Suburban Retro-fit and Mixed-Use Revitalization of a Vacant Shopping Mall

In January 2024, the City of Elkhart acquired a failing, largely-vacant shopping mall. At the center of a residential neighborhood and on the edge of a commercial corridor, this mall is a prime opportunity on how to transform and re-urbanize failed car-centric properties.

With the dual goals of walkability and mixed-use redevelopment, we helped to develop a pro-pedestrian, pro-housing redevelopment plan that will benefit both the city and the neighborhood.

Primary issues for this project included the introduction of a block structure for both new residential and commercial construction, the addition of new buildings while designing around access easements, no-build-zones, and utility infrastructure costs, and the creation of a central green and pedestrian plaza, with auxiliary green spaces throughout the residential structures.

Design Credit: WBK Engineering and Seven Generations A+E