10 Things They Shouldn’t Get Rid of When Converting Malls Into Residential Living

People just don’t go to malls like they used to, which is making it difficult for stores, and entire malls to survive.

On the bright side, they may be the solution to the housing shortage! There’s been some talk about converting failing and abandoned malls into residential living developments.

But before they go stripping the malls of everything that made them fun to walk around, let’s take a look at 10 things they should consider keeping to make living in a converted JCPenney store more appealing:

1) Mall Cops

People might think mall cops are a bit of a joke, but wouldn’t it be better to at least have someone with a little authority to keep people in line?

2) “You Are Here” Directories

Think about how handy it’d be for visitors to be able to walk up to a directory and look up where you live, in relation to where they’re at in the building! Heck, malls can be so disorienting, even residents might need to use it on occasion to remember where they live….

3) Water Fountains

There’s just something soothing about the splashing water in a mall fountain. But they’re also a great place to throw the annoying spare change in your pocket, or fish some out if you’re just shy of the amount you need to grab a Cinnabon in the food court.

4) Food Courts

Imagine stepping out of your apartment and having a food court just steps away — think of all the money you’d save on UberEats and DoorDash!

5) Randomly Placed Massage Chairs

Buying yourself a reclining massage chair for your own home can be a pricey endeavor, but strolling down to the lobby with a handful of quarters to use a coin-operated one when you’re in need of a good kneading is certainly within budget.

6) Quarter Rides and the Indoor Playground

Kids (and the young at heart) would appreciate developers leaving the playgrounds intact, as well as those old school rides you can pay a quarter to ride for like a half a minute.

7) Mannequins

They should repurpose the mannequins by including several in each residential unit. Residents can use them as a way to store clothes they didn’t wear long enough to put in the wash, but aren’t clean enough to put back in the closet either.

8) Escalators

Escalators work even when they’re out of order! Why take them out only to build a set of stairs, when an escalator can just become a set of stairs when it breaks down? And they’re way more fun than an elevator…

9) Muzak

Keeping the subtle background noise of songs that you know and sing along to, but wouldn’t necessarily choose to listen to on Spotify, is a great way to support the Muzak artists, and pipe in a whole vibe to the environment.

10) Pictures With Santa

No more having to go to the mall to tell Santa what you want for Christmas… he’s right outside your door! If the line is too long, you can always just head back to your pad and wait until it dies down.