[Avian001]

For those of you who don't frequent SkyscraperCity, here's an update to the plans for the expansion of the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota, the mall we all love to hate. :gaah:

These are the latest approved plans for the Mall of America. The new addition will be four stories mostly, and measure 1,567 feet north-south by 1,312 feet east-west. The cost is approx. $1 Billion US and will add 5.6 million square feet to the existing 4.2 million square feet. Construction will begin in 2007.

In comparison, this will make the Mall of America roughly twice the square footage of Taipei 101, currently the world's tallest building.

Tenants will include several hundred new stores, a 300,000 square foot Bass Pro Shop, a 6,000-seat performing arts center (built in conjunction with AEG (http://www.aegworldwide.com/home.html)), a new Gerstlauer Euro-Fighter roller coaster, a waterpark, hockey rink, museum, a Kimpton Hotel, a dinner theatre, residences and office space. Total parking spaces will top 20,000. In addition, $25 million is being invested in upgrading the existing 5-acre indoor amusement park. It will also add a link to the existing IKEA as shown below.

You can see the complete plans in PDF format here. (http://www.ci.bloomington.mn.us/main_stories/moa_ph2/moa_ph2.htm#Plans) These plans were produced last summer, and are still expected to change somewhat.

http://img171.imageshack.us/img171/197/moamodel01zm3.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

[MayorOfChicago]

Performing Arts Center!!

It'll be the Broadway of the midwest.

[Stephenapolis]

The performiong arts part is a joke and will probably be doomed to failure after a few years. Too many better venues in the area for this one to thrive. Most people that go to arts venues avoid the MOA. Another waterpark? There is one right across Cedar from the MOA. One will probably dioe. Probably the one not attached to the mall.
One of the good things about this addition is it will take up the pot hole invested parking lot from the old Met. The lot is a mixture of potholes, mud, gravel, and the occasional broken up asphalt.

[secondson]

You know, I'm scratching my head trying to figure out exactly WHAT new stores they can put in that place that aren't already there.

[CGII]

Why, a red light district, of course.

[Dalreg]

It will just end up with duplicate stores. The West Edmonton Mall has a number of stores with more than one outlet in the mall. Laast I remember there were 5 McDonald Restaurants in the mall.

[CGII]

God forbid how many Starbucks it must have, then.

[Avian001]

Why, a red light district, of course.


Woo Hoo!

:)

[LMich]

It's always kind of interesting to see what these hypermarkets add next. The old Hudson Department Store in downtown Detroit had all kinds of usages in its 2.3 million square feet including its own doctor's clinic.

Where will this rank the mall in terms of size when completed? Is it still the largest? I'd guess some Asia hypermarket has probably taken the top rank, by now.

[CGII]

Mall of America is currently 8 or 9th largest mall. All but one of those (the Edmonton) are in Asia. There was a list posted here somewhere back...

[Avian001]

The expansion will put the Mall of America at 9.8 million square feet. The Mall of Arabia in Dubai will still hold the title at 10 million square feet when it opens next year. So the Mall of America will be at or near the top of the largest malls in the world. The current record-holder is Beijing's "Golden Resources" mall at 6 million square feet, although the Berjaya Mall in Kuala Lumpur claims to have 7.5 million square feet. The reason the Malaysian mall is suspect is because many of its tenant spaces are vacant, as of 2007. It does however have the largest Borders Book Shop in the world.

[Stephenapolis]

God forbid how many Starbucks it must have, then.
Not too many really. Caribou is the coffee master around here. ;)

[Stephenapolis]

Why, a red light district, of course.

Actually this place is the hot spot for prostitution in the TC. It is just not obvious to most people, because the hookers are so young. (runaway teenagers mostly)

[Ex-Ithacan]

I use to work for Simon (MOA owners), and I remember when the Mall was built, it sucked a bunch of funding away from other malls (including the one I worked at). Eventually my mall was sold. I always wondered what might have been if I would have applied for one of the many jobs (Operations Division) which MOA created within the company. Probably would have been put in charge of the Skyscraper Ferris Wheel. ;) :D

[MayorOfChicago]

The expansion will put the Mall of America at 9.8 million square feet. The Mall of Arabia in Dubai will still hold the title at 10 million square feet when it opens next year. So the Mall of America will be at or near the top of the largest malls in the world. The current record-holder is Beijing's "Golden Resources" mall at 6 million square feet, although the Berjaya Mall in Kuala Lumpur claims to have 7.5 million square feet. The reason the Malaysian mall is suspect is because many of its tenant spaces are vacant, as of 2007. It does however have the largest Borders Book Shop in the world.

I'll be damned. And to think Woodfield in Chicago area was the largest in the world 30 years ago at just 2 million square feet.

Aren't there also some duplicate stores in Mall Of America? I thought I remembered seeing a few Claire's and other little crap like that. I always use to go to malls in big cities when I was younger all excited - then realize that 90% of the stores were just the same bland stuff I could find in my hometown. I really love mom and pop and specialty stores that aren't in malls. Everything else just seems so deja-vu.

[Navin]

I use to work for Simon (MOA owners)

Owners no longer. Simon was ousted in a court case and forced to sell their interest back to the Ghermezians. Since 1999 Simon went from minority partner, to controlling partner, to former partner. The resolution of that mess is what held up Phase II until now.

[Marcu]

It's just a matter of time before Vegas builds some gigantuan mall themed after some ancient culture, modern city, or more likely an existing mall. Perhaps "The Mall of America Las Vegas" modeled after Minn's Mall of America but with slot machines.

[Ex-Ithacan]

Owners no longer. Simon was ousted in a court case and forced to sell their interest back to the Ghermezians. Since 1999 Simon went from minority partner, to controlling partner, to former partner. The resolution of that mess is what held up Phase II until now.

Well shut my mouth and call me Suzie-Q. Guess I better start reading Shopping Center World again. Thanks for the info Navin.

[the pope]

i'm waiting for dubai to build atlantis

[CGII]

I'm waiting for Dubai to build a replica of Earth.

[the pope]

^i figure a jetsons type home isn't too far off.

[LMich]

I have my feeling their are building the Dubai Death Star on the darkside of the moon, and once finished, they'll menace the world demanding all of its resources for themselves to build more super cities. But, that's neither here nor there. :)

[ThrashATL]

MOA doubling it's size? When it doubles it's quality, I'll get interested.

[Dream'n]

MOA doubling it's size? When it doubles it's quality, I'll get interested.

Have you actually been there to make a statement like that? I'd visit Atlanta if it wasn't so #)(&@)($&U. I don't get comments like that.

[Paintrain]

while there at it build the vikings a new stadium and count that as part of the mall

[Stephenapolis]

while there at it build the vikings a new stadium and count that as part of the mall
Why not? The MOA sits on the site of their original home.

[ThrashATL]

Have you actually been there to make a statement like that? I'd visit Atlanta if it wasn't so #)(&@)($&U. I don't get comments like that.

Yeah, I've been there several times. In fact, I'm sure I was there before you, unless you were there the same minute it opened in August of '92.

[Dream'n]

Yeah, I've been there several times. In fact, I'm sure I was there before you, unless you were there the same minute it opened in August of '92.


Hell no I wouldn't go the same minute it opened. I'm not crazy.

[Avian001]

Performing Arts Center!!

It'll be the Broadway of the midwest.
The Broadway of the Midwest (http://www.hennepintheatredistrict.org/events.asp) already exists...

[Hayward]

LOL wouldn't surprise me to see a stadium go up alongside it next.

I'm not too fond of MOA, after I got my finger slammed in a door there.

Then again, I'm not fond of Chicago Place on Mich. Ave either after I got smashed in a malfunctioning elevator door.

I should just go to malls in my own state.

[ajfroggie]

Grew up 5 minutes from MOA. Took 10 months before my first visit there...my parents were always partial to Southdale...

Regarding duplicate stores at MOA, the only one I can think of offhand is Radio Shack...

As for the expansion, I'm waiting with baited breath...

[kickazzz2000]

while there at it build the vikings a new stadium and count that as part of the mall

Well, the mall's borders should be close to the Los Angeles city limits soon, so this would be a feasible idea...:haha:

[nbrindley]

there was a story on NPR recently about how traditionally, New York and LA were internationally known for their shopping, and now MOA is joining their ranks. Because of how weak the dollar is right now, lots of asians and europeans are flying to the Twin Cities to do shopping. They interviewed one group from England that chartered a flight, for the sole purpose of shopping in the MOA. They took a bus in from their hotel at 10 am, and shopped until 6 or 7 at night everyday for 3 or 4 days. As an example, one person said that while Levi's were about $50 here, they cost about twice that in England, so it doesn't take too much shopping to make up the cost of the trip.

A friend of my wife's worked in the MOA back in high school. One of the places she worked was a kiosk where they sold CDs of lullabies where the lyrics were personalized with the child's name. The owner couldn't understand why the CDs weren't selling like hotcakes.

[samoen313]

oh god. i wonder what this is going to do to the third floor of the existing moa. that place is already desperate for last chance type stores that sell pure crap and cheap theme restaurants, another retail corridor would probably suck out all the nice tenants of the first floor and pretty soon the old moa rectangle will be ripe for replacement. disposable america at its most odoriferous.

[SmileyBoy]

Grew up 5 minutes from MOA. Took 10 months before my first visit there...my parents were always partial to Southdale...

Regarding duplicate stores at MOA, the only one I can think of offhand is Radio Shack...

As for the expansion, I'm waiting with baited breath...

Duplicate stores?? Here's one: There are 5 (I said FIVE) Lids hat stores in the MOA.

Five of them.

[Stephenapolis]

^
I noticed that the other day. That one was by far the worst. There were others too, but surprisingly few IMO. The 2 Old Navy's bother me though. One is right above the other. There are also very few empty storfronts that I saw too in the retail area. Probably less than a dozen.
I hate the mall but my son enjoys the theme park when the weather is lousy.

[minneapolis03]

^^^ I used to work for Old Navy. The MOA Old Navy store is two levels. There are not two of them. There are escalators inside it to connect the floors. The first floor is the Mens/Womens dept and upstairs is Kids/Baby. It is the flagship store for the Midwest Region and does over $32 Million annually.

[Avian001]

Duplicate stores?? Here's one: There are 5 (I said FIVE) Lids hat stores in the MOA.

Five of them.

Aren't 3 of those just kiosks though?

The complete list of stores is here (http://www.mallofamerica.com/adults_map_directory.aspx).

There are currently over 400 different stores. The addition will add another 300-400 stores. 17 stores have two locations within the mall. 5 of those are duplicate fast-food restaurants.

[Hayward]

Haha, one of my friends manages a LIDS in the Detroit area and has said that selling hats alone isn't exactly the most viable thing for a business. Makes me wonder how 5 of these could survive. I only counted 3 when I was there, which at the time I thought was ridiculous enough.

[Wolfmanfromsufu]

Someday a mall will be built so huge that it will have a massive gravitational field that will cause it to collapse in on itself.:haha: I didn't know that there where malls bigger than the West Edmonton Mall.