Speaking of Suburban Landmarks--"Northlake" being sold

Name of a mall of name of an area? When I say "Northlake" to people, I'm always taken aback when they immediately think of the mall. I'm not but that's beside the point. Anyway, according to news reports "The Mall" (if we must) is being sold by Simon Properties. Heres' a link: http://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/real_talk/2014/04/simon-property-unloading-northlake-mall.html

So people are asking: will this be good for the (Northlake) community? I suppose they're thinking "retail". I actually hope this becomes part of the "fugget a mall" movement and the 60+ acreas gets redeveloped into a "retail subordinate" city center. Unbelievably, I'm told that one of the impediments to a "tear-down" is the fact that the anchors (Sears, Penny's, Macy's) all own their parcels--and apparently they like the business the stores are doing.

The other thing about changing the site use into streets, squares and gardens is they don't make money--and much of a new "center" will be mid-to-high rise multi-family housing (lets not fall for that affluent young professional B.S.)--which will indeed become part of the same overcrowding problem in the local schools. Oh well--charter schools are on the rise--and being funded nearly fully by the state, so maybe we'll have a "Northlake School" (lower and upper) inside the development. 

Here's something I wrote just the other day on a "Mall Blog" which had a four year old entry on Northlake Mall:

"Discussion of the future of the mall, who will own it and how re-development will be underwritten with public dollars will track with the latest debate on the area becoming part of a new city. The emphasis on the mall's future should focus on the property, not its role as a retail center. It is 60 acres of prime  property in a location that begs for mixed-use town-center density--complete with new "street-blocks" and public uses (center green, meeting facitlites, government offices, post office and possibly schools and healthcare--to go with more traditional commercial use (including restaurants and entertainment). Discussion of "improving the mall" is virtually beside the point and focuses solely on propping up a 20th century construct of where "retail"  fits in a new economy--and more importantly what the "middle class" will be like (it is disappearing and getting poorer). The previous post mentions a "rainbow" of ethnicity that shop here. Having three clear cut markets (Latino, black and white) not only has household income impact, but so does "neighborhood" residents that have aged and retained their homes for 50 years. It is time to consider that the area's prime customer base should be "built in" with 5,000 to 10,000 new residents in more dense conditions (live-work-play).