The growing economic impact of millennials, growing demand for dining, and increasing interest from international brands are transforming the American retail real estate landscape.

Harnessing the power of big data and the internet, new tech capabilities allow governments to fine-tune services—and allow residents more influence.

From craft breweries to artisanal food producers to bespoke jewelry crafters, modern small-scale manufacturing is breathing new life into long-abandoned warehouses and factories said panelists speaking at the ULI Fall Meeting in San Francisco.

Bill Freeman sets out for his morning strolls early. The avid Boise, Idaho, walker strategically navigates the city’s north Vista Avenue corridor, avoiding certain difficult intersections.

A combination of necessity and desirability has made Asian cities the world leaders in vertical living.

Increasing density must form a key tenet of urban planning policy if cities are to tackle the pressure that migration is placing on housing, employment, and the environment, leading urban economist Edward Glaeser said during a ULI panel discussion in London. Launching ULI Europe’s program of work on density and the urban environment, the Harvard University economics professor and ULI Trustee said restrictive policies on the growth of cities will be increasingly harmful.

ULI senior fellow Ed McMahon conducted a question-and-answer session with John Major, former prime minister of the United Kingdom, about the Olympics, healthy places, and global urbanism. Major is scheduled to speak at the ULI Asia Pacific Summit in Tokyo at this year’s Leadership Dinner.

By the end of 2014, the writers and editors of Condé Nast will finish moving into the publishing company’s new 1.25 million-square-foot (116,000 sq m) headquarters in lower Manhattan. That’s just the latest good news from that part of Manhattan, which is once again one of the most desirable neighborhoods in the world, despite surviving a hurricane, the global financial crisis, and the 9/11 attacks.

Speakers at a concurrent session on the creative reuse of aging infrastructure added three case studies to the growing list of success stories, including Chicago’s MetraMarket, Buffalo’s Erie Canal, and Hollywood Park in Los Angeles.

In an address that concluded this year’s ULI Fall Meeting in New York City, author and journalist Walter Isaacson extolled the importance of the urban built space in fostering creativity and technological progress.