This article quotes people who call for revitalizing cities with ground-floor retail and bringing in craft industries like those making beer, bread, and bicycles. Maybe, but many financial districts are poorly situated for retail and lack the necessary anchors. The idea of bringing in something other than retail is intriguing, but unless we’re going to flood ground floors with artists and artisans, these aren’t great places for industry either, and there are few services that neighborhood residents can’t find on their local main streets. Cities like Seattle with really oppressive street scenes (think five or six travel lanes, few trees, and windswept plazas) need to re-green their central business districts. That means re-landscaping them so they are better places to live, work and walk.
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/09/04/upshot/cities-downtowns-vacant-storefronts.html