Today’s Suburbanites Want Different Things. Retrofitting is One Answer.

Empty big box stores, abandoned malls, and overgrown parking lots are common in many of America’s suburbs. Urban design expert Ellen Dunham-Jones at Georgia Tech says that’s because the people living in suburbs today don’t need or want the same things people wanted decades ago when they were first built. And so now what? Professor Dunham-Jones’ work focuses on ways to retrofit suburbs for modern needs, like turning empty big-box stores into community recreation centers or libraries. (Segment produced by Abby Haralson)