Comments for the good city

Comment on Learning from Columbus, Indiana by Scott Greider

Scott Greider — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 16:25:17 +0000

Jon,

The hyperlink seems to be broken.

Comment on The expressway that never happened by Courtney Bontempo

Courtney Bontempo — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 20:43:53 +0000

Thanks for posting this great piece of Fort Wayne history that many in my generation have no knowledge of and like you explained would have reaped the benefits of. Most young professionals from my generation find themselves leaving Fort Wayne to pursue careers in larger cities such as Chicago and Indianapolis, due to a lack of opportunities in Fort Wayne. The lose of these young professionals is being felt across the board from housing to the local grocery store and its been that way for quite sometime. I agree, looking back is always easier then looking forward and those in power at the time most likely didn’t see this playing out as it has. Downtown Fort Wayne is a shell of itself and despite new efforts will never be what it could have been. Good or bad, it is what it is. We created a bypass and essentially split the city up, which is one of the reason they didn’t want the expressway ironically. Most likely the neighborhoods that would have been affected by the expressway are the same ones that now find themselves crime ridden and in shambles. Again, this could be a direct result of the cities decision not to build an expressway. Fort Wayne has lost many of its middle class blue collar and white collar employers and there has been a major lack of new businesses entering the city to fill the gap left behind from such companies as GE, Tokeim, Harvester, Lincoln Life…etc Downtown Fort Wayne has over 1mil sqft of office space sitting empty by last accounts. Downtown Fort Wayne reminds me a lot of Southtown Mall.

Comment on Are chain stores bad for downtowns? by blackwasp19

blackwasp19 — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 14:27:04 +0000

In relation to the conversation about chains, here is an interesting article about how big box stores can find a place within urban and multi-use design – http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/living-above-the-store—the-next-generation/article1357463/.

Comment on Learning from Columbus, Indiana by blackwasp19

blackwasp19 — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 13:56:47 +0000

My wife and I wen to Columbus for our anniversary. If you have not been it is worth the drive. The downtown is intriguing and there is a good amount to do in the town as a whole. We walked and biked around downtown and the surrounding neighborhoods without any problems and could easily walk to restaurants and bars from our hotel. I loved that Columbus thought urban and intentional in their design even though they are a small town. When my wife and I were in Columbus they were still constructive the parking garage and playground and I personally would love to see what that additional of the new downtown buildings does for the community.

On aspect that I didn’t find favorable – it is perhaps because Columbus is a tourist city – was the absence of new residential neighborhoods near downtown. There definitely were neighborhoods, but the new residential developments were on the outskirts of the city. Because of this, many of the newer businesses were far away from downtown (relative to the small size of Columbus) as well.

As the article suggested, I believe the fact Columbus has a plan they are striving for gives them a great advantage. They have a trajectory, can set a budget and can dream big. Also, it allows them to remain concentrated on the tasks at hand. They have committed to making downtown enjoyable and it seems that do not get diverted by the possibility of other sporadic developments.

Comment on Are chain stores bad for downtowns? by blackwasp19

blackwasp19 — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 20:33:53 +0000

I think an effective downtown – or any urban designed environment – needs to have a healthy mix of national and regional chains as well as local mom and pop store. I personally have a preference to the latter two and would desire the mix to lean away from national chains. Local companies make the environment unique and regional chains often give stability and offer a commitment to the community. However, the draw that a national chain brings in cannot be disputed – although again I have my frustrations with them and their impact on local companies. National chains draw in national chains and local companies. interestingly enough, Starbucks enhances coffee culture and actually helps local coffee shops. I don’t know if the same thing can be said about subway and I am sure it is not true about Wal-mart, but it is important to remember that not all national chains are created equal.

Overall, design needs to be a high consideration. if I a grocery store moves into downtown, but is not conducive to urban design it doesn’t matter if it is a George’s or a Marsh. Also, if new building are built, the should be robust enough to be used by a variety of businesses.

Comment on ‘Longing for the City’ by Terry Stocks

Terry Stocks — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 21:32:10 +0000

Jon:

Having grown up in Fort Wayne in the 50’s, I ordered your book on-line. It could have been a link off of the Allen County Library Website although I am not certain. I know this was done back in early November, about the time that you made your presentation. I have not received the book and I am not certain who to contact.
Can you help?

Thanks,
Terry Stocks
Chicago Area Resident

Comment on Are chain stores bad for downtowns? by brian stouder

brian stouder — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 23:26:04 +0000

Well, at the risk of saying things which have already been said, when I first went to Jefferson Pointe, the first question I had was – what makes THIS a desrireable place to shop? (similarly, there is a shopping area near Carmel that replicates a city street, with a town square and all)

And all I can think of is – since it’s private property, that area can be restricted; the PEOPLE who are not wanted – an handlers and vagrants and so on – can be not just run-off, but in fact kept far away.

Comment on Are chain stores bad for downtowns? by Alec Johnson

Alec Johnson — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 20:50:38 +0000

Thoughtful downtown design standards are a great way to guide development.

Picking and choosing WHICH businesses are allowed to exist downtown is a dangerous game.
Who gets to be the “tastemakers”?
There is room for both local businesses and chain stores provided they observe those design standards.
If a local sub shop is better than Subway (usually true), move in next door to Subway and let the customer decide.

Grand Avenue in St.Paul, MN is one the most vibrant, attractive, and successful streets in the city. The Gap store is next door to a local running apparel/shoe store. Chipotle shares a storefront with a local organic beauty supplier.

I don’t think Fort Wayne can afford to be too picky about WHO hangs a shingle downtown provided that shingle conforms to design standards.

Comment on Are chain stores bad for downtowns? by Jon Swerens

Jon Swerens — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 20:47:33 +0000

@Leo: Chain stores may not be as committed, true. But that’s always been the beauty of traditional urban buildings — one store leaves, and another can take its space.

Comment on Are chain stores bad for downtowns? by Leo

Leo — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 00:22:47 +0000

@John: It seems to me that there’s an argument to be made that chain stores may not be as committed to a location as, say, a locally owned business. That perhaps the chain store may just pick up and leave when sales dip leaving a hole to be filled. So in that case, I would say locally owned businesses are more desirable than chain stores; i.e. it does matter who owns the business.

On the other hand, it might also be argued that small, locally owned businesses are more pervious to fluctuations in the economy and therefore more likely to be short lived. In that instance, chain stores seem like the more desirable candidate.

Then there’s the odd middle ground of franchises where the business itself is a chain, but owned by a local operator. I’m not even sure how we might look at their desirability.

@Scott: And that’s the issue you raise, of desirability. In your example of an adult business, I particularly wouldn’t care if the business was tasteful (many would argue that’s an oxymoron when coupled with adult businesses) and followed all other zoning regulations. I don’t think desirability correlates at all with ownership. For instance, in Fort Wayne we have an apparently ever expanding selection of tattoo parlors, all of which are locally owned. Would one more tattoo parlor be any more or less desirable if it was a tattoo parlor chain?