Jane Jacobs would hate banks too

The other night I was walking thru Wicker Park to meet some friends for dinner. I was a bit zoned out and was running ever so slightly late and still hadn't hit an ATM yet. Suddenly, I noticed the warm glow of my bank's signs and storefront. It was perfect, I had tried to get money from an ATM near my house, but it was all busted up, so I was pleased when I realized I was passing my bank (i.e. no ATM fees to be paid to some other bank). Everything was good until I realized EXACTLY where I was and that I was approaching one of my favorite Chicago intersections (a 6-pointer at Milwaukee, North & Damen) and realized that a kitschy hotdawg shop and my favorite coffee shop had been replaced by my bank. How horrific, how devastating.

That shop was the place of my first date with my ladyfriend. I loved that coffeeshop - full of trendsetters getting hopped up on coffee and full of memories. Between it and the hotdawg joint, there was a wonderful and vibrant street life.

Now, this flat iron building is home to a bank - which does little to contribute to the social fabric of the neighborhood. What's more is that it's not just an issue of damaging Chicago's social fabric. It has an impact on the financial fabric of the City and the issues extend into the suburbs as well.

Banks (and CVS and Walgreen's) are grabbing up a significant portion of the corner lots and retail spaces. Retailers cannot compete with banks because banks can, will and do pay more per square foot than nearly any retailer out there. In the suburban community where I work, there are no property taxes and the town relies heavily (~75%) on the sales tax generated by the businesses in town.

Increasingly, our retailers are being displaced by banks in their ever-expanding branch wars. As the retail space is taken over by the banking industry, our town's revenues (and Chicago's revenues) are also eroding. Eventually, we won't be able to sustain ourselves on banks alone.

And with Starbucks shuttering some of its stores, I may not even be able to get a cup of coffee.