How Is Covid-19 Impacting Life in Your City?

[Steely Dan]

Originally Posted by JManc

I though the State St. Macy was still called 'Marshall Fields'. I've been there a couple of times but never paid attention to the signs. That's a Chicago institution though.

The historic "marshall fields" plaques embedded in the side of the building are still there (macy's wasn't allowed to remove them because the property is landmarked), but the store inside the building was completely rebranded as "macy's" and the marshall fields brand was officially retired.

There was much anger here in chicago back when the switch was made roughly 15 years ago.

[the urban politician]

Originally Posted by Crawford

Macys isn't expensive nor do its employees make minimum wage. In fact Macys is unionized with good benefits.

I think the underlying point is that if you support mixed-use urbanism, you should support brick-and-mortar urban retail, and not order all your crap online. We try and support our neighborhood brick-and-mortar retailers whenever possible.

Thank you. Many people don't know how to discuss things in this forum, they just strawman you to death.

Anyhow, once we've had our vaccines (only a couple more days to go for my second dose, my wife follows 1 week after) and then my parents do, I will be making an effort to patronize brick and mortar retail and food establishments more frequently. I am so sick of Amazon!

[Yuri]

Originally Posted by C.

Yeah right, I love cities, but I'm never shopping in some overpriced shopping district just to be seen or supposedly help a brick and mortar retailer like Macy's. I'm getting my stuff at a discount online with free delivery so I don't have to schlep it around. But don't worry, I'm not leaving the city anytime soon, and I'll be happily contributing in all other ways that make a city great.

I'm more than happy with the paradigm shift that's focusing cities and property owners to rethink their approach to retail and office uses due to the pandemic.

Originally Posted by the urban politician

^ Are you? Last I checked, this is SkyscraperPage.com

If concentrating large numbers of people together to work or shop is being subjected to a "paradigm shift" that you are "more than happy with", then I'd like you to explain how that paradigm creates the types of highrise-dominated, walkable, vibrant cityscapes that this forum celebrates.

Last I checked, just having a bunch of residential highrises where everybody just sits in their condo and takes deliveries, works from home, and hardly goes anywhere for anything is NOT what the majority of the people in this forum think of when they are celebrating our great cities.

I'm the opposite: I never shop online, except for air tickets. I'm adamant to buy things on real places, preferably from my neighbourhood shops.

I really don't care to pay a little more for it. Money is for spending, shopping is for the whole experience. Arguably, people stuck on online shopping ends up spending more, buying things out of impulse, things they really don't need.

Sadly, I'm aware people will be more and more buying stuff online, spending most of time locked at their homes, less human interactions, less social life. I think our cities, big or small, will suffer. Needless to mention depressing wages for employees, erradication of small businesses, big money controling the whole economy and even society.

[the urban politician]

Originally Posted by C.

To each his own I guess, but unless it's a supermarket, I'm not a fan of the big or trendy department stores when it comes to retail unless it's for something unique, not something that can be found in most cities, towns and suburbs in America.

I didn't know that Macy's was unionized and pays a livable wage to their employees, that's a good thing at least, but not the norm from my experience.

^ I have no qualm about your ethical issues with department stores--they are laudable, but department stores and the warehouses that supported them played a HUGE role in concentrating people into downtowns, and their allure, for much of the late 19th and 20th centuries. Read about Chicago's history and you'll know what I mean..

[the urban politician]

Originally Posted by yuriandrade

I'm the opposite: I never shop online, except for air tickets. I'm adamant to buy things on real places, preferably from my neighbourhood shops.

I really don't care to pay a little more for it. Money is for spending, shopping is for the whole experience. Arguably, people stuck on online shopping ends up spending more, buying things out of impulse, things they really don't need.

Sadly, I'm aware people will be more and more buying stuff online, spending most of time locked at their homes, less human interactions, less social life. I think our cities, big or small, will suffer. Needless to mention depressing wages for employees, erradication of small businesses, big money controling the whole economy and even society.

This. Couldn't agree more

[SlidellWx]

New Orleans goes back into phase 1 starting Friday. We've been in phase 2 for the past few months. Back to 25% capacity for most businesses. There has been a sharp uptick in elderly cases which has resulted in increased hospital use. The uptick is likely tied to the Christmas holiday gatherings.

It's also disheartening to see that less than half of the healthcare workers have opted to take the vaccine in the New Orleans area. Those vaccines are now being doled out to people over the age of 70.

[the urban politician]

The Gap store in Chicago’s Magnificent Mike is closing due to Covid

Is this more of the “paradigm shift” in commercial real estate I’m supposed to look forward to?

Yay, our greatest commercial streets get to be replaced by Amazon to go stores! Alright!!

[chris08876]

Got an email on gmail regarding my time line of locations I've been in 2020.

Damn pandemic. The extent of my travels in all of 2020.



I'd be curious if others could share their own time line. How 2020 and the pandemic impacted your travels and plans.

[Acajack]

We in Quebec are under curfew as of 20 minutes ago. Until 5 am. Probably the first curfew in living memory here.

I was not going to go out tonight anyway but it feels really weird.

[chris08876]

Just FYI for folks in NJ.

Here is the vaccine registration.


https://covid19.nj.gov/pages/vaccine

New Jersey will roll out COVID-19 vaccines in a phased approach to all adults who live, work, or are being educated in the State. Within six months, New Jersey aims to vaccinate 70 percent of the adult population.

Pre-Register for the Vaccine: Enroll in the State's vaccination registration portal.

[the urban politician]

Originally Posted by chris08876

Got an email on gmail regarding my time line of locations I've been in 2020.

Damn pandemic. The extent of my travels in all of 2020.



I'd be curious if others could share their own time line. How 2020 and the pandemic impacted your travels and plans.

No trips to Chicago?

Too bad it’s been that long since you’ve had good pizza

[chris08876]

Originally Posted by the urban politician

No trips to Chicago?

Too bad it’s been that long since you’ve had good pizza

I was suppose to go, but canceled it. Now my Europe trip... that sucked because it would of been three weeks in May. UK, France, Spain, Portugal, and Amsterdam. That shit got canceled though because flights were banned.

[C.]

Originally Posted by the urban politician

The Gap store in Chicago’s Magnificent Mike is closing due to Covid

Is this more of the “paradigm shift” in commercial real estate I’m supposed to look forward to?

Yay, our greatest commercial streets get to be replaced by Amazon to go stores! Alright!!

Times change, cities must adapt or they become a museum. Think of the shift like the transition from payphones to cells.

I'm biased as the gap is another store I would never set into. Another shop that can really be found in any mall in America. Why come to Chicago and experience the great city and shop at something anyone can find back home (or online). The "Magnificent Mile" was also one of my least favorite parts of Chicago when I visited last year. I had much more fun in the neighborhood spots around the North and Milwaukee area. It's the local neighborhoods where Chicago really shines, IMO. I realize I'm sharing a minority opinion here, but I think whatever replaces the gap once the economy opens back up will be better as it's something people may actually use to justify its existence.

**edit - I should clarify that the retail options on the Magnificent Mile were the most boring to me. The museums and parks were absolutely fantastic!

[iheartthed]

Originally Posted by C.

Times change, cities must adapt or they become a museum. Think of the shift like the transition from payphones to cells.

I'm biased as the gap is another store I would never set into. Another shop that can really be found in any mall in America. Why come to Chicago and experience the great city and shop at something anyone can find back home (or online). The "Magnificent Mile" was also one of my least favorite parts of Chicago when I visited last year. I had much more fun in the neighborhood spots around the North and Milwaukee area. It's the local neighborhoods where Chicago really shines, IMO. I realize I'm sharing a minority opinion here, but I think whatever replaces the gap once the economy opens back up will be better as it's something people may actually use to justify its existence.

**edit - I should clarify that the retail options on the Magnificent Mile were the most boring to me. The museums and parks were absolutely fantastic!

Lol... This might touch a nerve but... Isn't that Chicago's business model? Attract a bunch of Midwesterners to shop at the same stores on the Mag Mile that they could shop at in their local mall? Sprinkle in dinner at the Cheesecake Factory, and a couple of pictures at the bean sculpture in Millennium Park, and call it a weekend.

[SIGSEGV]

Originally Posted by chris08876

Got an email on gmail regarding my time line of locations I've been in 2020.

Damn pandemic. The extent of my travels in all of 2020.



I'd be curious if others could share their own time line. How 2020 and the pandemic impacted your travels and plans.

Mine's little better, although Google didn't register any of my time at the South Pole the first week of 2020, so it's basically Christchurch, (seemed to miss my 5-hour layover at AKL) and within 90 miles of Chicago...

[pip]

Originally Posted by iheartthed

Lol... This might touch a nerve but... Isn't that Chicago's business model? Attract a bunch of Midwesterners to shop at the same stores on the Mag Mile that they could shop at in their local mall? Sprinkle in dinner at the Cheesecake Factory, and a couple of pictures at the bean sculpture in Millennium Park, and call it a weekend.

No, that's Times Square

[iheartthed]

Originally Posted by pip

No, that's Times Square

That's definitely Chicago, lol. Times Square doesn't have much shopping. But it is the world capital of spending $50/plate on dinner at Applebees and Red Lobster.

[JManc]

Originally Posted by iheartthed

That's definitely Chicago, lol. Times Square doesn't have much shopping. But it is the world capital of spending $50/plate on dinner at Applebees and Red Lobster.

Sure it does. Perhaps not the glut of large department stores the Mag Mile has but there's quite a bit of smaller stores in the area.

[iheartthed]

Originally Posted by JManc

Sure it does. Perhaps not the glut of large department stores the Mag Mile has but there's quite a bit of smaller stores in the area.

There is some shopping, but not a lot. There is much more shopping around Herald Square than Times Square.

[the urban politician]

Originally Posted by iheartthed

Lol... This might touch a nerve but... Isn't that Chicago's business model? Attract a bunch of Midwesterners to shop at the same stores on the Mag Mile that they could shop at in their local mall? Sprinkle in dinner at the Cheesecake Factory, and a couple of pictures at the bean sculpture in Millennium Park, and call it a weekend.

In a nutshell, yes. Of course all cities, including NYC, rely on some of this gimmicky-ness to generate tax revenue.

People who actually like cities all know that Chicago’s downtown has vastly more to offer, but the business model of people coming to shop on the Mag Mile, have dinner, and stay at a hotel has long been one of the huge money makers for the city.