Really like the idea of the supermarket as a sort of privatized town de facto town square -- as creating an actual vibrant town square would run afoul of various zoning codes. Two things that jump out at me are 1) grocery stores often have better traffic calming than the town itself (speed bumps, crosswalks and bollards). 2) Store can adjust for the season. During winter, for ex, they can Christmas trees out front, put up Christmas decorations, highlight winter goods on their end caps, etc. Basically forming a mini Christmas market. Because - sadly - there’s rarely ever a true civic space to host a European-style Christmas market.
Really like the idea of the supermarket as a sort of privatized town de facto town square -- as creating an actual vibrant town square would run afoul of various zoning codes. Two things that jump out at me are 1) grocery stores often have better traffic calming than the town itself (speed bumps, crosswalks and bollards). 2) Store can adjust for the season. During winter, for ex, they can Christmas trees out front, put up Christmas decorations, highlight winter goods on their end caps, etc. Basically forming a mini Christmas market. Because - sadly - there’s rarely ever a true civic space to host a European-style Christmas market.