Transition to zero

Buffalo, NY. East Side.
What was a hardware store became a church.
All gone.

Unsafe to sell, in Buffalo, NY

Downtown in Dollars

Travelling from one city to the other it's the downtowns
that I am most curious about, first.
There seems to be an obvious indicator about the appreciation
of downtowns, the conditions that they are in
or even the whole city.
It is the price for parking on a guarded lot in downtown.
Chicago: $10-12, if I'm right.
Buffalo, NY it's $4.
Came through Youngstown, Ohio recently.
One of the well known shrinking cities of the U.S.
Price for parking there was 75 cent.
A day.
That's not fair.

I assume that 3 market forces come into play regarding parking
in downtown: weak demand for space that was freed by
torn down buildings. weak demand for parking by
people driving into downtown, keeps the price for parking
low. And: weak ideas about how to use free space that is
generated by demolition. the most common idea obviously:
parking lots. cheap, low in maintenance, generate some bucks.
I read an estimate about the Buffalo, NY downtown recently,
whereas about 50% of the total space of downtown is used for
parking lots.
I would prefer pocket parks, bicycle parking, space for arts,
places to rest and conservation of unused buildings,
that are assets to downtown.

Albuquerque, behind main street

Different esthetics behind main streets.
Above: Central Ave, Route 66 back alley.
Underneath the "cool" design of concrete and neon
of Albuquerque's CBD back alleys.

Alleys in arts and hidden businesses

Above: Back alley business in Denver, CO
Below: Back alley art in Albuquerque, NM

America's Back Alleys

Back alleys of American cities for me are one of the most attractive assets of urban structures.

They are the underdog streets. No permission to wear street names. Not intended to show the back sides of buildings so urban design does not exist. A biotope for plants and animals. Rest space for workers during breaks. Spaces without attention developing specific skins. Graffiti can survive here, and things of the past, long forgotten. But at night they are fully illuminated.
Keeps the fear away.

(pictures show some Downtown Denver's back alleys).
I am currently on travel in CO, NM, AZ and Chicago.