How Richmond's Downtown Redevelopment Theory Failed

"The downtown Richmond retail shopping district was built over hundreds of years with a deft mix of white and African American shoppers of all income levels. But it went into decline, and the city had the wrong prescription to fix it. If the city of Richmond had paid attention to market needs in trying to revive the street, it would not have set back retail development on Broad Street, which was once the city's main thorofare. Because the city has ignored the largely African American retail market in favor of white suburbanites, it has not only hurt the inner city market, but it has also hurt chances to bring the suburbanites back as well."