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I lived in NYC from 2009 to 2017 and can affirm the author's feeling. Over the span of those years, and mostly as of late, I saw many of my favorite brick and m
by March_f6 8y ago
I lived in NYC from 2009 to 2017 and can affirm the author's feeling. Over the span of those years, and mostly as of late, I saw many of my favorite brick and mortars (Rare books, sporting goods shops, record stores, etc.) all be replaced by coffee shops or juice places.
Granted each of the above mentioned places have challenges with their respective industry but the feeling still stands.
Having been born in North Texas, I can also affirm the changing topography of America due to traditional brick and mortars being ousted. My hometown was once called the "Little Austin". It's now overrun with mini-mall strips that hold duplicates of things set up on the other side of town. (How many mattress stores and Sonics does a town of 100,000 need?)
The recent bankruptcy of Sears is another example where we will likely see large buildings across the country left empty and whose re-purposing will be contingent on state/city zoning laws (Texas doesn't have any) and rent. That is, why should I pay to reuse Sears's old building when the state/city will let me build a brand new building right down the highway?
- altoidaltoid 8y ago"How many mattress stores and Sonics does a town of 100,000 need?" http://freakonomics.com/podcast/mattress-store-bubble/ http://freakonomics.com/podcast/mattress-store-bubble/
- abakker 8y agohttps://www.wsj.com/articles/mattress-firm-files-for-chapter-11-bankruptcy-1538745006 https://www.wsj.com/articles/mattress-firm-files-for-chapter... Short answer: fewer.
- AnimalMuppet 8y agoI'm pretty sure that, just as you pay to reuse Sears' old building, you also pay to build a new one. If the Sears building is cheap enough to be worth the remodel (plus the awkwardness of using a building that isn't custom-built for what you have in mind), well, then you reuse the Sears one.
- swedishfish 8y agoWell now I'm curious. Which town in North Texas used to be called "Little Austin"? Denton??
- jungturk 8y ago> Denton is known as “Little Austin.” It is the birthplace of the Rocky Horror Picture Show and therefore respectably weird itself. https://www.texasstandard.org/stories/how-many-of-these-texas-city-nicknames-do-you-know/ https://www.texasstandard.org/stories/how-many-of-these-texa...
- burlesona 8y agoTo be clear, TX doesn’t do state-level zoning but city-level zoning is ubiquitous. Counties also generally regulate development with zoning or other regulations that are similar.