Now is the Time for Many Downtowns to Grow Older Adult Member Communities

Posted on November 15, 2025 by DANTH

By N. David Milder

For many years I have thought that older adults — those over 50 — represented a valuable under leveraged asset for many downtowns in cities with populations roughly in the 20,000 to 100,000 range. Given their increasing population size and financial power, I have written an article advocating the development of downtown older adult member communities arguing that they would facilitate much needed greater functional diversity and activation. You can read that article below.

How downtown multifunctionality is packaged is a key to its success

Posted on March 21, 2024 by DANTH

I am very happy to share this article on downtown multifunctionality/ functional diversity that was recently published in the JURR, a British journal focused on urban renewal and regeneration. It reflects my most recent thinking on this subject, as well as my efforts to add some analytical heft to it while also getting more people to find it of interest and importance.

Here’s the abstract:“In the large downtowns in the US, the adaption rates and impacts of …

“How Our Downtowns’ Three Most Important User Groups Can Help Their Sustained Recoveries”

Posted on January 16, 2024 by DANTH

By N. David Milder

I am proud to share with you my article “How Our Downtowns’ Three Most Important User Groups Can Help Their Sustained Recoveries” that was recently published in the IEDC’s Economic Development Journal. It focuses on downtown workers, residents and visitors and covers our largest downtowns as well as those of more modest size. It presents several analytical conclusions that counter conventional wisdom. For instance, while the media have focused on the reduced presence of downtown workers in …

The Cockamamie Conclusions andAssumptions of the Downtown Doom Loop Analysis

Posted on October 13, 2023 by DANTH

By N. David Milder

I have really had it with the Doomers, those who argue that our large downtowns are doomed to failure and diminishment.[1] It’s time to call them out for being the downtown ignorant Chicken Littles that they are.

Their Covid crisis instigated doom loop analysis has been a considerable worry for many municipal business and political leaders, since it predicts not just the decline, but the end of our large downtowns’ ability to be thriving business districts. …

More Visitors, Not the 100% Return of Office Workers, Are the Key to the Full Recovery of Our Downtowns

Posted on September 5, 2023 by DANTH

By N. David Milder

Non Resident Downtown Employees. Three plus years after Covid19 was declared a national emergency, it seems that most of our downtowns are now pretty far into recovering from its impacts, though their recoveries are not yet complete. Even so, fears of a Doom Loop emerged grounded mainly on the negative impacts of remote work on office demand, that in turn is based on some distortedly presented data from Kastle Systems on office building worker occupancy rates. Kastle …

N. David Milder at DANTH, Inc.

Downtown Revitalization Specialist

The Downtown Curmudgeon