The owner of Alderwood Mall, Westlake Center, and a number of other malls in Washington state and across the country filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy today, meaning it can’t pay its creditors but intends to keep running its business. This should come as no big surprise, as malls are falling left and right, leading many to speculate whether their business model is outdated. Which of course doesn’t bode well for Alderwood and Westlake, nor for the folks who work there, shop there, walk there for exercise in the winter, or just hang out there. Given that wide range of activities, it’s not really fair to call malls culturally bankrupt. But it made for a good headline.