Manulife (King Centre) redevelopment project

[dtkvictim]

In Japan, covered streets (malls?) are quite common.

Covered shoutengai are interesting. I think they seem like a good idea when you see them in Japan, because of the magic touch that Japan seems to have on most things. But if you take a step back, they aren't really anything special compared to regular shopping streets or regular malls. As far as I am aware, they are actually dying out in Japan, whereas proper malls built around train stations are thriving. Imagine if both Ion stops were under the King Center bridge and integrated directly in a mall.

Maybe I've never seen an "in between" one, but shopping arcades seem to only be the beautiful and grand European arcades or middle eastern bazaars, or a cheap looking roof over a regular street. They can certainly be functional, but the shops inside are still what's most important.