Move Over, San Francisco: The Suburbs of Silicon Valley Are Calling
- Bay Area malls symbolize post-pandemic urban-suburban split
- San Francisco sees AI boom as chance to reinvent itself again
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San Francisco’s Westfield mall was for decades the city’s premier shopping destination, a nine-story complex in the heart of downtown known for its iconic glass dome and spiral escalators.
These days, the property is struggling with empty storefronts and falling foot traffic — so much so that owners Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield and Brookfield Corp. are giving the mall up to lenders, underscoring the wider challenges for brick-and mortar retail. Last weekend brought a particularly deep blow: the anchor Nordstrom Inc. store closed after 35 years.