From Dead Malls to Housing: How Architecture Is Rewriting the American Suburb
Across North America, a quiet architectural revolution is underway. Shopping malls—once the heart of suburban life—are dying. And in their place, architects are building something entirely different: housing, walkable districts, and mixed-use communities . In 2025, the transformation of abandoned malls into residential and mixed-use developments has become one of the most urgent and influential architectural trends in the United States and Canada. This is not nostalgia. This is survival—urban, social, and architectural. The Collapse of the Mall Era For decades, malls represented: Consumer culture Suburban growth Automobile-centered planning But today, e-commerce, changing lifestyles, and economic shifts have left hundreds of malls abandoned or underused. In the U.S. alone: Hundreds of malls are classified as “dead” or “dying” Massive parking lots sit empty Prime land remains locked in obsolete zoning Architecturally, these sites are no longer viab...
