For decades, the waterfronts of our port cities were the drivers of regional economic development. But as markets changed in the mid-Twentieth Century, these areas in many cities became derelict eyesores, economic black holes that sucked the energy out of these once-thriving urban centers.

The success of several town center developments during the late 1990’s/early 2000’s dispelled conventional wisdom regarding the superiority of enclosed suburban shopping malls, demonstrating in economically measurable ways a preference by many toward open-air, mixed-use, pedestrian-oriented places with attractive public space.