Avoiding a Nightmare on Main Street: Handling Conflicts Between Living & Playing Downtown
Can increased downtown housing coexist with a bustling nightlife? While conflicts certainly can arise, there are ways of handling them.
Downtowns & Main Streets
This series of articles and postings looks at a key concern of local planners: finding ways of strengthening our communities’ downtown and main street districts.
Most Recent Articles
How Cities are Taking on Blight
Blight has reached crisis proportion in many cities across the country. But communities are fighting back, recognizing the severe impacts that blighted and abandoned properties can cause.
“Tactical Urbanism” or Public Vandalism?
The concept of tactical urbanism has been around for several years under the terms “guerrilla urbanism,” “city repair,” or “do-it-yourself urbanism.” It generates excitement and enthusiasm from activists, but concern and disdain from some municipal officials.
Seven Ingredients for Building a Healthy Downtown, Part 2
In part 2, Kitsinger continues with consideration of: targeted incentive tools; the need of a group to shepherd through the downtown plan; and the importance of gaining regional support.
Seven Ingredients for Building a Healthy Downtown, Part 1
In Part 1, Andy Kitsinger focuses on four ingredients to building a healthy downtown: strong leadership; effective community engagement; a shared vision & implementation plan; and policy alignment & appropriate regulation.
How Façade Improvement Programs Can Benefit Your Community
The revitalization of a neglected commercial district or residential neighborhood often begins with improvements to a single building or storefront. An overview of how façade improvement programs work.
A Healthy Downtown is Key to a Strong Community
Why are downtowns important and why the need for all of these revitalization strategies? Because downtowns are the heart of a city and region — and having a healthy heart is essential to having a strong city and region.
Turning Downtowns Around: Business Improvement Districts
Planner and contributing writer Beth Humstone looks at how business improvement districts work and what they’re doing to address today’s downtown challenges.
Recycling Main Street
Besides benefiting residents and drawing in visitors, our downtown main streets can also be good for the environment. Main Street consultant Kennedy Smith explains.
Wanted: Downtown Grocery Stores
As Americans’ taste for downtown living grows, so does their appetite for downtown grocery stores. So, why is it still rare to see a grocery store downtown? Economic development consultant Kennedy Smith provides some answers.
What Makes A Town Center A Town Center
PCJ columnist Kennedy Smith highlights the importance of building character and individuality into new town centers.
The Supreme Court’s Kelo Decision: Good News or Bad News for Downtowns?
Can local government take private property away from its citizens and develop it for something that will generate more tax revenue? On June 23, 2005, the U.S. Supreme Court said “yes.”
Downtown Hurdles
It should be no harder to develop downtown than elsewhere. Yet, as PCJ columnist Kennedy Smith argues, too many regulatory hurdles often face downtown development.
