Advantages of Living in a Central Business District

Introduction

Central Business District is a dynamic community that includes office spaces, residential apartments, educational institutions, hospitals and recreational spaces. The writer, Dror Poleg, in his book, Rethinking Real Estate, explained central business districts as a ‘network of spaces and services tied together with technology’. The interlinked ecosystem encompasses not just an office location but home offices, co-working spaces, restaurants and other spaces. After the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, Central Business Districts (CBDs) are being reimagined as vibrant neighbourhoods, which many urban planners are now calling 15-minute neighbourhoods. A buzzing trend in the real estate sector is the rebuilding of CBDs to make them green, comprehensive, and affordable. The changing patterns of work and evolving residential needs of society predict the future of CBDs as an extension of an urban ecosystem in the form of high-rise and low-rise buildings complex.

This article by the Iqbal Institute of Policy Studies will discuss the advantages of living in a central business district.

1. Accessibility

The biggest advantage of residing in CBD is accessibility to multiple services within a walking distance in this ecosystem. Whether it’s your workplace at the CBD or the residential apartments, you will be positioned at the centre of commercial business activity. The location of CBDs is strategically chosen to allow connectivity and accessibility to transportation networks. This gives additional convenience to customers and suppliers to find your home or workplace. In Pakistan, the idea of CBD may sound new, but the conception goes back to ancient times, when the market squares were the centre of business activity. Rampant urbanisation has resulted in the expansion of cities which has resulted in land scarcity for commercial and residential projects. Therefore, the demand for vertical development has increased over time.

This reinforces the importance of CBDs which is a sustainable urban ecosystem primarily based on vertical development. If you are a resident of CBD, you’ll be the epicentre of commercial activity with accessibility to retail places, offices, banks, and restaurants hotels in residential areas. The compact community in CBDs is supported the idea of having facilities within walking distance. CBDs are the best alternative to all infrastructure needs required for a sustainable business and residential environment.

2. Business Opportunities

CBDs are the functional area of a city with a great concentration of commercial, trade, and business potential. Living within the CBD implies that you’re in close proximity to myriads of business options. Moreover, CBDs are planned and designed to create an environment where businesses thrive, and a large number of employment opportunities are generated. In Pakistan, a project initiated by Imarat Group of Companies called Imarat Business District is the first of its kind in the real estate sector. The idea is to create a central business district with residential, commercial, and recreational projects. The idea is to connect businesses, institutes, and commercial activity with futuristic, minimal and economical residential apartments.

Furthermore, traffic congestion is one of the main concerns of living in urban centres. The longer commuting distances from home to workplace, the higher the stress during peak hours which impacts productivity. Alternatively, if you choose to live in CBD, you’ll likely find a job opportunity or business potential within the CBD. Thus, saving you from commute stress, fuel costs, and vehicle maintenance costs.  However, being a source of immense commercial activity, the CBDs could be expensive compared to remote areas. But the economic benefits outweigh the costs by a great margin.

3. Urban Ecosystem

With an increasing rate of urbanisation and unimpeded population growth, CBDs are the best solution to sustain urban ecosystems. CBDs provide great commercial activity but occupy a relatively smaller chunk of land due to vertical infrastructure, leaving room for green spaces. Urban ecosystems are a hybrid of natural and man-made systems with interactions from various facets of natural, social, political, and economic behaviours. It is an infrastructure arrangement that accommodates high-density residential and commercial activities and covers a smaller piece of land while providing a larger proportion of built infrastructure. Central Business Districts are the best way to fulfil Pakistan’s commitment to Agenda 2030 and the implementation of Sustainable Development Goals while improving the capital influx into Pakistan’s economy.

Living in a dynamic community with residential, commercial, and recreational projects has many benefits. For example, Silicon Valley is a global centre of technological innovation located in the South San Francisco Bay Area of California. It is home to major technology, software, and internet companies including Apple, Google and Meta, (previously Facebook). It is counted amongst the wealthiest regions in the world with the most lucrative real estate market. A similar arrangement could help Pakistan to fulfil its environmental commitments and support its real estate market to improve the economy. Thus, owning a residential apartment in a commercial hub with all the probable business opportunities within walking distance and a sustainable environment has insurmountable benefits.

Conclusion

Living in Central Business Districts has multiple benefits for the environment and economy. CBDs are built on the concept of accessibility with commercial, residential and recreational spaces in a vertical infrastructure complex. Pakistan is experiencing a housing shortfall of around 10 Million units with a land shortage for horizontal development. Therefore, vertical infrastructure arrangements are ideal to accommodate the residential and economic needs of society. Moreover, due to the expansion of cities, the commuting distances from home to the workplace have increased contributing to urban congestion. CBDs are the perfect solution to avoid the daily traffic and save fuel costs; protecting your finances and environment. Moreover, in line with Pakistan’s environmental commitments and Prime Minister’s Clean Green Pakistan initiative, the efforts of private entities like Imarat Group are commendable for being the pioneers of CBDs in Pakistan and introducing smart living options through their projects such as Imarat Residences. After the Covid-19 pandemic, the CBDs are being reimagined to include educational institutions, medical complexes, residential apartments and green spaces. Thus, building a sustainable urban ecosystem to support the environment and the economy.

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