MALL WARS GET UGLY--SO WHAT ELSE IS NEW?

Implications: Mr. Palmari writes about "the growing practice of mall owners trying to thwart each other's new projects by lawsuits, strong-arm tactics and costly political campaigns"

By focusing upon the legal battles raging over the proposed new mall project in downtown Glendale, CA, he "proves " his theory about this new phenomena.

Analysis: As a grizzled veteran of many "mall wars" let me state right off that this is not new nor is it, in my opinion, newsworthy.

Although Mr. Caruso , the developer who won the right to develop a piece of vacant property next to General Growth's Glendale Galleria, claims that General Growth's tactics were "just morally wrong" and then filed a $100 million antitrust suit, Business Week correctly points out Mr. Caruso's comments reek of disingenuousness.

First of all I would ask "what the heck did he expect from a prudent public company like General Growth? Is he unhappy that the Welcome Wagon did not pull up to his door with a bundle of discount coupons from the neighboring Glendale Galleria?

Next I would ask what the Westfield Group REIT thinks about Mr. Caruso's tactics at his Grove Mall with his attempts to put Westfield's nearby mall at a serious disadvantage.

Is Business Week that naive that they really believe that any prudent businessman would willingly allow a direct competitor to steal market share without putting up their strongest possible resistance? And why do they single out the retail industry? Doesn't this same thing go on every day in every industry in the world?

Business Week seems to be endorsing Mr. Caruso's cry of "unfair" and his turning to the antitrust arena for satisfaction. Obviously Business Week has very little understanding of what goes on on the mall leasing business every day in every mall in the world. 

In my opinion he is abusing the courts and I only wish the next competitor to try to take market share from one of his malls, does the same thing to him!