Question of the Day: what to do with empty shopping centers of the country?

An interesting discussion has unfolded on the network about what fate awaits Russian shopping centers, which have appeared in the country in large numbers over the past 20 years. It is no secret that, first due to the coronavirus pandemic, and then due to the most severe sanctions, most tenants were forced to close their stores in the shopping center, which jeopardized the very existence of these huge and until recently super-popular areas.

Political scientist Alexander Saigin from Volgograd writes in his channel that the time of the shopping center around the world is just coming to an end, and the pandemic and sanctions have nothing to do with it:

“It became clear that shopping centers are an outgoing format when these same shopping centers went online. That is, all these Ozones and Wildberries have been transforming reality for four years now. But not only in terms of consumption. The mall is the meeting place. Covid has pretty much crippled this form of communication. The sanctions knocked out interesting brands and even more drowned cinemas, which were already gradually sinking due to the emergence of online services.

It would be interesting to see now what is happening with the attendance of shopping centers and where is the limit of their profitability. No less interesting, where will they be transformed? "Marmalade" next door to me began to organize fairs of products and all kinds of hand makers more often, started a stage for teams. The Voroshilovsky shopping center went in a similar way. What else?"

Meanwhile, in the West this problem was faced earlier than in Russia. Analysts of the Proeconomics channel write about how it will be possible to use Western experience:

“About half of the possibility of saving the shopping center will be in the hands of the government and municipalities, the other half will be small and medium-sized businesses from segments of the service sector that were not previously represented in the shopping center. We must look at the Western experience, especially the United States, where this problem began to be solved long before us. Dozens of large shopping centers have already closed there, and trade is moving to a more competitive online.

For example, three years ago, one of the shopping centers in the state of New Jersey, with an area of 300 thousand square meters. m closed and went bankrupt several times, until they decided to remake it. 45% of the area was left for trade, and the rest for entertainment: a water park, a Ferris wheel, a skating rink, a ski hill, two mini-golf courses, restaurants..."

True, according to analysts, it is unlikely that there will be so much entertainment in Russian shopping centers, since the savings regime has begun, however, three areas where there is still money left:

Firstly, this is the public sector: the shopping center can host offices of employment services, “My Services”, the issuance of patents and health books for migrant workers, “self-employed fairs”, farm and craft shops.

Secondly, the children's sector: usually parents try not to save on children even in a crisis, and therefore, empty areas can be filled with circles, sections, developing classes ....

And thirdly, health: analysis points, dentistry, physiotherapy exercises / physiotherapy and so on...

Saygin predicts the same thing:

“Wangyu the emergence of branches of the Russian Post and, probably, polling stations (both ordinary and for the DEG). Perhaps something will appear for the leisure of pensioners (after all, the silver age should increasingly receive active forms and spaces). I do not rule out that medical centers will go to the shopping center. Moreover, some shopping centers in Moscow have been converted into covid hospitals. And, of course, these are ideal "points of coolness" in the summer for the southern regions. In connection with global warming, the topic is becoming more and more relevant. I don't see coworking there. We have not yet converted all factory areas for this.

I thought that part of the area of the shopping center can be completely converted into winter gardens. Especially in the northern regions, where summer is not enough..."