The Location Pattern of Malls in Texas

Abstract

Malls are common places in urban areas. They present us with safe and convenient environments to shop and to spend leisure time. Although malls have an important presence in our lives, not much empirical research on malls exists in the field of urban studies, especially on the spatial and locational distribution of malls.

This research deals with the locational pattern of malls in Texas. I analyzed locations of malls in the larger context of the built and human environment. Specifically, the locations of eighty-one malls in four major metropolitan areas in Texas were studied in light of how highway networks, land availability, population density and household income affect mall locations, using a time-series methodology from 1970 to 2010.

The results of this analysis show that the spatial distributions of the malls were primarily correlated with the existence of highway networks. The land availability was an essential but not a decisive factor for mall location. Moreover, household income was a more important factor than population density regarding mall’s site selection. These results indicate that existing urban settings and conditions influence mall locations, but malls are not equally accessible to everyone, especially to low-income households. This equity problem should be addressed in future research.