CBD revitalisation needs to create places where more people feel they belong – The Australian Financial Review

We know, from this research, that people want their CBD to be a destination that offers more than just workplaces. They want more green space and more residents. They want more places for creativity and culture. They want safety, sustainability and celebrity chefs.

This research is insightful but is from one moment in time. We need to continue to take the pulse of our city populations to understand what they want from their CBDs.

As we keep our finger on the pulse of changing needs and desires, we must also consider how behavioural economics play into those choices. What we know is that not all decisions we make are rational, and that people use myriad biases and emotional shortcuts to make decisions. While street parties, markets and open-air concerts can be short-term sugar hits, we must also truly understand how people operate to deliver structured and sustained behavioural change.

Second, we need to start small but cast a wide net to collaborate with as many stakeholders as we can. Bring together all the players council, state government, asset owners, employers, food and beverage, retail and community groups to focus our efforts on a particular small place or, as we are calling it, a micro district.

Micro districts can be a magnetic point of attraction. But to be successful, we need a new way of thinking and working together, with a governance framework and funding model that supports longevity. And we need to back up our collaborative efforts with data, analysis and user insights to understand whats working and what isnt. Our CBDs certainly need some sugar hits the excitement, buzz and Insta-moments are what many people have been craving. But sugar hits need to come with a sustainable diet that keeps people coming back to healthy, resilient CBDs

We know focusing on the micro can deliver huge dividends. If we look to global best practice, Bryant Park in Midtown Manhattan was once dubbed needle park, and surrounding office towers were plagued by vacancy. But a four-year renovation transformed it into one of New York Citys best public spaces and a magnet for many types of people.

Think flower beds, lush lawns and portable chairs, outdoor movies, summer concerts and winter ice skating. The park became a theatre of shifting stage sets. These small but significant interventions could be tested and tweaked depending on how people responded. Today, 12 million people visit Bryant Park each year and real estate immediately around the park is worth $US5 billion ($7 billion) more than when it was a no-go zone.

The pandemic presents us with a once-in-a-generation opportunity to re-envision our CBDs. We can expect many false starts and restarts, but our challenge is to use the multimillion-dollar funding, resources and collective efforts to turn our Central Business Districts into Central Belonging Districts.

Selina Short is managing partner at EY Oceania Real Estate and Construction.

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CBD revitalisation needs to create places where more people feel they belong - The Australian Financial Review