When a light-rail station or some other hub of mass transitenters a project, attempts to reduce parking to compensate for thealternative transportation won't always fly with retailers, hesaid. "They're still believers in that car, without question," Zobasaid here at the International Council of Shopping CentersConference on Mixed-Use Development.

Developers are also to blame for not working hard enough to getshoppers out of their cars and into other forms of transportation,pointed out Brian Ratner, Forest City Enterprises' president ofEast Coast development. "There are a lot of people on the chain ofdevelopment that are not there yet," he said. "And we need to getthere."

Regardless, more consumers should start to get used to payingfor parking at shopping centers, which has traditionally been afree perk, said Richard Heapes, a partner at White Plains developerStreet Works. "The days of free parking are over," he said.