They've been doing that here in TX as well. There is a fairly 'upscale' one near me. The problem is, when it is 105 in the summer, it is not very conductive to strolling from store to store. Whenever I go there, I know what I'm going to buy, and where the store is, and that is where I go, and what I do. I would imagine it is just as bad in MA when it's 10 degrees and covered in ice/snow.
It's a completely different experience. I'd also agree with the earlier poster that the quickest way to destroy a mall is to have bus service.
“I would imagine it is just as bad in MA when it’s 10 degrees and covered in ice/snow.”
Yes, but you just deal with where you live. The malls were successors to all the stores being in the center of town, which is the same thing as walking around outside going from store to store. So really we’ve just come full circle and what people deem as something new is just something we used to do.