The latest round of urban flight has spawned one of the great debates of the COVID-19 pandemic. Will Americans resume their shift toward urban living when the coronavirus is brought to heel? Or will they decide the suburbs suit them? Prominent economists disagree. Some say the luster of city centers already had begun to fade…To read more — login/subscribe
The official statistics say downtown Memphis, TN (est. pop. 650,618), isn’t in need of additional emergency shelter beds for homeless people. But Jared Bingham looks around and sees that the official stats don’t tell the full story — there are many people in Memphis, especially women, who need shelter. “Memphis has about 8,000 families that…To read more — login/subscribe
During the civil justice protests of 2020, some downtowns suffered property damage when demonstrators broke windows and looted stores. For merchants in those downtowns, the fallout continues. Some say they can no longer find insurance coverage that will protect them from future episodes of civil unrest. And business owners worry that the hands-off policing approaches…To read more — login/subscribe
City’s big bet on roundabouts pays off in the form of fewer accidents — Hoping to reduce severe accidents involving pedestrians and cyclists, many downtowns have tested traffic roundabouts as an alternative to intersections with traffic signals. Read the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety study on Carmel’s roundabouts.
...Vaccination appreciation promotions — As the pandemic continued to spread this spring and summer, inducements to encourage vaccination were everywhere. Watch the Somerville vaccine discount video below. https://vimeo.com/524629927/fab95a9dc9 ...
In Madison, WI, a new program will provide a financial safety net for food cart operators doing business downtown. The program is among the winners in the latest round of pandemic-recovery grants from the National Association of City Transportation Officials (NACTO). The awards provide short-term funding and technical assistance to cities seeking to adapt streets…Continue reading
Downtowns big and small grapple with the challenge of building a roster of successful merchants. Many have taken a proactive approach by offering pop-up spaces and kiosksfor start-ups seeking a place to do business without a prohibitive upfront investment. Norfolk, VA, has been experimenting with pop-ups for several years. 2017 saw the launch of Selden…Continue reading
Empty store windows can sabotage a downtown’s best efforts to create a bustling, vibrant scene that encourages visitors to stay and spend. While vacant storefronts have long been the bane of small cities, the problem spread during the pandemic. Downtown San Francisco, for instance, has experienced an exodus of retailers as workers proved slow to…To read more — login/subscribe
The summer kicked off with record-breaking heat across much of the U.S. In the Southwest and South-east, the "feels-like" temperatures soared well above 100 degrees in July. For downtown leaders, the oppressive temperatures complicated plans for outdoor events — and they served as a reminder that cities need to start planning for intense heat. While…Continue reading
When the pandemic hit, many downtown leaders responded with a renewed focus on streets that are safe for walking, running, biking, and gathering. That shift from a car focus to a pedestrian focus looks different in every community, but Daniel Iacofano and Mukul Malhotra, authors of Streets Reconsidered, suggest that four important guidelines apply to…To read more — login/subscribe
