Even if a given downtown becomes a ghost town, the benefits of proximity to pre-existing infrastructure mean that the nearby urban areas will still benefit, and

Even if a given downtown becomes a ghost town, the benefits of proximity to pre-existing infrastructure mean that the nearby urban areas will still benefit, and activity will just shift around slightly. Pittsburgh, PA is a good example of a city where the collapse of the downtown just moved all the activity to the surrounding neighborhoods, and now that those are thriving (though some more than others, naturally) that's starting to result in increased reinvestment in revitalizing downtown.