New Storefront Index Reveals Evidence of Jacobs's 'Sidewalk Ballet'

Joe Cortright shares the news about a new statistical indicator, created by City Observatory to measure that critical indicator of neighborhood vitality described famously by Jane Jacobs as the "sidewalk ballet." Cortright explains:

We’ve computed the Storefront Index by mapping the locations of hundreds of thousands of everyday businesses: grocery and hardware stores, beauty salons, bookstores, bars and restaurants, movie theatres and entertainment venues, and then identifying significant clusters of these businesses—places where each storefront business is no more than 100 meters from the next storefront.

The indicator contributed to a series of maps, showing the location, size, and intensity of local clusters of businesses for the 51 largest cities in the United States. The result for anyone who peruses the maps is a better understanding of the distinctions between vibrant urban neighborhoods and those still lacking the hustle and bustle cherished by Jacobs and more.