Through the changing retail landscape of the twenty-first century, dying malls in the form of greyfields present a unique opportunity for reinterpretation. With the mall historically being a social center of suburban communities, this thesis proposes a recentering of the mall through an urban lens. Utilizing a contemporary interpretation of Kevin Lynch’s The Image Of The City, the mall is reimagined as a diverse cityscape, integrating new food, hospitality, retail, services, housing, and family and business support organizations. This thesis states the position that the integration of housing, as well as the redesign to facilitate pedestrian circulation, evolves the mall from an isolated retail destination to an integrated town center.

The goal of this thesis is not simply to revitalize a space while displacing the local community. Instead, it explores the reverse: revitalization that roots the community in place, even at the risk of displacing outside corporate entities. Greyfields left by failed malls result from corporations’ inability to keep capitalizing on the space and often invite developers who may further gentrify it. This makes such greyfields critical sites to experiment with anti-gentrification practices that prioritize local economic and social benefit.