Are there two many stores? Growing evidence says yes, that the retail market is unlikely to spring back and with the shift to internet spending, it's likely that we've already got more retail space than we need.
A recent article by Gruen and Gruen in Urban Land says, "Mayors and other officials who are trying to revive downtowns in small cities, they warn, had better pay attention to some demographic shifts and behavioral changes in the post-recession world."
Gen Y, they argue, doesn't shop nearly as much as previous generations, and the baby boomers are still hurting from their economic losses heading into retirement.
Read the full story: Too Many Stores
Traditional Retail is Hanging by a Thread. What Now for Cities?
After Kaid Benfield paints a rather grim retail outlook — where even retail bastions like San Diego are going dark — he suggests a series of actions for city leaders and planners.
DC Announces ‘Office to Anything’ Adaptive Reuse Program
The program complements an existing residential conversion initiative and could yield up to 2.5 million square feet of new commercial space.
Shifts in Shopping: Transforming Malls Into Parks
Maybe zombie malls still have a second life — one with a little greenery.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
California plans to bury El Niño’s downpour
If the state plays its cards right, it may be able to store a billion acre-feet of El Niño’s water in aquifers.
Chicago breaks ground on $3 billion megadevelopment
The new neighborhood, titled Foundry Park, will one day host 3,700 residences.
Satanic place names
From streams and lakes to valleys and canyons, I mapped more than 1,000 places named after the Devil.
California High-Speed Rail Authority CEO resigns after $600,000 scandal
Under Ian Choudri, the authority used taxpayer dollars to fund first class flights and trips to nightclubs.
Want to study the Missouri River? Soon, you may need unanimous approval from 10 states
Legislation would require 10 governors’ permission to study or build projects moving water outside the basin.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
City of Rosemead
Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
City of Cambridge
Montrose County
The Pocatello Development Authority