So far this year Macerich has signed 1.96 million sf of leases. Though the mall owner is on a record-breaking pace, the third quarter's total was behind the same period in 2003, when 228 leases were signed totaling 572,356 sf.

The largest tenant signed over the most recent quarter was Old Navy, which took on 16,429 sf in Empire Mall, in Sioux Falls, SD. That was followed by Basset Furniture Direct's occupation of a 15,000-sf space in Scottsdale (AZ) 101 and Anthropologie's signing of 10,430 sf in La Encantada, a lifestyle center the company is developing in Tucson, AZ.

Meanwhile, Macerich's Westcor subsidiary in the Southwest is renovating its high-end Biltmore Fashion Park in Phoenix. Westcor is redesigning the exterior of the 610,477-sf center, which has sales per sf of $490. The company will also renovate to the property's pedestrian walkways to improve traffic flow.

Biltmore is part of a group of eight centers in Macerich's portfolio that the company considers its most upscale and were recently re-branded as Lumenati. The other centers are La Encantada, Scottsdale (AZ) Fashion Center. In California, they include Broadway Plaza, in Walnut Creek; The Oaks, in Thousand Oaks; Santa Monica (CA) Place; The Village at Corte Madera (CA).