5 ms·

There's a shopping center on Geary that has a Domino's, a Walgreens, a former Ross, and a former Blockbuster. It still has the slot for dropping off movies.

fy20 2y ago
This is pretty apparent in UK high streets too. Whenever I visit my parents, the high street of their local town feels dead compared to when I was a kid. 100 years ago this town was the trade capital of the region. Half the shops are boarded up, and whatever is left feels like it's running on limited time. Banks make up a good chunk of units, and they still only exist as my parents' generation don't do online banking. When I was a kid it would be common to see vans (food trucks) selling locally produced meats, pastries, cheese, bread, etc. Last time I visited there was only one, selling vapes. In bigger cities it's not uncommon for areas near high streets to be redeveloped into mixed used, with commercial on the ground floor and apartments above. I'm guessing in 20 or 30 years the concept of a 'high street' I knew as a kid will only exist as a tourist destination. This has an issue in itself though, as a lot of these are are historic buildings. You are restricted to what changes can be done, and as-is they wouldn't make very good apartments (low ceilings, weird layouts, poor insulation/sound proofing, questionable fire safety, no parking).
- anal_reactor 2y ago
  Honestly, I go to local market maybe once a year. As lovely as they are, I just can't adjust my life to the rhythm of those small shops, supermarkets are way too convenient. Besides that, I don't really have a reason to go cafes or bars. Spend an hour of my day to have 10% chance of talking to someone and then again 10% of actually enjoying the conversation? No thank you, especially not after an exhausting work week. I'd rather put my coffee into a thermos and drink it on a bench in a park outside the city. Or at home. God I love drinking at home.
  - KptMarchewa 2y ago
    Pretty much no one goes there alone. If you go with someone else you have 100% chance of conversation and much higher at enjoying it.
    - anal_reactor 2y ago
      I can't ever imagine this. Every single time I went somewhere with someone my entire attention was dedicated exclusively to that person.
      - KptMarchewa 2y ago
        Yes, that's the point.

fy20 2y ago

This is pretty apparent in UK high streets too. Whenever I visit my parents, the high street of their local town feels dead compared to when I was a kid. 100 years ago this town was the trade capital of the region. Half the shops are boarded up, and whatever is left feels like it's running on limited time. Banks make up a good chunk of units, and they still only exist as my parents' generation don't do online banking. When I was a kid it would be common to see vans (food trucks) selling locally produced meats, pastries, cheese, bread, etc. Last time I visited there was only one, selling vapes. In bigger cities it's not uncommon for areas near high streets to be redeveloped into mixed used, with commercial on the ground floor and apartments above. I'm guessing in 20 or 30 years the concept of a 'high street' I knew as a kid will only exist as a tourist destination. This has an issue in itself though, as a lot of these are are historic buildings. You are restricted to what changes can be done, and as-is they wouldn't make very good apartments (low ceilings, weird layouts, poor insulation/sound proofing, questionable fire safety, no parking).

anal_reactor 2y ago
Honestly, I go to local market maybe once a year. As lovely as they are, I just can't adjust my life to the rhythm of those small shops, supermarkets are way too convenient. Besides that, I don't really have a reason to go cafes or bars. Spend an hour of my day to have 10% chance of talking to someone and then again 10% of actually enjoying the conversation? No thank you, especially not after an exhausting work week. I'd rather put my coffee into a thermos and drink it on a bench in a park outside the city. Or at home. God I love drinking at home.
- KptMarchewa 2y ago
  Pretty much no one goes there alone. If you go with someone else you have 100% chance of conversation and much higher at enjoying it.
  - anal_reactor 2y ago
    I can't ever imagine this. Every single time I went somewhere with someone my entire attention was dedicated exclusively to that person.
    - KptMarchewa 2y ago
      Yes, that's the point.