Death watch continues; General Growth stock in a free fall

Stock trading for pennies a share; collapse may help Elk Grove

General Growth Properties (GGP), developer of the Elk Grove Promenade, saw it shares plunge again today. As of this posting, they are trading at 42 cents a share.

GGP acknowledged in an SEC filing that its viability is in doubt given it's debt load. In the filing GGGP said;

"Our potential inability to address our 2008 or 2009 debt maturities in a satisfactory fashion raises substantial doubts as to our ability to continue as a going concern."

Even though the opening will will likely be delayed by at least another year and hurt the city's sales tax revenues, the collapse of GGP may help Elk Grove in a couple ways.

First, it will delay the opening of the gigantic strip center and allow for excess retail space to be absorbed. Also with many retailers facing difficult economic times, the delay will give them a chance to survive they might not have had if the mall had opened on time. This is especially true for the locally owned and operated retailers.

The delay should also slow the growth that will happen between Elk Grove Blvd. and The Promenade. It will give Elk Grove a much needed breather from the breakneck speed of real estate development in the recent years and give the city a chance to rethink how it intends to manage growth.