Article about big companies relocating back to cities from the suburbs

[uptown_urbanist]

Oh, I think people realize that DRIVING downtown is a hassle -- the benefit of working downtown is that it's the one location that has easy commuter public transportation from practically every location within the metro area. And that is why around 40 percent of employees downtown take advantage of that opportunity. Throw in the public transportation subsidies and pre-tax transit options offered by many of the big employers, those employees are also potentially saving a LOT of money on their annual transportation costs. Sure, not everyone wants to work downtown, but it's an appealing option for many people -- and not just "city-dwellers." Those living in the suburbs can appreciate working downtown for the same reasons as those who live in the city; I don't really see why living in the city versus a suburb would make a difference when it comes to opinion about working downtown (other than those who live and work in the same suburb).

Where is this evidence that "most" people prefer working in the suburbs? That may or may not be true, but just because that's where most jobs are (although not concentrated in any one specific spot -- downtown still has the highest concentration of jobs in the metro area) doesn't mean that's where the employees would choose. As 1stpontiac points out, there are a lot of other factors at work besides just what the employees want.

[cgy1]

Agreed. One of the worst things about working in the suburbs is the lack of public transit options for commuting to/from work. I know some suburbs may have better transit options than others, but I currently work in the suburbs and the only public transit option to get to my workplace drops me off close to 2 miles from my office. I would much rather work downtown where I can take transit and be able to read a book or just catch some extra shut eye instead of having to drive to work every day, especially during bad weather.

[ManBearPig1]

Originally Posted by golfgal

Add in an accident in downtown and getting through downtown is 45+ minutes.

You can walk downtown practically end-to-end in 45 minutes. There are options other than driving if sitting in your car is too much of a PIA

[Min-Chi-Cbus]

Originally Posted by 1stpontiac

I wonder how much "what the employees like/want" really factors into it, anyways? Obviously there will always be a mix of opinions and you'll never please everyone. In the end, I wonder if it doesn't come down more to cost and whether there is a tangible benefit, in terms of prestige, access to other businesses or city services, and location relevant to clients/customers.

After that is all said and done, it is, of course, good PR to say "we choose to locate here because our employees really like it...". Or maybe I'm just cynical.

I can imagine that businesses that need to compete with large urban areas to recruit talent probably benefit from downtown, though.

Interesting point. When working for a major local corporation, I helped craft a report about a move for a Hartford regional office from the suburbs or fringe to downtown, and how they felt about it. Many were concerned about things like crime, parking costs, cubicle size, cutting out offices for upper management, and commuting. I fielded hundreds of questions and concerns about the move with most being somewhat negative or skeptical. At the end of the day, the move happened without a hitch. I even followed up and asked whether they at least alleviated their concerns about parking (cost and spaces). It turns out they didn't offer any subsidies for the employees, no discounted rates, no additional (adjacent) parking.....just a shuttle van to shuttle folks who spill over to a far-away lot (also for pay) to the office. In other words, essentially nothing.

It's about the bottom line for most public companies, unfortunately. It's hard for the Board of Directors to support decisions that offer luxuries to employees that don't generate additional work output, and even that is hard to prove. It's so much easier to be greedy and blame it on the shareholders' "best interests".

[Min-Chi-Cbus]

Originally Posted by golfgal

People fail to realize that driving on the highways/freeways for commuting is much more efficient than driving through downtown to get to your office. It can take longer to get from your exit to downtown to your office than it can take to get to that exit from your house. Having an office in downtown is NOT easier for pretty much everyone. Most people prefer working in the suburbs, which is why most jobs are in the suburbs and NOT in downtown Minneapolis. Downtown Minneapolis has a very, very small percentage of the jobs in the Twin Cities metro area. This has been addressed before and yet the city dwellers still don't understand this, why, I don't know. I can get to Arden Hills faster than I can get to say the IDS tower in downtown. Add in an accident in downtown and getting through downtown is 45+ minutes. In 45 minutes I can be in Rogers from Rosemount, even through rush hour traffic.

Downtown Mpls also has the highest concentration of employment of anywhere in the Twin Cities, which I think is more important when thinking about commuting: multiple nodes.

[Min-Chi-Cbus]

Originally Posted by ManBearPig1

You can walk downtown practically end-to-end in 45 minutes. There are options other than driving if sitting in your car is too much of a PIA

Plus, if there's an accident downtown there's about a hundred other options to get from point A to point B because it's on a grid system, unlike highways. If the freeway is shut down because of a truck jack-knife in Lakeville and I'm 200 yards behind the incident......I'm screwed!

[Cruz Azul Guy]

Originally Posted by golfgal

People fail to realize that driving on the highways/freeways for commuting is much more efficient than driving through downtown to get to your office. It can take longer to get from your exit to downtown to your office than it can take to get to that exit from your house. Having an office in downtown is NOT easier for pretty much everyone. Most people prefer working in the suburbs, which is why most jobs are in the suburbs and NOT in downtown Minneapolis. Downtown Minneapolis has a very, very small percentage of the jobs in the Twin Cities metro area. This has been addressed before and yet the city dwellers still don't understand this, why, I don't know. I can get to Arden Hills faster than I can get to say the IDS tower in downtown. Add in an accident in downtown and getting through downtown is 45+ minutes. In 45 minutes I can be in Rogers from Rosemount, even through rush hour traffic.

I feel the complete opposite about this. I've been driving to work in the suburbs for years now and I hate it. There is nothing I'd love more than to be able to hop on the light rail to an office downtown. In fact, if that were the case I'd probably even be tempted to sell my car, which would be absolutely brilliant.

[QuietBlue]

Yeah, to me driving is just time wasted, really. If I'm on the bus or the train, there's so much more I can do with my time -- work on my laptop or smartphone, read, study, etc. Not much I can do while driving except listen to the radio/MP3 player.