Kickstarting a crushed economy
Social and physical distancing will be a reality for at least the next year and a half, possibly longer, depending on when a vaccine is ready. Businesses will have to make design changes to ensure their offices, factories, and retail outposts enable social distancing. A lot of this is low-hanging fruit—we’ve all seen news photos of grocery stores with lines taped or painted on the floor to separate people.
Other institutions and spaces will require bigger retrofits. Take airports and airlines. Lines for security and customs checks will need to be brought under control and crowding reduced in baggage claim areas and at gates. Similar retrofits will be needed before people feel safe returning to arenas, stadiums, theaters, and malls. Lines will have to be widely spaced, waiting and concession areas will need to be redesigned for distancing, and seating will have to be spaced further apart—perhaps by leaving some seats unoccupied. Restaurants will need to space their tables and waiting lines. Fitness studios will have to ensure that there is adequate distancing and that patrons and trainers wear protective equipment. Hair and nail salons will also need a combination of distancing and PPE to ensure that employees and customers are safe.
Read the fascinating article by Richard Florida and Rana Florida
Richard Florida is a Professor at the University of Toronto’s School of Cities and Rotman School of Management and Distinguished Fellow at NYU’s Shack Institute of Real Estate, and co-founder and editor-at-large of The Atlantic’s CityLab. Rana Florida is CEO of the Creative Class Group and the author of Upgrade.
