[JACKinBeantown]

I lived in New York City for nearly 18 years, from February 1994 through October 31, 2011. For the whole time I was there of course, there was ground level retail in most buildings, and certainly nearly 100% on major avenues. (There's not a lot on many residential side streets... maybe 20%, but most of those buildings only take up single lots about 25-40 feet street-facing and are over 100 years old.)

While I was there NYC got much more expensive and priced many of the tried and true retail businesses out. Big Nicks Burger and Pizza Joint was at Broadway & 77th for nearly 50 years, and the same story with many diners and small grocery stores, even CBGB's! What replaced them was high-end fashion stores and other crap like that. It took away much of the character of the neighborhoods and the city as a whole. Now it's largely a playground for the rich. But it still has street level retail all over the place.

If you haven't lived in a city that has such rampant ground-level retail, you have no idea how important it is for a thriving community, even if that community only spans a few blocks within the greater metropolis. If you have lived in a city that has it, then you know. But there's pretty much no in between, so it's fairly easy to spot the opinions of people who haven't experienced it and don't know its importance. That's not a slam, just a statement of fact because it's an important thing to know if you want to be a good urban planner/developer.

My point? An urban area needs ground level retail in as many places as it can have it. And yes, some of that ground level retail needs to be the everyday kind, such as dry cleaners, diners, corner stores, etc. Otherwise the neighborhood is either only for the rich or will cause its residents to get in their cars and go somewhere else to do their everyday shopping... or both.

To all aspiring urban planners: ground level retail is important!!!!!

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