Is Your Post Office Being a Good Neighbor?

In many communities, the local Post Office remains a critical Main Street anchor. Often located in the heart of a community, it drives visitation and pedestrian traffic throughout the day. As a result, the condition of the local post office can play a significant role in how a district is perceived. Post Office assets are often imposing civic institutions. Maintaining these key assets and ensuring they have a positive impact on local business districts is often a key component of successful community and commercial revitalization efforts.

About a year ago we completed an assessment and corridor plan for Mermaid Avenue, in Coney Island, Brooklyn, funded by the New York State Governor's Office of Storm Recovery (GOSR) . Mermaid Avenue, the business district that serves this vibrant community, had been severely impacted by Hurricane Sandy and even years after the storm the repercussions were still being felt. A relatively low-income community, Mermaid Avenue had a few clear nodes of business activity that needed some TLC. Our plan, developed with architecture firm WXY, laid out a clear plan of action for the Alliance for Coney Island, the non-profit entity formed to manage, maintain and advocate for the area.

The Post Office along Mermaid Avenue, Brooklyn, NY
Photo Credit: LOA

One key opportunity was the local Post Office, located immediately adjacent to one of the primary and most robust commercial nodes. The Post Office was clearly a destination driver in a community with very few options for secure package delivery. Yet the conditions of the building left much to be desired. Frankly, it was hard to even tell whether the Post Office was even open. Rusted gates over windows, graffiti, dead trees, litter, and weedy tree pits all contributed to a prevalent sense of insecurity for residents and visitors alike. While it is highly likely that some of these conditions were due to the storm, the opportunity for small scale improvements here was clearly evident. 

These kinds of partnerships with the local Post Office are not uncommon. In Jackson Heights, Queens, a local volunteer-led non-profit, The Jackson Heights Beautification Group, led an effort to improve the weedy, overgrown landscaping in front of the Post Office. Led by Len Maniaci, a long-time community advocate, environmentalist,  and former JHBG President, the group used volunteers to develop a design, and paid for both landscaping and a new irrigation system of the "curbside garden" that would ensure the survival of the perennials that are sure to have a big impact on the corridor. All for less than $10k.

The Post Office along 37th Avenue,
Jackson Heights, NY
Photo Credit: Len Maniaci 

The differences between these two Post Office assets could not be more stark. Clearly, community advocacy plays a role in advancing corridor improvement efforts. Along Mermaid Avenue, the Alliance for Coney Island is an excellent position to be that advocate and now they have a blueprint for action and a set of starting points from which to work. We are thrilled by their efforts and look forward to chronicling the implementation of the corridor plan over time, especially in partners with the Post Office.

Mall-to-Mixed Use Tracker

Nur Asri is an Associate at Larisa Ortiz Associates.

In recent months, we've seen a slew of headlines announcing the redevelopment of dying malls as walkable, mixed-use neighborhoods. These complex undertakings (read our post on the challenges associated with redeveloping malls) are popping up across the country as more commercial developers seek to diversify their portfolios in this turbulent retail climate. Join us as we round up some of the latest mall-to-mixed use projects:

Source: LOA (2018)

There are a number of uses other than 'Retail/ Restaurants/ Entertainment' that have been introduced to dying shopping mall sites. This includes housing, office space and hotels. In fact a majority (35%) of the projects we tracked now feature the full suite of uses - retail, housing, office and hotels. Retail and housing is the second most popular use combination on these former shopping mall sites, comprising 26% of total projects tracked.

When we look at the geographic distribution of these projects, the state of California comes up as a clear leader in these mall transformations. 29% percent of the projects we tracked are located up and down the coast from San Diego to the Bay Area. The State of Virginia also fares well with a 20% share of tracked projects located between Tyson's Corner and Richmond, however, it is the Mid-Atlantic region as whole that leads this redevelopment trend with 40% of projects located in VA, PA, MD, NJ and NY.

Source: LOA (2018)

The traditional American mall will no doubt continue to reinvent itself as consumer preferences and lifestyles change so keep your eyes peeled for similar projects in your own city! Comment below if your town is seeing a new mall-to-mixed use conversion. Here's a full list of mall-to-mixed use projects we tracked:

Source: LOA (2018)

Round Up: Urban Taxidermy, Tightening the Rust Belt, Tips for a Successful Art Tour, The Elements of Placemaking

Jargon Watch: "Urban Taxidermy"

As cities struggle to maintain character of neighborhoods and commercial districts, they are conflicted between two options, the preservation of old buildings versus allowing development to proceed. By preserving a district you also preserve a "walkable, vibrant streetscape where people want to be." Enter Urban Taxidermy.

Robert Allsopp defines urban taxidermy as "the art of preserving, stuffing and mounting buildings for lifelike effect to simulate an intrinsic social, cultural or commercial vitality."

Before urban taxidermy.

After urban taxidermy.

Do Parts of the Rust Belt ‘Need to Die Off’?

Experts suggest that struggling Rust Belt cities must look to the future of their cities by slimming down strategically through "smart decline."  Smart decline refers to "the ways in which cities can plan around population loss and find ways to manage it (and maybe grow again one day)." Some strategies include moving lowest density occupants to compact neighborhoods, building greenbelts instead of maintaining untraveled streets, encouraging urban farming or letting the barren areas revert to nature.

Helping the Public Enjoy Art

A multi-tiered approach to getting people out for an art tour in downtown Des Moines, Iowa offers some ideas on how to attract visitors to your district for one-off events and beyond.

Public Space at the Crossroads of Everything

The "place" in Placemaking is the combination of many more elements than you might've previously even considered. 

Retail Recruitment 101 Webinar

Are you struggling to meet your goals to attract development or redevelopment opportunities to your community? 

ICSC (International Council of Shopping Centers) & IDA (International Downtown Association) experts will be on hand to give tips and strategies to connect with success. 

This webinar will cover who to meet, where to be and what to do to make your community more business ready for retail real estate.



Join the webinar, July 26th at 2:00 PM EDT.
Register HERE

News Roundup: The Importance of Commercial Density, Combating Crime Proactively, Reinventing MLK, Bank Local, The Misappropriation of ED Incentives

Commercial or Residential Density: Which is Most Important?
Urban Kchoze presents a detailed analysis of the relationship between commercial density and residential density to uncover which promotes walkability more. Spoiler alert: commercial density. They also incorporate an interesting new metric, "farthest commercial use."

Urban Planning Practice Shows How Design Can Combat Crime

This design guide's prescription is to be proactive not reactive to crime. Good design and maintenance of the public space prevents crime from even happening. The alternative - NOT suggested - is to react to crime by adding more measures that further label the area as a target of crime.  

The Remaking of Martin Luther King Streets

City Lab looks at the reinvention of the more than 900 street and thoroughfares named after the late Martin Luther King Jr.

How to Find a Bank That Invests in Your Local Economy

Eat Local...Buy Local...Now there is Bank Local. According to the article, banks with more than $100B in assets accounted for 27% of small business lending while those with $10B or fewer assets accounted for 54% - demonstrating that small and ostensibly local banks support and finance local and small businesses.

Website capture of local banks near Jackson Heights.

How Economic Development Incentives Hurt Small Businesses

This piece discusses incentive programs and how many states wanted to help small businesses, but the majority of incentives went to large corporations. According to their research, large companies captured between 80 and 96 percent of these small business incentives.

ULI, HUD, ICSC Publication on Retail in Underserved Communities

In 2014, the Urban Land Institute, in partnership with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) published "Retail in Underserved Communities". The publication was the result of a convening of over 30 national urban markets experts (including our own Principal Larisa Ortiz) over the course of two days. Participants offered insight into the challenges facing underserved communities and the opportunities to advance both practical and policy solutions at the local, regional and national levels.   

The basic challenges facing underserved markets are outlined nicely in the report. In addition to the lack of grocery options, underserved markets also often lack retail for convenient health care, dry cleaners, beauty salons, banking, and other neighborhood conveniences. This publication points out what we know first hand, the challenges are not simply "economic market conditions", they often reflect site specific factors such as:

• Site availability and assembly
• Local approval processes
• Matching the retailer to the market
• Inaccurate or insufficient market information

We particularly like the case studies that provide detail on the examples shared over the course of the retreat. With that, enjoy!

It's not about the retail, stupid

In my work I often talk about the need for communities to "get retail ready", but the truth is, it's all a ruse. What I'm often really saying is "please don't use your limited resources for retail attraction  just yet, because frankly you've got lots of other things to worry about!" The truth is, great retail streets are a manifestation of the communities that surround them, not the other way around. There is a maxim in retail that most can recite and that holds true here: "retail follows rooftops."

As a community development practitioner - which is truly what I am - I take this maxim very seriously. In urban communities where population decline has left pockets of poverty and what we have come to call "shrinking cities", the lack of rooftops is a major challenge. So often, the first step in building a great retail district begins with building rooftops - and the ensuing density and market demand that is ultimately required to support businesses.

In 2013, the Association for Neighborhood and Housing Development asked our firm to lead an assessment of the economic development activities of community development corporations in New York City. The final report, entitled "Roadmap for Equitable Economic Development" laid out a framework for supporting the natural evolution of the community development industry. More and more, CDCs are building upon their success in housing construction (i.e. those all so important "rooftops") and expanding their role into a wider variety of community development activities, including small business support, commercial corridor improvement efforts, land use advocacy and workforce training, to name a few. This is truly a natural outgrowth that reflects the success they have had in community building efforts - success that has now positioned many of these groups to take on a new role - improving local commercial corridors and ensuring that residents have access to vital goods and services.

The hierarchy of community development, from ANHD's
"Roadmap for Equitable Development"

But let us not forget that getting there took decades - and the work is far from done. We must ensure that this work remains funded through financial tools that have played an instrumental role in helping to build much needed affordable housing.

I share all this because we recently started a project in a challenging urban community in New Jersey. At a forum discussion with local residents it quickly became clear that retail was a concern, but perhaps not a priority. What emerged was a portrait of a deeply troubled community where the complicated issues of poverty, lack of viable job opportunities and rampant crime were first and foremost on people's minds. One participant shared her experience holding a young boy in her arms after he had been shot and going through two towels to keep him from bleeding out. Her struggles are real. The challenges of her community are real. The fact that loitering at the local bodega might result in an assault, robbery or worse are real. In this kind of environment, local businesses struggle just like everybody else. They often cover window openings - or worse remove them entirely - to prevent being cased by thieves. Local business owners struggle to make ends meet, deferring investments and maintenance that might make them more attractive places to shop. It's a deadening cycle that can be difficult to break.

In the end, these efforts are really about improving the market dynamics of community, which may mean spending 15 years on housing development. So in the beginning, it may not really be about the retail, that might have to come later.

Back to fundamentals...what are the building blocks of vibrant retail streets?

Figuring out what makes a great retail street is probably one of the most important research tasks in our field. This information allows us to make more informed decisions about which investments will create the most impact, and allows us to better advocate for policies that will make a real difference in the districts we serve.

In 2012 the City of Washington D.C. commissioned a report to do just that. The DC Vibrant Retail Streets Toolkit attempted to unpack the elements of extraordinary retail streets. While the authors acknowledge that retail is too innovative to be formulaic in every situation, there were a number of findings that inspired us to take a look at how these building blocks reflected our own philosophy of what makes for great retail environments.

The study considered two kinds of retail streets - small-scale neighborhood streets and destination streets. They then collected data for 16 case studies to see if the similarities could inform a set of policy and planning principles for the District of Columbia to follow. We took the liberty of organizing the elements into the assessment framework that we use in our work: Administrative Capacity, Physical Environment, Business Environment and Market and Demographic Data.

Source: The framework above was developed for the New York City Department
of Small Business by our team on behalf of the Local Initiative Support Corporation. 

ADMINISTRATIVE CAPACITY: In our own research, we have also found that administrative capacity remains a consistent factor in successful retail environments. We we thrilled to see this study reinforce that finding. Again and again, studies into successful retail districts have consistently reinforced the importance of leadership and capacity to district success.

BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT: The vibrant street case studies that were considered in the study all reinforced the importance of market forces to great retail environments. Customers are driven to visit a place when the offerings are reflective of what they want to purchase and what they want to do. This is why a fairly tight node of great offerings, which should include a healthy mix of traditional retail anchors as well as non-traditional anchors such as civic and cultural institutions, is imperative to retail district success.

MARKET/DEMOGRAPHIC DATA: The strength of the market - both from residents and non-resident visitors - is another key consideration.

PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT: And last but certainly not least, the condition of the physical environment plays a role. And our conjecture is that this will become even more the case as our retail environments are compete against on-line shopping options. It is the quality of the physical environment and the experience that the retail district offers that provides the most fundamental differentiation from the on-line experience. Districts that get this right are in good shape to ensure long term viability and vibrancy.

Nominate your favorite public place for a Great Public Spaces award!

Public spaces, when designed well, make a great destination, draw the community together, generate pedestrian traffic and activity, and, let's be honest, make for some excellent people watching.

Project for Public Space (PPS) is honoring the world's best places and is currently taking nominations for Great Public Spaces.  PPS is not just giving out awards, they are "sparking a conversation" on what makes a public space great.  Do you have a favorite public space in mind that deserves notice? Simply follow the link HERE to nominate one - could be one that you might remember from travels or one that might be in your own town.

Some notable public spaces from around the world:

Plaza de la Constitución - Oaxaca City, Mexico | Credit: Steve Cadman

The Spanish Steps - Rome, Italy | Credit: Wooly Matt

Rittenhouse Square Park - Philadelphia, PA | Credit: R. Kennedy

Museumkwartier - Amsterdam, The Netherlands 

The High Line - New York, NY | Credit: Iwan Baan

Barton Springs - Austin, TX | Credit: Wally Gobetz

“Edge Cities” Grow Up

The new Tysons Corner skyline gets an update with a residential tower.

In 1991, journalist Joel Garreau published his seminal book, Edge Cities, which described places like Tysons Corner, a former country cross roads that grew into the quintessential automobile-oriented suburban shopping center and office park surrounded by traditional suburban single family homes. Today, Tysons is one of many former riding the wave back towards mixed-use downtown's, according to Shopping Centers Today (“Living Above the Store”, SCT April 2015). This trend is being led by millennials and baby boomers who want urban places to live, work and shop. According to a 2014 Nielson Report , “Millennials are fueling an urban revolution looking for the vibrant, creative energy cities offering a mix of housing, shopping and offices right outside their doorstep.” In fact, 62% of millennials “prefer to live in mixed-use communities found in urban centers.”

Shopping mall developers are increasingly responding to this growing demand by growing the commensurate supply of mixed-use projects that include a residential component. Both Macerich and Simon Properties, two of the largest mall developers in the nation, are adding housing to projects in their portfolios. Macerich recently added a 430-unit residential tower to Tysons Corner mall and Simon is adding a 319-unit mid-rise luxury building at its Phipps Plaza Property in Atlanta. Simon has also added 232-units to its Southdale Center mall in Edina, Minnesota. Downtown's and urban places are clearly the inspiration for these former Edge cities.

Skyview Center and Skyview Parc in downtown
Flushing, Queens, a combined mall/apartment building 

But if you think this is just a suburban trend, think again. Downtown Flushing, Queens, NY is home to the Shops at Skyview Center a $1 billion dollar project that is home to an 800k mixed-use, multi-level shopping center with stores like BJ’s, Nike Clearance Store, Forever 21, Target and Nordstrom Rack. Above Skyview Center is Skyview Parc – a luxury apartment building that is luring an international crowd of buyers (many Chinese) to some of the area’s most pricey apartments (the average apartment sells for over $700k). The project also offers a four acre landscaped park on the roof of the mall with walking trails, playgrounds, a dog run and picnic tables. Nice place to live if you can afford it…

Mending Our Divided Cities

Have you ever been driving through a city on a road that clearly split the city in two?  Unfortunately this is a dilemma that has been written into the history books of American cities.  LA's Interstate-405, Austin's I-35, NOLA's Claiborne Expressway, Syracuse's I-81, New Haven's Route 34, St. Louis' I-70 just to name a few have all divided the cities they call home.

What are we doing as a nation, as citizens, urban planners, designers to mend these broken seams to our cities? Sometimes natural disasters provide opportunities to mend urban highways, as was the case with San Francisco's Embarcadero, or an economic downturn provides opportunities, like Route 99 in Portland.  

Some communities that face this challenge:

• I-280, Newark, NJ - The Urban Essex Coalition is federally funded effort led by Together North Jersey, trying to use "complete streets" as a solution for I-280's splitting of the community.
• I-5, Seattle International District - While there is no solution yet, our client, Seattle Chinatown International District, faces the challenge of connecting both sides of the interstate highway that bifurcates the traditionally Chinese portion of the district from the growing Vietnamese community. The underbelly of I-5 poses a challenge to connectivity that the community has tried to overcome by painting the piers that hold up the highway.



Image: Sunnysidepost.com

• Sunnyside, Queens, NY - The up and coming neighborhood of Sunnyside is making progress to connect the northern district with the southern district which is severed by the elevated 7 subway.  Sunnyside BID is working to add plazas, seating, events with music, and farm stands (seen on right).
• In New Orleans, the challenge was outlined in “Imagining Cities Without Highways" by Diana Lind. Claiborne Avenue was once a bustling corridor with grassy medians lined with trees. After the highway was built, its neighboring community of the Treme slid into decline. 
• In St. Louis, I-70 is vastly underused and severs a resurgent downtown from the Mississippi River. Plans are in the works to create a park like platform over the highway, but local advocacy groups are calling for the highway to be replaced entirely by a boulevard. 
• And finally in the Bronx, the Sheridan Expressway separates the South Bronx from the rest of NYC and discourages economic development.

So how do we seam together communities that have been torn apart by infrastructure, trains, roads, etc.?:

In Rotterdam, painted viaduct columns make for a
nicer pedestrian passageway

• Lighting - Metaphorically suturing the west and east of I-35 together, Austin utilized customized lighting.
• Art and Music - Boston's Rose Kennedy Park over the Big Dig puts outdoor free piano's in the spotlight.
• Creating safe and attractive passageways with art, such as a painted installation in Rotterdam, or plants, such as the installation of dense greenery on a pedestrian bridge in Windsor, Canada
• Decking sunken freeways and creating parks - Duluth, Minnesota; Trenton, NJ; Dallas, TX; Phoenix, AZ
• Lowering traffic speeds, reducing noise and pollution, and narrowing the roads are initiatives envisioned by the McGrath Project to humanize the space.
• Greening of elevated freeways creates a softer, less industrial feel 

Greater connectivity of our cities provides greater mobilization, interaction, and livability, potentially leading to more community interaction, increased economic activity, and decreased disassociation.  

Proposal to sink and cap I70 East in Denver, CO 

Proposal to cap Autobahn A7

Further reading:

• Making over downtowns - Christian Science Monitor 
• Prospective teardowns - http://www.cnu.org/highways/freewayswithoutfutures
• History of six freeway demolitions 
• Rio Madrid Park replaces M30 motorway 
• Ambitious covered highway project over Autobahn A7 (seen above)
• Proposal to sink and cap Denver's I-70 (seen above)

It's Not Just About Neighborhood Pride: Murals Prevent Graffiti AND Drive Retail Sales

Graffiti covered walls and trash strewn streets are not exactly the most attractive additions to your commercial district. But then sometimes the remedy is not much more attractive than the original problem. We recently toured a commercial district in downtown Newark, NJ and talked to businesses who have given up on the painting and repainting necessary to keep graffiti in check. To make matters worse, the paint jobs are sometimes a mish-mash of different paint colors that look messy, and while an improvement, still communicate a not so positive message about the district to shoppers.

A Better Method - Murals!
The verdict is in - and we now know without a doubt that there is a better way. Neighborhood murals not only prevent graffiti, but are good for local business. A 2008 study by E-Consult, among the most comprehensive of it's kind, looked at 265 commercial corridors in the City of Philadelphia and found a positive correlation between corridor success (as measured by retail sales) and the Philadelphia Mural Arts Program. Murals have an amazing way of creating neighborhood pride, building a neighborhood identity - and more so than a temporary paint fix - are well respected by neighbors who become their unofficial stewards and protectors. The need to paint over the same wall again and again and again is often a thing of the past.

Engaging youth in this effort is another powerful way to work towards long-term graffiti prevention. One Washington D.C. non-profit is doing just that. The Latin American Youth Center Art + Media House partners with local artists to create murals that brighten up the community. Tim Gibbons is a local artist who helped facilitate a group of 14 youth this past summer brighten up a cement wall...see more of the wonderful results here on his blog. Certainly an improvement, and a lesson learned that engaging youth in this effort can accomplish multiple goals - the least of which might just be an improvement in retail sales for local businesses.