Many cities in the past decades built malls in urban cities as a way to drive consumers to their area and to increase the amount of money flowing into the city. However, many of these malls have been unable to compete with malls in suburban areas, and this has resulted in lost urban space, low urban foot traffic, and reduced urban involvement. To combat this problem, cities like Worcester, MA are demolishing old malls and replacing them with office buildings, small shops, and apartments. The cities that are investing in changing their environment are already seeing positive results as their cities are more attractive and private investors are flooding the area with capital.
I think that this could be a key driver in stimulating or sustaining urban interests in people who have increasing ability to meet all of their wants and needs without having to travel to urban areas. The author points out that people really love small shops and the environment that is created by them. The cities doing this have to invest the funds to change mistakes of the past, but they are finding that they are recouping their investment through private developers and increased consumer interest. That sounds like urban success.
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It’s interesting to see how over time the demand for certain goods and services can change so much. Even after leaving home to come to college, I come back and find old post offices turned into bakeries and old businesses turned into dress stores. As the population changes and the times change, it’s wise for towns and cities to mix things up a little bit to get the money flowing again.
As time goes and people prefer to buy from their neighbor areas. I think these malls in the suburban locations are bringing things that people will also find in urban malls. There is no necessity to travel distances to get what you want plus saving time and gas. Also, these changes on people’s shopping behaviors are because of the technology that provides them to have access to many services to their needs through internet.