Rising cost of land dictates more imaginative designs for shopping centers. The multi-story shopping center is certainly a possibility. A good design and well-chosen tenants can make this concept successful.
Here are some of the things to consider:
Vertical Circulation. Shoppers are used to a one-or-two story center, so the design must encourage pedestrian movement from floor to floor. The shopper must be able to move quickly and simply. One example of a design that allowed for vertical circulation is in a two-story shopping center in Costa Mesa, California. The developer and architect sank the first floor half a level below grade while raising the second floor half a level above ground. To the arriving shopper, either floor is equally close and inviting. Another example of design that encourages vertical circulation appears in a three-story shopping center also in Southern California. The project has three sets of escalators and two elevators, and those systems are highlighted with dramatic elements, towers, and angled ramps that allow ground floor pedestrians to see other shoppers moving to the second and third floors.
Ample Parking. A multi-story shopping center on a relatively small lot in a densely populated area requires both ground-level parking space and below-ground-level parking space. To avoid creating a dark, uninviting garage, however, the architect can bring light into the subterranean levels by piercing the ground-level pavement with large openings, which also provide pedestrian access into the garage via a stairway. If on the other hand, ample ground-level parking is available, it should be laid out to avoid a long walk from the parked automobile to the shopping center, with bright lighting for night hours.
Restaurants Upstairs. Restaurants, nightclubs, movie theaters, and other kinds of entertainment should be located on the upper floor because those destinations attract people and bring customers to the upper floors through the center. In contrast, the ground floor tenants should provide customers with quick in-and-out services, fast foods, coffee shops, eye wear, apparel shops and shoe stores. Tenant mix and store size become important considerations at multi-story shopping centers.
Roof Line Emphasis. The multi-story shopping center’s height and mass can often be used to create a distinctive identity. At one center in Southern California, for example, the architect used towers to draw attention to the roof line. Strips of neon lighting around the entire roof edge provide visual impact when seen from city streets and highways. The shopping center becomes a local landmark; in effect, its own advertisement. Further, signs for tenants at or near the roof line, in bright, contrasting colors, add to the overall visual attraction.