From what I understand, the first malls were mostly outdoor centers. I guess whoever owned Eastgate back in the day put a roof on it as I've been told it was originally an open air design. Then for a decade or two indoor malls were the thing. The problem is, all that climate controlled common area made a great place for unsupervised troublemakers to hangout at. I remember when I was younger going to Washington Square Mall after some big fight. Was early to mid 90s I think. The Guardian Angels showed up and a couple were open carrying just standing at certain points. The developers learned their lesson and started to make malls open air. That has to reduce the issue of loitering, especially during the hotter and colder days of the year.