Gulfport PO slated to reopen May 1

Simon Property Group, the biggest operator of malls in America, has a plan for reopening 49 shopping centers across 10 states starting May 1. The company shared its ideas for what its pandemic-era malls will look like in documents attached to an April 27 memo given to retailers, and obtained by The New York Times. Among the properties scheduled to reopen May 1 is the Gulfport (Miss.) Premium Outlet (PO). The memo provides an insight into how the shopping experience is likely to look as the country begins to slowly reopen. But it depends largely on whether retailers will decide to reopen within those malls, and whether the public is going to respond, when tests for the coronavirus remain difficult to get. The memo did say that hours will be shortened to allow for increased cleaning. The malls will be open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. every day except Sunday, when the hours will be noon to 6 p.m. Simon Property is based in Indianapolis and at the end of 2019 last year owned more than 200 properties in 37 states and Puerto Rico. (Source: NY Times 04/28/20) https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/28/business/coronavirus-shopping-malls-simon.html?campaign_id=168&emc=edit_NN_p_20200429&instance_id=18058&nl=morning-briefing&regi_id=92576814&section=topNews&segment_id=26195&te=1&user_id=069c0c79e41b9effe3db22ae17a5e131