Quote:
Originally Posted by LMich
I think we've reached a point in a lot of these cities where attracting residents for "downtown amenities/living" instead of attracting downtown jobs to lure residents has kind of diminishing returns; we've kind of maxed out the "people who want to live downtown because of the cool shops/parks" category of potential downtown residents.
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Yes. It's the main failure from a state policy perspective, too. Or at least it was with the 'placemaking' programs. I was initially skeptical when the community development programs moved from MSHDA to MEDC, but now I'm optimistic. I've spent enough time in the great urban centers on the west coast to understand that if there are the right jobs, then people will come. And urbanism is en vogue right now, hopefully for good, but who knows. It's important have the middle and high density housing typologies many Michigan downtowns are so sorely lacking, and the amenities, but you need to have the jobs. And the schools. Schools are also where so many communities fail badly. Without good schools, you're going to get the young professional set and perhaps a couple empty nesters, but you're not winning unless you're getting the people with kids. End of story.