As if Mall of America isn’t big enough already.
Canada-based Triple Five Group, which owns the 4.8-million sf enclosed mega shopping center and mixed-use complex in Bloomington, Minn., submitted plans to the city for a $500 million, 1.1-million-sf addition that’s dubbed The Collections at MOA.
The Minnepolis Star-Tribune reports that the expansion calls for 580,000 sf of new retail and mall space on three floors that would target luxury shoppers, a 180-room luxury hotel, 120 full-time residences atop the hotel, and 168,000 sf of office space. A health club is also a possibility.
The proposal also includes a third parking structure with between 600 and 650 more spaces in two underground buildings.
Ryan Cos. US Inc. is the general contractor for this project, which is Ryan’s first involvement in Mall of America. The architect DLR designed the addition. If approved, work would begin next April with an opening scheduled for October 2018.
The plans show the enclosed areas bathed by natural light through at least three large skylights. This expansion would come on the heels of a $325 million “front door” project—known as Phase 1C—on the Mall’s north side that is still under construction, and includes a new seven-story office tower, a 342-room J.W. Marriott hotel, and specialized retail.
The first part of Phase 1C—a new food court on the third floor—opened to the public last month. The first and second floors won’t been accessible until next year.
TripleFive’s latest proposal is the first step of a grander plan whose second phase reportedly would include an even larger, 2-million-sf addition for retail, hotel, and entertainment space. If all of these various phases are ever completed, the Mall would encompass 8.8 million sf.
Mall of America, which opened in 1992, currently attracts 40 million visitors a year, two-fifths of whom are tourists. It houses more than 520 stores, and hosts more than 400 events annually.
Related Stories
| Oct 27, 2014
Report estimates 1.2 million people experience LEED-certified retail centers daily
The "LEED In Motion: Retail" report includes USGBC’s conceptualization of the future of retail, emphasizing the economic and social benefit of green building for retailers of all sizes and types.
| Oct 16, 2014
Perkins+Will white paper examines alternatives to flame retardant building materials
The white paper includes a list of 193 flame retardants, including 29 discovered in building and household products, 50 found in the indoor environment, and 33 in human blood, milk, and tissues.
| Oct 15, 2014
Harvard launches ‘design-centric’ center for green buildings and cities
The impetus behind Harvard's Center for Green Buildings and Cities is what the design school’s dean, Mohsen Mostafavi, describes as a “rapidly urbanizing global economy,” in which cities are building new structures “on a massive scale.”
| Oct 12, 2014
AIA 2030 commitment: Five years on, are we any closer to net-zero?
This year marks the fifth anniversary of the American Institute of Architects’ effort to have architecture firms voluntarily pledge net-zero energy design for all their buildings by 2030.
| Sep 25, 2014
Bjarke Ingels headed home for latest project: Aarhus Island
Aarhus Island will be a waterside development in Denmark's second-largest city. The mixed-use development will implement Ingels' signature angled look in its residential towers.
| Sep 24, 2014
Architecture billings see continued strength, led by institutional sector
On the heels of recording its strongest pace of growth since 2007, there continues to be an increasing level of demand for design services signaled in the latest Architecture Billings Index.
| Sep 22, 2014
4 keys to effective post-occupancy evaluations
Perkins+Will's Janice Barnes covers the four steps that designers should take to create POEs that provide design direction and measure design effectiveness.
| Sep 22, 2014
Sound selections: 12 great choices for ceilings and acoustical walls
From metal mesh panels to concealed-suspension ceilings, here's our roundup of the latest acoustical ceiling and wall products.
| Sep 15, 2014
Ranked: Top international AEC firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Parsons Brinckerhoff, Gensler, and Jacobs top BD+C's rankings of U.S.-based design and construction firms with the most revenue from international projects, as reported in the 2014 Giants 300 Report.
| Sep 9, 2014
Using Facebook to transform workplace design
As part of our ongoing studies of how building design influences human behavior in today’s social media-driven world, HOK’s workplace strategists had an idea: Leverage the power of social media to collect data about how people feel about their workplaces and the type of spaces they need to succeed.
