More mall buildings to stay empty next year

Many retailers are retrenching for 2009, even if not extremely close to bankruptcy, especially if they have large outstanding lines of credit, I’m guessing.

That means some older malls where tenants have been vacating may have spots remaining vacant.

It also probably means that brand-new places, like Uptown Village here in Cedar Hill, suburban Dallas, where not all the store sights have been filled yet, may well also have sites remain vacant throughout the coming year.

Oh, and the 2005 bankruptcy law changes that got so many consumer activists riled? They affected the ease with which retailers can file, too, especially regarding real estate holdings. Per the Journal, bankruptcy attorney Lawrence Gottlieb saidonly two retailers have successfully emerged from bankruptcy proceedings since the 2005 changes.

For more and more retailers, like Linens 'N Things formerly here in Cedar Hill, that means liquidation instead of bankruptcy restart.