Companies are slowing the pace of development. Executives at Simon Property Group, for example, during a recent earnings call said the firm was delaying construction on some of its projects because of the weak sales climate. Instead, it seems to be opting to spend on redevelopment.
Simon Property Group Inc. said today that it will have invested $450 million in upgrading and expanding its 20 New England malls when it completes a five-year renovation plan in 2010.Details of some of those plans have been previously announced, but Simon Property, an Indiana company with a portfolio of 380 shopping centers in North America, Europe, and Asia, including 14 in Massachusetts, hadn't publicly put a dollar figure on its New England renovations before.
The company said that major renovations are planned for Northshore Mall in Peabody, South Shore Plaza in Braintree, and Burlington Mall - a Nordstrom Inc. department store is set to mark its grand opening at Burlington Mall tomorrow.