criminal motive hidden unrevealed. Hmmm... what can I said? Are we too fear for adventurous? Well, you might ask me back. How about you? Will you submit your script? Hmmm.... I think I will not. May be I'm one of them, fears to adventurous. But, very funny. When it really happen one day, then we will blame ourselves for not participating, losing such a golden opportunity. May be we are too conservative, without seeing any success example, we won't take any action to risk. Therefore, after the lucky one is born, we will most properly turning 180 degree and become very aggressive on searching another opportunity similar to this. Then, unfortunately it is very high chances that many criminals will take this opportunity to set up a trap, and we will easily fall into the real coming scams. (Oh, don't get me wrong, I'm not here to convince you joining the event. As mentioned earlier, I won't participate too. Not because I'm debt-free, but just I'm not a good risk taker).
So, I would like to open this topic to you. What do you think? Is this a scam? Will you participate?
Grab Your Free eBooks Today!!!
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Confused sea turtles march into restaurant
Here's a very odd news I'd pasted to share about the confusion baby turtles,
ROME (Reuters) - About 60 newly hatched sea turtles lost their way during their ritual passage to the sea and marched into an Italian restaurant instead, a conservation worker said on Monday.
The baby turtles -- which ended up under the tables of startled diners at the beachside restaurant -- were probably thrown off track and lured by the eatery's bright lights, said Antonio Colucci, who was called to help rescue the group.
"They saw the artificial lights and took the wrong route," said Colucci, who works on a turtle monitoring project for the conservation group WWF (World Wide Fund for Nature).
"The diners were at first quite curious and then someone alerted the coastal authorities."
The stranded turtles, which had hatched on a beach in the southern Italian region of Calabria, were released into the sea.
Female sea turtles nest on beaches and their offspring instinctively head to the sea after hatching from their eggs.
(Reporting by Deepa Babington; editing by Robin Pomeroy)
Original posting in Yahoo News
Monday, March 24, 2008
Malaysia F1 2008
The new season of F1, Formula One World Championship is back. The 2008 grand opens in Melbourne, Australia, and the Round 2 will be hosted in Malaysia, Sepang International Circuit (SIC) from 21st. to 23rd.March..
SIC will work closely with Tourism Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur City Hall and the Ministry of Federal Territory to turn Kuala Lumpur into a city of festivals. SIC targeted to attract 125,000 spectators to this year F1 event. This target is possible to achieve, because last year they had managed to capture about 115,000 spectators. One of the strategy is to target on foreign spectators from Singapore. In last year, the Singapore market had contributed not less than 20,000 spectators, and this year SIC intend to rise it to not less than 
50,000 Singapore spectators. In order to promote the event to more Singaporean, SIC had run concentrate road show and continous promotion in Malacca and Johor Baru city. Where this two cities are popular spots for weekend retreats among Singaporeans.
Organised since 1999, the Formula One Petronas Malaysian Grand Prix is more than just a race for Malaysia as it has become an effective promotion of Malaysia in the international arena, especially as a tourist destination.
To get more cover stories about F1 2008 in Malaysia, you may visit to below webpage:-
Friday, March 14, 2008
MATTA Fair 2008
Just came back from MATTA Fair 2008 in Putra World Trade Centre. Today is the first day of the fair, and it will be end by this Sunday evening. As expected, it was extremely clouded. But we estimated tomorrow and Sunday would be peak.
We'd arrive there about 2:00pm, had collected many brouchers and package information. Doesn't matter you need it or not, the stuff from each travel agencies will just try pushing all the brouchers to you. It might due to too many travel agencies there and the business competition was too hot. Well, you just don't know how to choose. After visiting some booths, I already felt exhausted will all loaded packages information. My minds was totally out. Don't know what to choose.
Some offers were really cheap, but you have to be careful. Most of its were using Air Asia flight. That is the reason why they can offer so low price. And, some more you have to ask whether it's covered for airport tax and air flight fuel. If it's excluded, you better put its into your mind to add in your budgets. Besides, you should also ask what type of hotel is in the package? Is there any options to choose? Up to what standard is the hotel (how many stars)? Normally they will allow you to upgrade the hotel (eg. from 3 stars to 4 stars; from border location to downtown), but there will be additional charges. So, all this kinds of options and upgrade consideration will put the decision more complicated.
If you are confusing and can't really make up your mind, I suggest you find a seat in the food and beverage booths which located nearby, and order a cup coffee. Then, carefully review back every information you had collected just now. If you still can't make up your mind ( I know it's tough. In fact I can't make up my mind in the fair), then I suggest you do as I did. Bring back all the information and discuss again with your spouse or family member who will join your trip. Then find the best and drop by the fair again by tomorrow or Sunday.
In fact I already made my decision now for my vacation plan, and I'm going to drop by the fair by tomorrow afternoon again. I hope you will find yours in this MATTA Fair 2008.
MATTA FAIR
MATTA (Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents) has organized its famous travelling fair in PWTC (Putra World Trade Centre) from 14th.March until 16th.March. Since this fair in held during Malaysia school holidays, expected will able attract many participants. In fact, many big tour agencies had already started published their offer packages on press weeks ago. And, some rumors even stated that without visting their counters in the fair, they could offer the same price for same package during the period by dropping by their branches. But, how true is it? We don't know. If really true, some people might try escape from the clouded event and just make their convenient by ordering through the agents. Well, this strategy may look like taking advantages to the fair and will raise the question on business ethics and being unfair to the fair organiser. Any how, personally I don't think this will bring a big impact to the event. By looking back to previous results, the fair seem well known and welcomed by most of Malaysian.
Some of the most famous travel agencies who has participated in this fair are Holiday Tours, Qantas-British Airways, Reliance Travel, Royal Brunei, Berjaya Holidays and etc. For Airlines, they are not only offer air tickets, but you can also choose a trip package from them. The package is of cause much cheaper then booking the hotel and air ticket separately.
Compare to MAS (Malaysia Airlines) Fair which was held in last month, February 2008, MATTA Fair is more welcome by most of Malaysian. This is because MAS Fair was offer air tickets instead of tour package. It was more benefited to people who used to travel for business purpose or same destination for certain reasons. If you only buy the air tickets (even though in very cheap price) in MAS Fair, and book the hotel or accomodation in separate ways, you can't get a very reasonable price for staying and others park ticketing. So, since MATTA organiser had announced this fair long ago, people will keep waiting for another one month. MATTA Fair was so well known by people through its pass achievement.
Some of my friends commented that they rather to go visit the fair even though it's expected extremely clouded. Because you would have more options to choose and sometimes might get surprise prizes or special price on certain packages. One of my friend, on last year event, had even won a free trip to Thailand by lucky draw. So, majority still willing to go visit the fair, only if you'd already decided your trip destination and you only honour to certain tour agencies.
This event is not hold once a year. If you are not able to make it, or if you only able to have your holiday by end of this year, let say November or December. Then you still can catch it for the 2nd. round which will held from 10th. to 12th.October. I expect the venue will be same at PWTC.
Besides that, in between, MATTA will also hold another two similar fairs, which is although much smaller, in Penang and Seremban. For Penang MATTA Fair, it will be hold at PISA (Penang International Sports Arena) from 4th.July to 6th.July 2008. While Seremban MATTA Fair will be hold at Seremban Parade Shopping Centre from 11th.July to 13th.July 2008.
For more information on MATTA Fair events, you may refer to below link:-
http://www.matta.org.my/
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MATTA Fair, March 2008
Malaysia MATTA Fair is back and will be held from today, 14th.Mach until this coming Sunday, 16th.March. The event will be held in Putra World Trade Centre, Kuala Lumpur.
This is the time where PWTC will be clouded with visitors. People who has plan or without any plan for vacation will drop by catching for cheap vacation package or fly tickets. Air Asia’s competitor, Firefly which was established since last year, April 2007, has offered tickets as low as RM9.99 (excluding airport tax and fuel surcharge) for domestic and regional flight, plus others various choice of holiday packages. The holiday packages offered come with free tickets, but travel period is restricted to 17th.March until 25th.October 2008. These offers were Firefly strategies to attract more customers, after a big success in Penang MATTA Fair last year June, where they had given out 120,000 free tickets.
On another hand, Air Asia which had already penetrated the economic flight market long ago, has also came out with several offers online which are very attractive. Air Asia is offering 5,000 free seats from KLIA (Kuala Lumpur International Airport) to Gold Coast in Australia. Besides, they also offer three new destination flights. There are Hong Kong, Haikou (Hainan) and Ho Chi Minh city. All these three destinations come with special offering tickets also.
Back to MATTA Fair, it will comprise 3 halls in PWTC, over 860 booths are setting up. Hall 1 and 2 are mainly for international package, airlines and cruises. These halls 1 and 2 will have direct access from Jalan Ipoh or you may enter direct from Hall 3. There are total of six designated premium area for exhibitors taking a minimum of 20 booths. And Hall 3 is mainly for domestic, Asean and other traveling related products and services. Since this is the biggest traveling fair in Malaysia, for sure who used to travel or plan to have a memorable budget vacation, MATTA Fair in PWTC will be the right time and right place to go.
For more details information, you may visit MATTA official site:-
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Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge
Another giant project in the world. The Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge is a giant proposed series of bridges and tunnels in the world. It will be the biggest and longest in Asia. Full length of 29 kilometre or about 18 miles. The giant bridge would connect the west side of Hong Kong with Macau and the neighbouring city of Zhuhai, situated on the west side of the Pearl River Delta, and part of mainland China's southern industrial powerhouse. This giant bridge is expected to cost US $2 billion to $3.7 billion.
With its length, it would probably become one of the landmarks in Asia; it is comparable with the world's longest bridge, the Second Lake Pontchartrain Causeway in the United States, which is 38.4 kilometers long.
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