Much has been speculated about the death of the mall and what to do about it, and solutions vary. One very innovative re-use of an aging, enclosed mall can be found in Austin, Texas, where a local community college is taking over the space, and a developer partner is proposing to develop a mix of housing, office and retail on surrounding surface parking lots. The project is part of a greater planning effort to redevelop a stretch of Airport Boulevard, a mid-20th Century urban highway. In many ways the former Highland Mall is the signature project for the corridor. A…