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<br />. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />. ' Chapter 10 <br /> <br />Page 22 of25 <br /> <br />as described in many places in this study, the same type of sprawl is taking place in malls and strip <br />centers away from the downtown areas. All of the abandonments of stores that were a delight to see <br />ten years ago have taken place in great part due to the restless mobility of such competing giants as <br />Kmart, Target, Wal-Mart and other mega-retail discount chains, as they feverishly move from area to <br />area building larger and larger superboxes in a desire to kill off their competition. Soon the nation <br />w'ill appear to be scenes of desecrated malls looking like ravaged cemeteries, abandoned, looted, <br />boarded up and loaded with graffiti. <br /> <br />Can better planning on national, state and local levels help with respect to zoning and involving the <br />community and their citizenry? <br /> <br />The following long term strategy for combating sprawl may be found in the work of the National <br />Trust for Historic Preservation released in 1994.31 <br /> <br />"One of the best long ternl strategies for combating sprawl is to revitalize the downtown, the <br />community's traditional center of commercial, cultural, and social activity. Making downtown <br />"the place to be" helps to attract businesses, shoppers, and appropriate development to Main <br />Street'." <br /> <br />"Sometimes a downtown's problems seem overwhelming to local citizens. By flooding the <br />community with more commercial space than Ca.i reasonably be supported and by diluting the <br />downtown's economic vitality, sprawl can add to those problems. Yet downtown's problems are <br />not insurmountable. :Rebuilding the historic commercial district's economic strength simply <br />requires persistence, collaboration, and a clear vision of what you hope to achieve.n <br /> <br />"By identifying the downtown's major problems, then breaking large tasks down into smaller, <br />achievable steps that gradually bring about positive, incremental change, a community can <br />restole the downtown's economic vitality and make downtown, an exciting place to shop, <br />conduct business, dine, live, and visit." <br /> <br />A Successful Downtown Revitalization Program Will Usually Have These CharaClteristics . <br /> <br />1. A clear focus on a historic or traditional commercial district (either a downtown or a neighborhood <br />commercial district). <br /> <br />2. Comprehensiv~ and coordinated design, promotion, organization and economic development <br />activities. <br /> <br />3. Strong support from both public and private sectors. <br /> <br />4. Broad-based community involvement and support. <br /> <br />5. A strong historic preservation ethic and a commitment to preserve the district's historic commercial <br />buildings. <br /> <br />6. Willingness to take risks and try new approaches. <br /> <br />7. Trained, professional staff, whose primary function is to coordinate the activities of committed <br />volunteers. <br /> <br />http://www.shilsreport.org/ chap 1 O.html <br /> <br />10/6/99 <br />