For Love of Money: And Not Much Else

Stating the obvious, we all know the driver for most people in the real estate business is making money, lots of it. Nothing wrong with that. And there have always been some developers, who push the envelope. They would gain FAR or other benefits to increase project size and then build uninviting concrete parks, back alley canyons or worse to meet the letter of the law. They make money, but maybe at the expense of lasting contributions or good citizenship.

And there have always been examples of developers with secondary motivations -- place making, improving their community. They'd actually invest in public art, provide space for the performing arts or create attractive public spaces in bids to leave a mark, while not so coincidentally improving the long-term value of their projects. They were typically locally based, owner-developers, who made a business of managing their properties.

It's increasingly hard to find commercial owner-developers today. Most developers are merchant builders, who use Wall Street money seeking immediate returns. They want to lease up as much space as possible at the highest potential rates and flip out as soon as they can, using other people's money. They may hire big name architects and plop sculptures in lobbies to provide cache and help leasing, but they favor health clubs or restaurants to gallery space, theaters, or, heaven forbid, park space. They've got to squeeze out every inch of cash flow to maximize their quick reversions. They're not in the business of long-term community interest. And since many of these companies or the money they represent are not rooted locally, the long-term interests of the community are not a part of their mindset.

So what are the consequences...? To be continued.