Noor Al-Assali
The New Age of Strip Malls
Interior Design
2022
Exploring using vacant spaces in strip malls, it is now about creating and designing them into something more thoughtful and useful for the community. Since the peak of these strip malls in urbanized neighbourhoods started after world war 2, it was for the sole purpose of restarting the economy again and having a near by place for people from the adjacent neighbourhoods to go to. But because so many of them were built, they started cannibalizing off each other and with many decades later, and the rise of the online shopping world, they are not in as much demand. This is where the new age of these strip malls can find purpose again.
“Since the expansion of online shopping, it became the start of the decline of in-person shopping at malls and outlets. Now that these spaces are starting to becoming vacant, what do we do with them? The focus of my thesis will be to transform the exiting foundation of the strip malls into a sustainable and local way of farming for the community members in Ward 8 of Mississauga. It will also give a chance for the people who are unemployed to have a chance to work and network within their own community. The population of unemployment in that location is roughly 22,000 people, ages 15 and older. By adding sustainable practices in an urbanized space, it helps the community become aware of the benefits of learning sustainability and helps it sustain itself in the future. It is revolutionizing the idea of farming by becoming as local as possible while allowing members of the community to participate while developing skills.”