Metrogarden AVM

Istanbul lives winter like winter (snow storms and all) yet the architect who designed this mall has eluded himself from the fact and thought that he was designing a building in So. Cal. Otherwise why the heck would you build an open air mall in the middle of Dudllu?
The escalator design that makes you move through the entirety of the floor to go to a different floor may be putting a few cents on top of the average rent due to maximized display exposure but I am sure most shoppers are frustrated by having to walk the entire floor to reach an escalator going in their direction, be it up or down. There is only a twin elevator in the middle of the building and it is insufficient since a lot of families come here with strollers.
The shops, in general, speak toward the AB SES group but the empty crowds are usually a mixture with the majority being out of that target audience.
Once the subway becomes operational in 2015, hopefully, the station right below the mall will bring in more crowds because with the current volume of visitors the shops won’t last for long. Also the movie theatre planned to be opening by the end of the year will bring in its own crowd.
All in all, this is an average mall. What’s bad is all I wrote above. What’s good is the proposed subway station, the movie theatre and the gym that is already open. Do I go there? Yes, but only on weekdays. Was it a necessity to build a mall in such a densely populated area? I very much doubt it.