Reimagining Cities-Disrupting the Urban Doom Loop

City type and size reveal key differences in the underlying distribution and productivity of WalkUPs. Despite these differences, WalkUPs are unilaterally productivity engines with significant influence on city and metro economies. WalkUPs, and Downtown WalkUPs in particular, are highly productive relative to their land mass and real estate footprint. WalkUPs, on average, produce 41 times more GDP per acre than the rest of the city (the non-WalkUPs), while Downtown WalkUPs, on average, produce 95 times more GDP per acre.

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Gateway

Secondary

All Cities

WalkUP Land Mass, Avg. Acres (% of Total City) WalkUP GDP % of Total City WalkUP GDP per Acre (Millions)

367 acres (2.3%)

295 acres (3.0%)

251 acres (4.4%)

68.1%

35.5%

56.5%

$40.6

$13.3

$27.7

Non-WalkUP (City) GDP

$0.88

$0.55

$0.67

per Acre (Millions)

WalkUP Productivity vs Non WalkUP City Productivity WalkUP Total Real Estate Valuation % of Total City

43x

24x

41x

29.3%

19.4%

26.1%

WalkUPs also punch above their weight in terms of fiscal impact, which can be both a plus (during Virtuous Spirals) and a minus (during a Doom Loop). WalkUPs’ real estate inventory is 24.5% of the total square footage in the 15 cities. However, WalkUPs generate 36.5% of property (and, for three cities, income) tax revenues for the city budget. Other research shows that WalkUPs cost less psf to provide public infrastructure services due to services costing less around higher density development. The net fiscal impact of this reveals that WalkUPs tend to subsidize the rest of the non-WalkUP areas of the cities.

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Reimagining Cities: Disrupting the Urban Doom Loop 83