Retail across the US is shrinking precipitously. Where does that leave parking? Scott Doyon has pointers on not applying old logic to new dynamics.
This week, "the Atlantic ran a piece on the Great Retail Meltdown of 2017 which, to summarize, tied the present culling of the retail herd to three phenomena: the rise of online shopping; a half century of overbuilding retail space; and the present shift in spending from goods to experiences."
"In short, with people increasingly getting their everyday stuff online and valuing an interesting meal with friends over a trip to the mall to get a Hollister sweater, our overly abundant providers of commercial goods are taking a beating."
"These are the kinds of trends that ripple out well beyond Retail Industry News. Their impacts can be felt across all levels of community. So my interest as I read it isn’t so much in the specifics of what’s happening as it is in the underlying threads that inform the phenomenon overall and how those threads might impact prospects for local placemaking."
Doyon dives into the parking fallout from retail's retreat, particularly for local implications.
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