Re-development Planning

The Strib had an article on the redevelopment of the Wayzata Bay Center by Presbyterian Homes.

The 16 acre center has undergone numerous redevelopment attempts in the past, all of which have sputtered due to a variety of issues. This time, the developers (Presbyterian Homes) are taking a different tack to the project. According to the Strib, "Unlike past groups, this redevelopment team is listening first and designing second."

Not to bad of an idea, and one that sounds like common sense, but maybe too often developers are still operating under the "Field of Dreams" mentality to buidling. If you build it, they will come. In some communities, this may fly, but for places like Wayzata, with a populace that is particularly invested in it's city, it is essential that developers listen to the people they're building for, near and around.

The idea is similar to one I discussed earlier in this post on Market Awareness and the power of knowledge. A thorough, honest, and inclusive market study has to be a primary first step to any major undertaking like this to really determine how the project will be viewed and used by those who will be effected by it. Especially now when there are so many local community groups, each with a vision of development and progress in their city.

We're not building baseball fields for ghosts in an Iowa cornfield. We're creating destinations for real people. And we need to consider their opinions, as future users, on these sorts of programs.