(Featuring John Falcicchio, Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development, Washington, DC)

As cities in the US adapt to a new normal, city leaders, planners, developers, and investors have a new challenge: to define the "new normal" of the built environment. And though it stands unique among American cities, Washington, DC could have answers for our collective urban futures.

https://www.afire.org/podcast/betternormal/

On this episode of the AFIRE Podcast, John Falcicchio, Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development for Washington, DC, talks about how the district is not only working to embrace a new normal, but also implementing innovative solutions as a means to create a better normal.

Racial equity and affordable housing are top-of-mind, alongside promoting and preserving density in the city's business districts and workplaces, including reimagined retail experiences and use of public space. What are the obstacles that DC is facing in particular, and what are lessons other cities can learn from DC's ideas and experiments?

According to Falcicchio, collaboration between all city stakeholders—including residents, business and restaurant owners, building managers and owners, investors—is the key to the future of US cities.