布若金斯城市：绘制美国活动中心的地图 MAPPING AMERICAS ACTIVITY CENTERS THE BUILDING BLOCKS OF PROSPEROUS,EQUITABLE,AND SUSTAINABLE REGIONS

BrookingsMetro

1

OCTOBER2022

MAPPINGAMERICA’SACTIVITYCENTERS:

THEBUILDINGBLOCKSOFPROSPEROUS,

EQUITABLE,ANDSUSTAINABLEREGIONS

TracyHaddenLoh,DWRowlands,AdieTomer,JosephKane,

andJenniferVey

CONTENT

Introduction 3

Whydoesthegeographyofactivitymatter? 5

Whatareactivitycenters? 7

Ourmethodology 8

Keyfindingsfromouractivitycenteranalysis 13

Finding1:Activitycentersaremoreactive,containinganoutsizedshareof

metropolitanassets 13

Finding2:Activitycentersaremoreproductive,withgreaterdensityleadingto

highergrossmetropolitanproduct 16

Finding3:Activitycentersaremorevaluable,withhighercommercialandresidential

realestateassessments 17

Finding4:Activitycentersaremoreaccessibleandinclusivetometroarearesidents 18

Finding5:Activitycentershavemoresustainabletraveloutcomes,withlessdriving

andmorewalkingandbiking 22

Implicationsforpractice 25

Implication1:Nurturingaproductive,innovativeeconomicecosystem 25

Implication2:Supportinganaccessible,flexible,andsustainablebuiltenvironment 26

Implication3:Fosteringaninclusiveandequitablesocialenvironment 26

Implication4:Encouragingalocallyorganizedcivicinfrastructure 26

Conclusionandareasforfutureresearch 27

Acknowledgements 28

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1Introduction

Asthesayinggoes,threethingsmatterinrealestate:location,location,location.Citiesandmetropolitan

areasarebuiltaroundassetssuchastransportation

nodes,employmenthubs,culturalattractions,politicalandreligiousinstitutions,andhealthfacilities—allof

whichtendtoclusterinspecificlocations.Theabilitytodeveloptheplacesthatconcentratetheseassetshasalwaysbeenakeyingredienttobuildingproductiveandthrivingmetroareas.

Butafterdecadesofsuburbanization,activitydoesnotconcentrateinthesamewaysitoncedid.Metropolitan

areasarenolongerstructuredalongalinear

continuum,fanningoutwardfromadistinctdowntowntoedgelesssuburbiatoruralcountrysidedottedwithafewtowncenters.Theyinsteadcontainconstellationsofasset-richplaces,typicallysurroundedbyhousing-onlydevelopmentsoramixofresidentialand

commercialsprawl.1

Thislong-standingconceptofmetropolitangeographyasalinefromasingularurbancentertosuburbsto

farms—andconceivingofthesuburbsasexclusively

residentialplaces—isnolongeraccurateintheage

ofAmericanmegaregions.Overtime,thedispersion

ofassetsandactivitieshasstretchedthedistances

betweenpeopleandopportunity,oftenleadingto

greatereconomicandracialinequality.2Morerecently,theemergenceofrapidtelecommunicationsanda

globalpandemichaveledtonewuncertaintiesabout

whatkindsofplaceswillbeindemandinthefuture.

Atatimewheneconomicandclimate-related

disruptionsseemtocomeevermorefrequently,itis

easytolosetrackofthefactthatthebuiltenvironmentchangesquiteslowly.Assuch,industrial,cultural,

andenvironmentalshiftsinthedecadestocomewill

primarilyoccurwithinexistingplacesandalongside

theinfrastructurewe’vealreadycreated.But,asin

MAPPINGAMERICA’SACTIVITYCENTERS

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thepast,theimpactsofthoseshifts—forgoodandforill—willstillbeinfluencedbythechoiceswemaketodayregardinghowandwhereweprioritizefutureinvestments.

Allthismakesitessentialthatthefieldofmetropolitandevelopment—particularly,practitionersandapplied

researchers—hasacontemporaryunderstandingof

whatpeopleandtheeconomyneedfromplace,how

thoseneedsexpressthemselvesonthelandscape,

andhow,then,thefieldshouldrespondtothem.In

otherwords,weneedtoestablishbothanewmapandanewvocabularyforAmericaneconomicgeography.Onemajorobstacleisthatthereisnoconsistent

schemetocomparewhereactivityconcentrateswithinmetropolitanareasorwhatkindsofplaces—withwhattypesofattributes—canbestsupportsharedprosperityandresilience.

Inthisreport,weintroduceanewmethodologyto

locateandcharacterizeactivitycenters:placeswithinregionswhereeconomic,physical,social,andcivic

assetsclusterataclearlydefinedhyperlocalscale.3

Wepresentatypologyofactivitycenters,maptheir

locationswithinthe110U.S.metropolitanstatistical

areas(MSAs)withatleast500,000residentsusing

censusblockgroups,andanalyzethosecenterstohelpplanners,realestateprofessionals,andelectedleadersbetterunderstandhowandwhytheymatter.Wefind

that:

yMetropolitanareasconcentrateassetsin

activitycenters.Withinthemetropolitanareas

inourstudy,activitycentersoccupyjust3%of

allland,yetholdafarhighershareofassetsand

theirassociatedactivities.Forexample,40%ofallprivatesectorjobslocatewithinactivitycenters,andinstitutionalassets—includingcollegeanduniversitystudents,hospitalbeds,andmajorintercity

transportationnodes—arealmostexclusivelyfoundintheseareas.

yMetropolitanareasthatconcentratejobs

inactivitycentersaremoreproductive.Our

analysisrevealedaclearandpositiverelationshipbetweenactivitycenterjobdensityandproductivity,asmeasuredbygrossmetropolitanproduct(GMP)perworker.Every1,000jobspersquaremileina

metroarea’smedianactivitycenterwasassociatedwithanadditional$1,723inoutputperworker

acrossthemetroarea.

yActivitycentersyieldavaluepremium.Activitycentershavefourtimesthecommercialrealestateassessedvaluerelativetodevelopedlandarea.

Fortwo-thirdsofmetroareas,housingnearactivitycentersisworthaweightedaverageof26%more.Inthreehigh-growthmetroareas(Raleigh,N.C.,

Deltona,Fla.,andtheWashington,D.C.area)thesehousingpremiumsexceed50%.

yActivitycentersaremoreaccessibleand

inclusive.Thevastmajorityofmetropolitan

residents—inthevastmajorityofmetroareas—

livewithin3milesofanactivitycenter,andthisisevenmoretrueforpeopleofcolorandlow-incomehouseholds.

yActivitycentershavemoresustainabletraveloutcomes.Theseareasarereachablebytwiceasmanybusandtrainridersasotherblockgroups.

Activitycentersthemselveshavehigherwalkabilitythantheirmetroareasasawhole,whichcontributestothefactthatbothcommuteandnon-commute

tripsbycarareshorterwhenstartinginactivitycentersversusotherplaces.

Thispaperrepresentsacriticalstepinhelpingplannersandotherpractitionerscompareactivitycentersacrossdifferentmetroareas.Intheprocess,thefindings

makethecasetobuildonexistingassets(both

literallyandfiguratively)wheneverpossible,ratherthanprioritizinglow-densityand/orsingle-usedevelopment.Itconcludesbypointingtohowleaderscanusethis

informationtoadvancetransformativeplacemakingwithinactivitycenters—andbydoingso,increase

regionalcompetitiveness,enhancesustainabilityandresilience,andimprovethesocialandphysicalwell-beingofallmetroarearesidents.4

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Whydoesthegeographyofactivitymatter?

Metropolitanareasaredesignedtosupportactivity.

TheyhouseanoutsizedshareoftheAmerican

population,andtheirindustriesgenerateaneven

greatershareofeconomicoutput.5Metroareasare

thesitesforclustersofculturalassets,educational

institutions,andgovernmentoperations.6Theyarealsologisticshubsforthecountry’stradeingoods,and

travelcentersfortouristsandbusinesspeople.7Datapointafterdatapointaffirmshowmucheconomic

andsocialactivityconcentratesinourmostpopulatedareasofthecountry.

Yettheshapeofmetropolitanactivityisnotconsistent.Demandsforindustrialandcommercialland,housingpreferencesamongresidents,consumertastesfor

retailandrecreationalamenities,andevennatural

topographyarejustsomeofthemajorfactorsthat

influencepreciselywhereallthosemetropolitan

activitiestakeplace.

Thesefactorshavehelpedcreateawide-ranging

economicgeographyacrossmetropolitanAmerica.

Somemetroareasusefarlesslandthanothers.For

example,metropolitanPhiladelphiahas2.5%more

residentsthanmetropolitanAtlanta,butthelatter

covers88.6%moreland.8Meanwhile,evenwithin

thesamemetroarea,it’scommontofindcompletely

differentformssupportingthesamekindsofland

uses:Chicago’sautomobile-orientedsuburbsfunction

fardifferentlythantheolderneighborhoodswithin

amileortwooftheLoop,thecity’sfamouscentral

businessdistrict,eventhoughbothsupportresidential,

MAPPINGAMERICA’SACTIVITYCENTERS

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commercial,andrecreationalactivities.9It’sunderstoodthatthesameactivitieswilllookdifferentinplaces

withdifferentgeographies.

Thegeographicvariabilityofmetropolitanactivity,then,hasmajorimplicationsforhowmetroareasoperate,

thepractitionerswhoguidetheirdevelopment,andtheresidentsandbusinesseswhocalltheseplaceshome.

Existingresearchdemonstratessomeofthese

implications.Forone,theshapeofactivitydirectly

impactslocalandevenstatefiscalconditions.

Dependingontaxpolicies,thelocationanddensity

ofindustrieswilldeterminewhichlocalgovernments

collectincome,sales,andpropertytaxrevenuesand

therelativecollectionpotentialperacre.Thereare

similartaxconcernsformunicipalitiesthathostmajornonprofitinstitutionslikehospitalsoruniversities,

whichmayattractsizableactivitybutgenerate

reducedtaxrevenues.Ontheothersideoftheledger,metropolitangeographyinfluencesthepricetag

associatedwithprovidingmunicipalinfrastructure.Thecoststobuildandmaintainhighwaysaren’tthesameascommuterrailorsidewalks,andpublicwaterutilitiesorprivateenergyandbroadbandcompanieswillhavedifferentinvestmentneedsbasedonthedensityof

development.Finally,patternsofconcentrationand/ordispersionimpactthesizeandviabilityofmarkets,whichaffectsemployersandretailersintermsoftheircosts,revenuepotential,andultimately,thepayrollandsalestaxestheygenerate.

Thegeographyofeconomicactivityalsodirectly

impactstheindustrialcompetitivenessofametroarea.Economistshavelongstudiedthepower

ofagglomeration—thetendencyofsimilaror

complementaryfirmstolocateinclosephysical

proximity—togeneratepositiveeconomicreturns

totheimpactedfirmsandthesurroundingarea.10Concentratingactivitywithincertainneighborhoodscanproducegreatereconomicvaluebyfacilitatingcollaborativeresearchthatyieldsnewproductsand

services;italsolowerscostsbyfacilitatingthesharingofinputslikefreightneedsoraccesstoacommon

laborpool.11Densityandproximitycanalsogeneratemoreinnovation:A2017Brookingsreportshowedthat,onaper-studentbasis,researchuniversitieslocatedinthedowntownsofthe100largestU.S.citiesreceived120%morepatentsandspunoff70%morestartups

thanresearchuniversitieslocatedinsmallertowns,suburbs,orruralareas.12

Environmentalconditions,too,areaffectedbythe

spatialpatternsofactivity.Sprawlingneighborhoodsandmetroareastendtogeneratehighervehicle

milestraveledperpersonthanhigher-densityareas,

leadingtomoregreenhousegasemissionsand

moredangeroustransportationsystems.13Moreover,buildingsthatarefurtherapartandlowerinheighttendtousemoreenergyperperson.14Low-density,auto-

centricdevelopmentpatternsarealsoassociatedwithothernegativeecologicalimpacts,includinggreaterstormwaterrunofffromimpervioussurfacesandlossofnaturalhabitatsfromurbanlanddevelopment.15

Putallthistogether,anditisclearthatwhereand

howdevelopmentoccurshasaprofoundinfluence

oneconomicequityandinclusion.Fiscallystable

regionscaninvestmoreinpublicgoods—from

schoolstoparks—thatbenefitchildrenandfamilies.

Moreeconomicallycompetitiveregionsgrowand

attractjobsrequiringvaryingskillsandeducational

levels;whenthosejobsaremoreproximatetowherepeoplelive,transportationcosts—thesecond-highestexpenseformanyhouseholds—arelower.16Andmoresustainableregionsarelesspronetothehealth,safety,andeconomicimpactsofenvironmentaldisastersandclimatechange,towhichlow-incomeneighborhoodsandpeoplearemostvulnerable.

Theextenttowhichinternalgeographycaninfluencemetropolitanareas’prosperity,resilience,andequityunderscorestheneedtotakeafreshlookathowandwhereactivityislocatedwithinthem—andidentifytheregionalactivitycenterswhereeconomic,physical,

social,andcivicassetsmostclusterandconnect.

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Whatareactivitycenters?

Whiletheirspatialpatternsofactivityvary

considerably,onthewhole,thevastmajorityofspaceinU.S.metropolitanareasischaracterizedbylow-

intensity,segregatedlanduses.Today,onlyonein12peopleworkwithin2kilometers(~1.25miles)oftheirresidence;onlyoneinninejobsareincentralbusinessdistricts(CBDs);andjustoneinsevenjobsareinsub-centersoutsideCBDs.Threeinfourjobsareoutsideofemploymentcentersaltogether.17

Yetamidallthisdispersionareplaceswherelarge,diversemixesofassetsconcentrate.Theseclustersvaryinsizeandshapeandplaydifferentrolesin

theirrespectiveregionaleconomies.18Forexample,industrialandmanufacturingactivitiesstillclusteraroundfreightinfrastructure.19Publicadministrationofficesarestillconcentratedindowntowns.20And

astheknowledgeeconomyhasgrowninsizeand

dominance,accesstospecializedtalent,thetransferoftacitknowledge,andincreasedproductivityfromknowledgespillovershaveledtotheincreasing

concentrationoffinance,technology,andresearch-intensivejobsnotonlyincertainmetropolitanareas(e.g.,SanFrancisco),butinspecificneighborhoods

withinthem.21Together,theseindustryhubs

arecreatingincreasingly“polycentric”regional

landscapes—anevolvingformofdevelopment

thatstandsincontrasttotheedgelesscitiesthat

dominatedtheendofthe20thcentury.

Overtheyears,planningpractitionersandresearchers

havemadenumerouseffortstoidentifyand

understandtheseconcentrations,andinsomecases,

maptheirlocations.22However,theseplanning

exerciseshavelargelybeenbasedonaverynarrow

definitionoftheactivitythattakesplacewithinregionalclusters—essentiallylimitingittosleeping(mapped

ashousing)andworking(mappedasjobs).Thisisareductivewayofvaluinghowpeoplespendtheirtime—andonewhichgivesaverydistortedpictureofthe

spatialpatternofAmericans’activity.In2019,full-timeemployedadultsspentanaverageof16.7hoursperweekdoingactivitiesinplacesotherthanworkand

home,whileadultspaidpart-timeornotatallspent

over20hoursaweekontheseactivities.23

Dataavailabilityonsometypesofactivityand

comparabilityofmeasuresofcentralityhavealso

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restrictedtheexistingliterature.Thus,moststudies

limitanalysestooneorasmallsampleofmetropolitanareasandsub-areas.Forexample,theU.S.census

isareliablepublicsourceofinformationaboutthe

locationofhousingatahyperlocalscale.Priorto2010,however,thecensusdidnotincludehyperlocaljob

data—thus,pastresearchontheeconomicgeographyproducedbythesuburbanizationofjobssometimesusedabsolutethresholdsofcommercialrealestate

squarefootagetodefineplaces.Forexample,in“EdgeCity:LifeontheNewFrontier,”authorJoelGarreau

arguedthat“densityisback”intheformofsuburbanemploymentcenterswithatleast1millionsquarefeetofofficespace.24In“EdgelessCities:Exploringthe

ElusiveMetropolis,”authorRobertE.Langcounteredbyobservingthatthenatureofsprawlissuchthat

ifyoudrawabigenoughboundary,youcancatch

enoughsquarefootagetohavesomething—ifnot

enoughtoconstituteatruesomewhere.25ChristopherB.Leinberger’s“TheOptionofUrbanism:Investing

inaNewAmericanDream”reframedthisdebate

aboutscaleandgeographybydistinguishingbetweenwalkableanddriveablebuiltenvironments,whichcanbefoundinbothmetrocoresandatmetrofringes,

definedastheendsofarangeoffloor-to-arearatios.26

Inordertounderstandtheroleofplaceinthe

contemporaryUnitedStates,weneedtofocuson

specificjobsectorsthatdocluster,andthenlook

beyondproductiontoincludeconsumption,housing,andothereconomicandsocialdimensionsthataffectpeople’stime,travel,andlocationdecisions.

OURMETHODOLOGY

Inthisreport,weidentifyblockgroupscontaining

existingactivitycentersusingasimpleandreplicablemethodologyforcombiningmultiplediversedata

sourcesonthelocationsofactivitiesandassets.

Comparableacrossmetropolitanareas,thisapproachprovidesamorestandardizedandcomprehensive

waytounderstandthelocalgeographyofactivity

thanpreviousefforts.Forthisanalysis,weidentifiedfivecategoriesofassetsthatcancontributetoanareabeinganactivitycenter:community,tourism,consumption,institutional,andeconomic(Table1).ThefullsetofdatasourcesthatweusedtoidentifytheseassetsareprovidedinAppendixA.

Tocopewiththefactthatthequantityandvarietyofdataavailablevarybyassetcategory,ourapproachtomeasuringthepresenceofassetswasstructuredbythefollowinggeneralprinciples:

1.Thepresenceofmoremeasuresinonecategorydoesnotmeanthattherearemoreassetsinthecategory,orthatthecategoryismoreimportant.

2.Eachassetcategorycarriesequalweight—thenormativevaluejudgementisindefiningthecategories,notinjuxtaposingthem.

3.An“assetmix”impliesameaningfulconcentrationofatleasttwodifferentcategoriesofassets.

4.Whatquantityconstitutesa“meaningful

concentration”isrelativetoeachmetropolitanarea,andnotanabsolutestandardthatholdsconstantacrossallmetropolitanareas.

Wechoseasetofvariables,showninTable1,to

measurethepresenceofeachofourfiveasset

categories.Eachcategoryistreatedequallyinthe

identificationofactivitycenters.Still,itisimportant

tokeepinmindthatourassetmeasuresarebased

onnationaldatasetstoenableacomparisonofmetroareas,andthusarelimitedinscope.Anylocalstudyofactivitycentersinasinglemetroareashouldinvolvecoordinationwithlocalgovernments,community

members,andresidentsonthegroundtoidentify

additionalassets—suchasneighborhoodgroups,localbusinessnetworks,orartsandculturalorganizations—thatnationaldatawon’tcapture.

Inordertoidentifyactivitycenters,weaggregated

assetsinto2020censusblockgroupsandcalculateddensitiesbasedondevelopedlandareatoaccount

forblockgroupsthatcontainlargeundeveloped

areas.27Wethencalculatedeachblockgroup’slocationquotientforeachassetbydividingtheblockgroup’s

assetdensitybytheoverallmetroareadensityofthatvariable.Next,tocreatecategoryscores,wesummedthelocationquotientsforeachblockgroupbyasset

category.Finally,werankedblockgroupsbytheir

percentilevalueswithinthemetroareaforthesummedassetcategoryvariables.Thisprocesswasrepeatedinall110metroareas.

MAPPINGAMERICA’SACTIVITYCENTERS

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Ourmethodologyidentifiesthreedistincttypesof

centers,definedinTable2.Wecodeblockgroups

abovethe98thpercentilefortwoormoreofthe

fiveassetclassesasprimarycenters.Theseplacescontainthelargestandmostdiversemixofassets

intheirmetroareasandarelikelyactiveforthe

longestportionsofeachday.Weclassifyblock

groupsbetweenthe95thand98thpercentilesfor

twoormoreofthefiveassetclassesassecondarycenters.Thesecenters—whichoftenincludehistoricvillagesandtowns,earlystreetcarsuburbs,andmanyurbanneighborhoods—typicallyhaveamixofassetsincludingshops,rentalhousing,andgovernment

facilities.Finally,weclassifythoseblockgroups

abovethe98thpercentileforonlyoneofthefive

assetclassesasmonocenters—locationswhereone

particulartypeoflanduse(likeanindustrialpark,abigmall,oranairport)operatesatahigherconcentration.28Itisimportanttonotethatblockgroupsweretreatedseparatelythroughoutthisprocess,withcentertype

calculatedindependentlyforeachblockgroup.Asaresult,largeractivityclusterssuchasmajorcentralbusinessdistrictsareinmanycasesidentifiedasmultipleactivitycenters.

BOX1

RetailinaChicagoblockgroup

ThisblockgroupontheMilwaukee

AvenuecommercialcorridorinChicago

contains15storesinadevelopedland

areaof0.03squaremiles,foradensityof466storespersquaremile.TheaverageblockgroupintheChicagometroareahas60storespersquaremileofdeveloped

area,sotheretaillocationquotientfor

theblockgroupis466/60=7.76.This

isaddedtothelocationquotientsfortheotherconsumptionvariablestoproduceanoverallvaluehigherthan98.5%ofblockgroupsinthemetroarea.Thisblockgroupqualifiesasaconsumptionmonocenter,asnoneofitsothercategoryscoresare

above95%.

SOURCE:SafeGraph2019PointsofInterestBasemapSources:Esri,HERE,Garmin,USGS,Intermap,INCREMENTP,NRCan,EsriJapan,METI,EsriChina(HongKong),EsriKorea,Esri(Thailand),NGCC,(c)OpenStreetMap

contributors,andtheGISUserCommunity

Fromthisanalysis,wefoundthateveryoneofthe110metroareasstudiedhasatleastoneprimarycenter,onesecondarycenter,andonemonocenter.Primarycentersareconsistentlytheleastnumerousofthe

threeactivitycentertypes;onaverage,only1.5%ofall

blockgroupsinthe110metroareasmetourcriteria.Theaveragenumberofmonocenters(4%ofblock

groups)andsecondarycenters(3.1%ofblockgroups)areatleasttwiceaslarge.

MAPPINGAMERICA’SACTIVITYCENTERS

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TABLE1

10

MAPPINGAMERICA’SACTIVITYCENTERS

Listofactivitycenterassetsandvariables

AssetCategory

VariablesMeasured

Community

Populationdensity

Presenceofpubliclibraries

Densityofplacesofworship

Densityofhistoricsites

Densityofparks

Tourism

Presenceofmajorsportsstadiums

Densityofhotelsandmotels

Densityofcasinosandmuseums

Consumption

Densityofrestaurants

Densityofretailestablishments

Densityofmedicaloffices

Presenceofpostoffice

Densityofretailjobs

Institutional

Countofcollegestudentandstaff

Countofhospitalbeds

Countofstategovernmentbuildings

Squarefeetoffederalofficespace

Presenceofairportsandintercityrailstations

Economic

Densityoftradablejobs

SOURCE:Brookingsanalysis

TABLE2

Activitycenterassetstypes

Highcomplexity

Lowcomplexity

High-scaleconcentration

Primarycenters

>98thpercentileintwoassettypes

Monocenters

>98thpercentileinoneassettype

Low-scaleconcentration

Secondarycenters

>95thpercentileintwoassettypes

MostMetropolitanDevelopment

SOURCE:Brookingsanalysis

10

BOX2

MappingaDiversityofActivityCenters:

Dallas-FortWorth

Attemptingtolocatewhichplacesareprimarycenters,secondarycenters,andmonocentersmaychallenge

deeplyheldassumptionsaboutplaces’relative

strengthsandneeds—oftenpinpointingneighborhoodsthatevenresidentsmaynotoftenconsideranactivitycenterintheirhomeregion.

Forexample,considerprimarycenters,secondary

centers,andmonocentersintheDallas-FortWorth

metropolitanarea(Figure1).29Theurbancores—the

downtownsofDallasandFortWorth—standoutas

primarycenters,butthiscategoryalsoincludesarangeofotherplaces,suchasthelong-neglectedFairPark

areaonthesouthsideofDallas,thesuburbancenterofArlington(anchoredbytheUniversityofTexasatArlingtoncampus),andasuccessfulsuburbanretrofitprojectinPlanoknownasLegacyTownCenter.

AlookatPlanoalsohelpsdistinguishprimarycentersfrommonocenters.ThecoreofPlano’sLegacyTownCentercontainsadensemixofuses,andisthusa

primarycenter—butitissurroundedbymonocenters

likeLegacyOfficePark.ThecaseofDenton,thecountyseatofDentonCounty,isalsoillustrative:Thereisa

primarycenteranchoredaroundtheUniversityofNorthTexascampus,butdowntownDentonisasecondary

center,whilethenearbymunicipalairportisa

monocenter.AnotherexampleofasecondarycenterisCockrellHill,amajority-LatinoorHispaniccommunitywhosemottois“Alittlecitywithabigfuture.”This

couldwellbethecase,asthisanalysissuggeststhat

CockrellHillcontainsasizablecollectionofassets.

Eachoftheseplacesischaracterizedbydifferentsetsofassetsand,likeanycommunity,eachhasitsown

uniquesetofchallengesandopportunities.DowntownDallas,forexample,isthebiggestemploymentcenterintheregion,buthasrelativelyhighofficevacancy.FairParkhasahighdensityoflocalbusinesses,butalonghistoryofracialsegregationmeansneighborsfrom

otherpartsofthecitymayneverhavebeenthereotherthantoattendthestatefair.AndinArlington,oneof

thelargestU.S.citieswithnotransitsystem,leaders

maystruggletofullymaximizedowntown’swealth

ofassetsifallresidentsandworkerscan’taccess

them.Ineachofthesecommunities,public,private,

andcivicorganizations—togetherwithcommunity

residents,businessowners,andotherstakeholders—

mustworkwithoneanothertodeterminethekinds

oftransformativeplacemakingstrategiesand

investmentsthatbestmeettheirspecificneedsand

aspirations.

FIGURE1

Legacy

Town

Center

Denton

Airport

Legacy

Office

Park

DowntownDallas

FairPark/South

Dallas

Cockrell

Hill

TheDallas-FortWorthMetroplexhasaRangeofActivityCenterswithDifferentAssetsandChallenges

DowntownDenton

DowntownFortWorth

DowntownArlington

SOURCE:Authors’analysis

MAPPINGAMERICA’SACTIVITYCENTERS12

Keyfindingsfromour

activitycenteranalysis

Usingthemethodologydescribedabove,we