April 18, 2023 on The Story: When you think about a mall, its success is often measured in the number of stores open and operating. If the mall is doing poorly, they close — and the more closed storefronts, the worse the perception of the "health" and prosperity of the mall. The mall can function as something of an analogy for thinking about downtown Portland, even if the latter is at a much larger scale. Between the COVID-19 pandemic, homelessness, addiction and crime, the last few years have worn on downtown Portland. The latest blow came this week, when we learned that outdoor retailer REI has plans to vacate its longtime spot. 

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