> I really can't walk around inside of The Greene without having to watch traffic (I am simply amazed at how recklessly folks drive in there).
If you're talking about the one in Ohio, I'm not sure you have reasonable expectations of what walkable means. There's not going to be many places where you can walk in the street without having to watch out for cars. But if your expectation is more like I can walk to shops and restaurants then it fits the bill. The only real difference between it and a classic downtown is that it's full of chain stores/restaurants instead of locally owned places.
I am talking about that one. My expectation would be those streets shouldn't be there in the first place honestly. I should be able to walk from one side of that mall to the other without worrying about cars.
Parking lots surround it in the first place. Do you really need to have parking 10 ft away from every shop?
Another poster mentioned the grove in LA. That is actually a pretty good model for what I'd say is a good walkable outdoor mall. There's no car traffic in the Grove, and no car traffic in the farmers market.
I'd also add in, this is different from a downtown in that is was planned. It wasn't like they had constraints based on locations, public roads, etc. If we were talking like revitalizing an actual downtown (like Oregon District), I'd be a bit less critical. But when I see planned "downtowns" that make it so the pedestrian is still subservient to the car, and it doesn't have all the amenities I actually need to live there (which I'll give that I probably have to drive somewhere to work, but still, even something as basic as a grocery store), Sorry, not really interested.
If you're talking about the one in Ohio, I'm not sure you have reasonable expectations of what walkable means. There's not going to be many places where you can walk in the street without having to watch out for cars. But if your expectation is more like I can walk to shops and restaurants then it fits the bill. The only real difference between it and a classic downtown is that it's full of chain stores/restaurants instead of locally owned places.