Mixed Use Development Gains Ground

In a "backlash" against the "monotony" of suburban sprawl, new mixed-use complexes like Atlantic Station in Midtown Atlanta "are truly picking up steam and will soon change the landscape of America," the trend especially strong among mall developers, with 145 of the 147 retail projects launched last year throughout metro areas offering housing, libraries, art centers, boulevards, ice rinks and other amenities, writes BusinessWeek Online reporter Pallavi Gogoi, quoting General Growth Properties senior vice president Thomas D'Alesandro, who said, "The idea of a metropolitan area with only one center is no longer the functioning model for most cities -- today we have a galaxy with multiple high-density nodes."

"[M]ini-towns like Atlantic Station and Main Streets are sprouting up all over America. Sometimes even located in the middle of a suburban sprawl, these developments give residents an identity -- and a place to go for entertainment, shopping, and people watching -- whether it's at Santana Row in San Jose, Calif.; Easton Town Center in Columbus, Ohio; Centerpoint on Mill in Tempe, Ariz.; or the revival of Crossroads in downtown Kansas City, Mo."