Some Metro Detroit Malls Face Potentially Grim Future

Fairlane Town Center

There are at least six Metro Detroit malls that show signs of a potentially grim future, Crain's Detroit Business reports.

The ones that face the most uncertain future include: the receiver-controlled Fairlane Town Center in Dearborn, the sparsely occupied Westland Center, and Laurel Park Place in Livonia.

Others facing challenges include the Oakland Mall in Troy, Southland Center in Taylor and Macomb Mall in Roseville.

Naishal Shah, a research analyst for Green Street, tells Crain's:

“Kind of the way I look at things is, if the mall grade is a B- or worse, it’s kind of at that point of no return, and it’s going to spiral until the mall’s death,” Shah said, although he still cautioned that each mall will rise or fall on a case-by-case basis.

Malls like Oakland Mall, Laurel Park Place, Macomb Mall, and Southland Center in Taylor get a grade of B-. Westland Center and Fairlane Town Center get a C+.

Online shopping has hurt a lot of brick-and-mortar stores over the years.