How are downtowns doing? Philly offers clues

3 days, 18 hours ago

How to revive California’s downtowns? This Assembly member is looking for answers

LA Times

The sidewalks of the Fashion District in downtown Los Angeles were bustling. They impact people’s lives in so many positive ways.” Fashion District President and Chief Executive Anthony Rodriguez, left, shows Assemblymember Matt Haney around the bustling neighborhood. Chair of the Assembly’s Downtown Recovery Select Committee, Haney plans to introduce legislation next year to help these cities revive their downtowns. …

Urban Cities San Francisco State Los Angeles Los Angeles

3 months, 3 weeks ago

'This story is from Mississippi': PA Democrats pounce as rival mixes up Philadelphias

Raw Story

The campaign for Pennsylvania Republican Senate candidate Dave McCormick attempted to highlight crime driven by border insecurity — but in doing so, the campaign appeared to mix up two entirely separate Philadelphias. The campaign page for McCormick, a hedge fund businessman running against incumbent Democratic Sen. Bob Casey, reposted a crime story from the far-right account End Wokeness involving an …

Campaign Pennsylvania Philadelphia Mccormick Mississippi Pa

6 months, 1 week ago

Micro communities for the homeless sprout in US cities eager for small, quick and cheap solutions

Associated Press

ATLANTA — In a dreary part of downtown Atlanta, shipping containers have been transformed into an oasis for dozens of previously unsheltered people who now proudly call a former parking lot home. The gated micro community known as “The Melody” doesn’t look like a parking lot anymore. Folks that are literally sleeping on the ground aren’t even on the first …

Community Housing Homeless Atlanta 2024 Martinez Denver

9 months, 3 weeks ago

Downtown DC Confronts a Grim Prospect: A Return to the Dismal 1980s

Politico

Bowser has continued to lobby the White House to bring staff back to town most days, even making common cause with some of the administration’s most strident GOP critics. Nina Albert, the city’s economic-development chief, told me the ambition was “to be a model city for repositioning downtowns to what the next new normal is.” That new normal could potentially …

City Town

11 months ago

Nothing to see here! San Francisco journalist shares photo of tourists walking down 'GUTTED' main street in crime-ridden city, where almost all shops have now closed

Daily Mail

A journalist has shared alarming images of a once-prominent street that's been rocked by store closures in San Francisco. Instead of being graced with an array of shops, cafés, bars, and restaurants, the party is seen encountering countless shuttered storefronts 'This pic infuriates me,' wrote Sandberg, a self-employed San Francisco correspondent, in an impassioned post to X that laid bare …

Union City San Francisco San District Seen Francisco

1 year, 2 months ago

Photos of New York City’s catastrophic flooding.

Slate

I woke up this morning to the sound of my husband telling me that there was a man up to his waist in water on a street a block from us and that the outdoor seating for a bar nearby had already collapsed into the water. Prepare to move to higher ground if needed as flooding may occur with little …

Water Brooklyn

1 year, 5 months ago

Americans Spend Too Much Time in Cars. The Solution Is Simple.

Slate

What do Americans have to fear from new housing being built in their neighborhoods? In Dallas–Fort Worth, the country’s fourth-largest metro, about 1 in 4 residents lives within 3 miles of five different “activity centers,” the Brookings researchers’ term for those busy spots. There are many places well within what’s conventionally considered “suburbia” that not only save residents an enormous …

Driving Metro Residents Miles

1 year, 6 months ago

As high-rise offices lose their luster, can this part of downtown L.A. find a way forward?

LA Times

As the pandemic shut down office life in Los Angeles’ downtown financial district, Claude Cognian tried to keep his gastropub Public School 213 open. “If the homeless situation doesn’t get solved in some fashion that allows tourists, office workers and businesses to operate, it’s just going to bring down the area.” Real estate broker Derrick Moore of CBRE, who specializes …

Financial Restaurants Buildings Metro Los Angeles Los Angeles

1 year, 6 months ago

Opinion: L.A. and other cities are recovering, but not their downtowns. Why?

LA Times

A fiscal “doom loop.” A transit “death spiral.” The “office apocalypse.” Since the traumatic disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic, these pessimistic terms have been applied repeatedly to the state of our cities. Figueroa, Los Feliz and Highland Park have some of the highest population densities in L.A. County, as well as access to amenities including the USC campus and Griffith …

Housing Cities Los Los Angeles Usc Los Feliz Highland Park

1 year, 7 months ago

Opinion: Downtown San Francisco had a good run. Can it recover?

LA Times

Pedestrians walk past the headquarters of First Republic Bank, which was seized by regulators and sold to JPMorgan Chase Bank, becoming the latest San Francisco business to topple. First Republic Bank, another San Francisco success story, went under after it couldn’t retain its wealthy customers and was sold to JPMorgan Chase. Now barely a day passes without the San Francisco …

Tech Bank Work City San Francisco San Francisco

1 year, 7 months ago

Philadelphia’s likely next mayor could offer model for how Democrats talk about crime

Associated Press

PHILADELPHIA — The Democrat who will almost certainly become Philadelphia’s next mayor wants to hire hundreds of additional police officers to walk their beats and get to know residents. New York elected Mayor Eric Adams, a former police captain who vowed to invest more in public safety, and San Francisco voters recalled a progressive prosecutor amid frustration about public safety. …

Law Crime Public Safety Pennsylvania Democratic City Democrats

1 year, 7 months ago

Philadelphia's likely next mayor could offer model for how Democrats talk about crime

The Independent

Get Nadine White's Race Report newsletter for a fresh perspective on the week's news Get our free newsletter from The Independent's Race Correspondent Get our free newsletter from The Independent's Race Correspondent SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy The Democrat who will almost certainly become Philadelphia's …

Law Crime Public Safety Pennsylvania Democratic City Democrats

1 year, 7 months ago

California’s downtowns were emptied by COVID: S.F. still reeling but San Diego rebounds

LA Times

Shoppers make their way along Santee Alley in Los Angeles. San Francisco leaders have been working to turn things around and prevent what some experts have described as a potential “doom loop.” “There is tremendous diversity in who’s coming back,” said Karen Chapple, a professor emerita of city and regional planning at UC Berkeley and director at the School of …

Business Pandemic Office Remote Work Workers San Francisco California

1 year, 11 months ago

Traffic violence continues to surge in L.A. Why can’t (or won’t) we make streets safer?

LA Times

Good morning, and welcome to the Essential California newsletter. New York City, with more than double L.A.’s population, not only had fewer traffic deaths per capita last year, but also fewer deaths overall than L.A. — 247, according to that city’s data. “Nearly 10% of all traffic deaths nationwide occur in California,” said Tim Wiesberg, a spokesperson for the state’s …

Traffic Violence Deaths Data Black San Francisco California

2 years, 2 months ago

In drawn-out recovery, NYC inches out from COVID’s shadow

Associated Press

NEW YORK — As kids returned to school last month, people watching New York City pull itself out of COVID-19’s shadow wondered whether workers who fled Manhattan’s office towers during the pandemic would finally return in a rush, too. “We’re certainly entered a changed relationship between office workers and their offices,” said James Parrott, director of Economic and Fiscal Policies …

Pandemic New York City Office Workers City New York Manhattan

2 years, 4 months ago

Chinatown fears community, business loss in 76ers arena plan

The Independent

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. “These apartments are full of people who are low-income, …

Community City Asian Stadium Philadelphia Chinese Chen

2 years, 6 months ago

Rising US traffic deaths put focus on one Philadelphia road

Associated Press

PHILADELPHIA — Just one more step and the stroller would have been on the curb. The thought haunts Latanya Byrd years after a driver racing down Roosevelt Boulevard in Philadelphia struck and killed her 27-year-old niece, Samara Banks, and three of Banks’ young sons as they crossed the 12-lane road. And now, amid a national surge in traffic fatalities and …

Traffic Philadelphia Road Banks Roosevelt Fatalities Roosevelt Boulevard

2 years, 11 months ago

Philadelphia’s homicide surge is a warning sign for Democrats

CNN

Editor’s Note: Charlie Dent is a former Republican congressman from Pennsylvania who served as chair of the House Ethics Committee from 2015 until 2017 and chair of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans Affairs and Related Agencies from 2015 until 2018. Instead, liberal Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner responded in December, saying while gun violence had risen, other …

Crime Law Enforcement Public Safety Democratic City Democrats Philadelphia

2 years, 11 months ago

Newsom’s latest housing fix: More Californians living downtown

LA Times

Gavin Newsom wants to shift home construction in California away from rural, wildfire-prone areas and toward urban cores as part of his $286.4-billion budget plan that aims to align the state’s housing strategy with its climate goals. The budget blueprint Newsom detailed this week includes $2 billion over two years in grants and tax credits to incentivize housing development closer …

Housing Development City San Francisco California State Los

3 years ago

De Blasio says ‘No more shutdowns’ as NYC faces virus spike

Associated Press

NEW YORK — New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said he’s committed to keeping the city open as it grapples with a huge spike in coronavirus cases. While the fate of the outdoor New Year’s Eve event remained up in the air, De Blasio’s successor Eric Adams postponed his inauguration ceremony, scheduled for Jan. 1 indoors at Brooklyn’s Kings …

Public Health New York City City New York York De Blasio Blasio

3 years, 3 months ago

Business leader Jessica Lall joins L.A. mayor’s race, vowing to take on homelessness

LA Times

The head of a downtown-based business group entered the race for Los Angeles mayor on Monday, making the fight against homelessness the central message of her campaign. Jessica Lall, president and chief executive of the Central City Assn., promised to build more housing for those experiencing mental health crises, change zoning rules to allow for the construction of more affordable …

Business Housing City Mayor Lall

3 years, 3 months ago

Adapt or else: Downtown businesses cope with new reality

Associated Press

NEW YORK — Downtown businesses in the U.S. and abroad once took for granted that nearby offices would provide a steady clientele looking for breakfast, lunch, everyday goods and services and last-minute gifts. “There’s no question, it’s hard for business districts like ours, we miss our workers,” said Jessica Lappin, president of the Alliance for Downtown New York. “Nobody misses …

Business London Pandemic Office Restaurant Workers Detroit

3 years, 3 months ago

A tale of three cities: How COVID-19 lockdowns restricted movement in Canberra, Sydney and Melbourne

ABC

More than half of Australia's population is in lockdown in a bid to control a worsening COVID-19 outbreak. ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr and Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews have both criticised NSW leader Gladys Berejiklian for failing to lock down "fast and hard" when cases were first detected in Sydney. This week, Google published travel data showing how these cities' …

Google Work Canberra Melbourne Sydney Nsw Lockdown

3 years, 7 months ago

Beyond the pandemic: London votes for a mayor during crisis

Associated Press

LONDON — Not long ago, London was booming. “More than any other place in the world, if you come from a working-class background, London offers opportunities like no other,” said Bailey, who believes London’s biggest challenge is crime. “If you go into central London … there’s nobody there, almost,” said Mark Burton, who runs a community arts venue in Walthamstow, …

Europe Pandemic Brexit City Mayor Khan Britain

3 years, 7 months ago

Beyond the pandemic: London votes for a mayor during crisis

The Independent

Sign up to our free Brexit and beyond email for the latest headlines on what Brexit is meaning for the UK Sign up to our Brexit email for the latest insight Sign up to our Brexit email for the latest insight SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. “More than any …

Europe Brexit City Mayor Khan Britain Bailey

3 years, 8 months ago

A city wrestled down an addiction crisis. Then came COVID-19

The Independent

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. “People I’ve known all my …

Pandemic Treatment Life Addiction City Mother Covid

3 years, 8 months ago

A city wrestled down an addiction crisis. Then came COVID-19

Associated Press

HUNTINGTON, W. Va. — Larrecsa Cox steered past the used tire shop, where a young man had collapsed a few days before, the syringe he’d used to shoot heroin still clenched in his fist. “People I’ve known all my life since I was born, it takes both hands to count them,” she said. “In the last six months, they’re gone.” …

Pandemic Treatment Life Addiction City Mother Covid

3 years, 8 months ago

For 7 New Yorkers, a pandemic year's fight for the future

The Independent

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. “For years it was: ‘What’s the next terrorist attack …

Pandemic Coronavirus New York City Work Broadway City New York

3 years, 11 months ago

Column: A teen center turns into a food pantry to survive COVID-19

LA Times

A woman receives bags of food from Wilmington Teen Center assistant program director Ramiro “Bosco” Quezada, center, and program director Lorenzo “Mooney” Zepeda during a weekly giveaway to needy individuals and families If it’s 4 p.m. on a Wednesday in Wilmington, that means Will Hall Park is hopping. “The neighborhood is hurting, so we need to meet them where they’re …

Director Center Teen Wilmington Herrera Genaro Molina Connie

3 years, 11 months ago

New report shows how pandemic cut traffic congestion in most countries in 2020

Live Mint

Coronavirus-induced lockdowns caused annual traffic congestion to fall in most countries for the first time in at least 10 years, disrupting long-held traffic patterns like the dreaded morning commute to work, a report released on 12 January showed. Bengaluru was the most-congested city in the world in 2019, but it fell to sixth in 2020 with nearly a 30% of …

Traffic Bengaluru City Traffic Congestion Congestion 2019 2020

4 years ago

Life, death and pandemic greet California’s struggling Main Streets

LA Times

Konstantinos Varelas twisted a string of blue komboloi — Greek worry beads — outside his family’s restaurant on Main Street in El Monte. They love streets with activity,” said Miles Orvell, a Temple University professor and author of “The Death and Life of Main Street: Small Towns in American Space, Memory and Community.” “They love the idea of living in …

Pandemic Small Businesses Los Colorado Small El Monte Pasadena

54 years, 11 months ago

The Election Is Showing a Different Side of Philadelphia

Slate

Three days ago, Philadelphia was braced for dual blows: the possibility that the city’s overwhelming Democratic voters could once again be overruled by Pennsylvania’s deep red center and the likelihood that Wednesday’s release of the bodycam footage of the killing of Walter Wallace, a Black man with bipolar disorder who was fatally shot by police on Oct. 26, would lead …

Trump City Philadelphia Philadelphians

4 years, 2 months ago

From Detroit to Oakland, pandemic threatens urban renewal

Associated Press

DETROIT — Downtown Detroit was returning to its roots as a vibrant city center, motoring away from its past as the model of urban ruin. “All of that I think has been upended, and I don’t know when it’s going to recover.” In Cleveland, the downtown was thriving before the pandemic with two new residential towers opening and paint maker …

Pandemic Office Workers City San Francisco California San

4 years, 2 months ago

Will retail and recreational sectors get a boost as cities unlock?

Live Mint

During the pandemic, the confines of a home was the place for all activities—work, shopping, exercise, arts and entertainment. In the six major metro cities, mobility at retail and recreational spaces is now at its closest to the pre-pandemic levels, shows Google data. Urban Indians are increasingly stepping out of their homes, but are still not thronging places of retail …

India Delhi Pandemic Data Cities Restaurants Indians

4 years, 3 months ago

The $1-billion bet that people will return to downtown L.A. after COVID

LA Times

The Grand, a $1-billion towering collection of apartments, stores, restaurants, movie theaters and a luxury hotel in downtown L.A. across the street from the Walt Disney Concert Hall, left, has reached the halfway mark as construction carries on through the pandemic. Most of us believe the world will never be the same.” The goal is to make public spaces at …

Construction Pandemic Disney Project Los Angeles Hotel Covid

4 years, 3 months ago

Opinion: Yes, some people are moving to the suburbs. But cities are far from dead

CNN

Editor’s Note: Robert Reffkin is founder and CEO of Compass, a technology-powered real estate company. I’m betting on New York City, and I even bought a home here – after Covid hit. After analyzing our real-estate search and transaction data from more than 17,000 Compass real estate agents in over 150 communities across the country, it’s clear that American cities …

New York City Cities City Right New York Real York

How are downtowns doing? Philly offers clues

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