Brick and mortar retail is in full retreat everywhere in the country, while malls and the departments stores that anchored them are increasingly going the way of soda fountains, five-and-dimes, and cafeterias. The east side, with its lagging income demographics, is I think just a bellweather here of times to come everywhere, as under-performing big box stores begin to follow department stores in fading away.

The bigger question is what will be left? Certain types of old fashioned retail strips, like Kercheval in the Pointes, seem able to hang on. As do specialty 'destination' malls like Somerset [[although I think the future may be rough on them too). Growing income bifurcation seems to be leaving us with high-end or specialty stores and Wal-Mart or even lower down the economic scale chains [[the dollar stores) on the ground, with mostly online shopping outlets filling the vast in-between space.