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  1. The AtlanticDerek Thompson4/27/2022 min
    8 reads3 comments
    9.7
    The Atlantic
    8 reads
    9.7
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    • Pegeen
      Top reader this weekReading streakScoutScribe
      3 years ago

      Excellent article. I agree with this observation: “In the decade after the Great Recession, American cities became very popular - and very expensive. Neighborhoods that were once jewel boxes of eccentricity became yuppie depots. Wealth elbowed out weirdness, and rents soared to suffocating levels that pushed out many of the families and stores that made cities unique.” That will be a silver lining - bringing back the weirdos - artists and counterculture! And cheaper rents.

    • jbuchana3 years ago

      The virus could reverse gentrification. That's something I hadn't thought about until very recently when i'v read several articles that mentioned this likely trend. The worry the author has about indepedantly owned restaurants concerns me, as we have a few really nice locally owned restaurants here in Kokomo, that are quite good. Hopefully they survive.

    • Alexa3 years ago

      Interesting take on how retail is changing, with some keen insights from Prohibition and other squeezes I hadn't heard about before.

      So, this is my biggest nightmare:

      We are entering a new evolutionary stage of retail, in which big companies will get bigger, many mom-and-pop dreams will burst, chains will proliferate and flatten the idiosyncrasies of many neighborhoods, more economic activity will flow into e-commerce, and restaurants will undergo a transformation unlike anything the industry has experienced since Prohibition.

      But, the silver lining they thread through this piece is how, in time, the death of the American city could be it's savior. Perhaps has the elite flee to their summer homes the cities can be havens for creatives, entrepreneurs, and the people who will bring interesting shops & restaurants back to life.

      A bit dark, but inspiring to get out there and make something in my community. Farm stand and herbal apothecary here we come.