The industry average says only 20% of potential home buyers who put a refundable $1000 deposit on a future community (that they have some say in), end up buying.

Using my favorite principle of Occam’s Razor (the simplest answer is usually the right one), that means only 20% of them got what they really wanted.  Of course, using the Industrial Economy Developer’s Razor, that means 80% of them didn’t know what they really wanted.

Take it even simpler - if you went into the process of designing

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Conventional developer:  “We look at what’s been financially successful and replicate it.  Then we’ll customize it according to the local culture.“  Sounds fair enough, until you realize the result is something like a McDonald’s in Texas marketing “Spicy Ranch” bbq sauce for their McNuggets.  “Oh, but no other McD’s has it!“, they say.

This business model explains why you can’t tell one suburbia from another.  Add the opinion that suburbia is ugly, and you’ve got a pretty depressing

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There’s probably no more over-used philosophy in product development.

You’d think this would apply to fashion, yet Blue Cult’s new jeans are insanely popular because women feel they’re finally being listened to, while individually customized jeans and even shoes are fast becoming the norm.

It’s bad enough in general, but rather disastrous when applied to building communities.  For instance, another product that “we didn’t know we wanted” - SUVs.  We didn’t ask for them, but now they’re

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This is the second of two key questions asked at the First World Congress on the Future of Work last week:

The answers, based on the vision highlighted in yesterday’s blog:

one: Promote technology that actually works, from video-conferencing to collaborative software to workstation furniture, and demonstrate working models.  This is one of my favorite resources for real examples.

two: Build more open plan workplaces that encourage a sense of community at the office, creativity at home and

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This is the first of two key questions asked at the First World Congress on the Future of Work last week:

The answers from a group of thought leaders on the future workplace:

one: Work is becoming less place-based, with more mobile workers and informal teleworking in a less structured system.  The anyplace workplace.

two: There is a growing need for community building as business systems become more complex and individuals are vastly more information-sophisticated.  We’ll be working as

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I must admit the foot people really put in some extensive criteria to come up with the .  Here’s my take on walking through their ‘winners’:

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People are starting to favor the unique establishments of downtown over the “What neighborhood am I in?“ homegeneity of suburbia…

Charlotte’s downtown population has grown tenfold from just 800 in the early 1990s to 9500 today.

The Census showed that for the first time in 30 years Atlanta’s downtown city population grew, 16,000 of them between 2000 and 2003 alone.

For the first time ever, Houston’s inner city growth equaled or exceeded that of the suburbs

Denver’s central city population

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Once you install the latest version of Quicktime and have good computer speakers at the ready (this is vital to the experience, and primarily why I was hesitant to post the movie), you’re ready to watch the CoolTown QuickMovie.  Click here.

I’ve shown these only in person to a few municipalities around the U.S., but with serious CoolTown implementation interest last week from Montana to Nigeria, I figured it was time to post it on the net for more to …

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Just in case anyone might be offended, that’s a take off of Clinton’s “It’s the economy, stupid!“ campaign as a reminder to the staff of what was important.

Every ‘place’ has its underlying ‘essence’ or getalt that makes it cool - and it takes a knowing eye I suppose, to capture what that is, whether it’s the outside or inside, with people or not with people.  The coolest places are often best captured from the inside with people, not the outside without people as imagery is often

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...and that is to attract only the most creative people.  Creative prejudice if you will.  For instance, the 9:30 Club is by far the hottest venue in Washington DC for big-name live rock bands in a small venue, but it may very well be the ugliest building in the city as well (image) in a neighborhood not recommended to be walking alone in.  Because of this, some say the club only attracts die-hard music fans, the same people that feel a place is ‘ruined’ once it’s discovered by suburban

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