Reimagining Cities-Disrupting the Urban Doom Loop

government and the private sector. 101 Cities bear the burden of hosting visible homelessness, which makes it appear as though homelessness is a problem unique to walkable urban areas, but it’s not. MORE THAN THE SUM OF ITS PARTS Cities, WalkUPs and their neighborhoods are not just the sum of the various parts of the built environment. Placemaking is a critical part of the equation, whether that is directly managed by a BID (or similar place management organization) or not. It

is vital that there are people and institutions committed to cities who are focused on tackling the challenges of safety and serving those in need while also creating vibrant, clean and safe neighborhoods that attract employees, residents and visitors. This requires initiative and foresight. In the next section we analyze how stakeholders— place makers, governments, developers, philanthropists, etc.—should think proactively about the mix of real estate that is going to optimize economic and social good in urban WalkUPs.

101 Loh, Tracy Hadden and Hanna Love. “Homelessness in US cities and downtowns.” Brookings, 2023.

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