America’s 80-million-strong generation Y, the most tech-savvy generation yet, has not forsaken shopping in stores for online purchasing, says a new ULI report released at the Spring Meeting in San Diego.

That’s the good news for real estate developers, owners, and investors, said report co-author and ULI Trustee M. Leanne Lachman, president of real estate consulting firm Lachman Associates. The unsettling news, she noted, is that gen Y’ers, who grew up with computers and unprecedented exposure to media, are fickle consumers who are always looking for new and exciting experiences. Retailers must continually change their looks, services, and merchandise offerings in order to engage them.

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Demand will continue to rise for infill residential development that is less car-dependent, while consumers’ desire could wane for isolated development in outlying suburbs, according to a new ULI report released at the ULI Spring Meeting in San Diego. The report underscores the influence that growing demographic groups in the U.S. – in particular generation Y, African-Americans, and Latinos – will have on reshaping urban growth patterns by spurring more development of compact, mixed-use communities with reliable, convenient transit service. America in 2013,is based on a nationwide survey of 1,202 adults conducted between January 16 and February 3, 2013. It includes responses from generation Y (representing 30 percent of the total), born between 1979 and 1995 and numbering near 80 million; generation X (23 percent), born between 1966 and 1978 and totaling about 50 million; baby boomers (31 percent), born between 1947 and 1965 and numbering 75 million; war babies (12 percent), born between 1932 and 1946; and the silent generation (3 percent), born in 1931 or earlier; together war babies and the silent generation number 35 million.

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By Jason Islas

May 13, 2013 – In order to save the Civic Auditorium, Santa Monica should develop the land around the 55 year-old venue to pay for the more than $50 million needed in repairs and upgrades.

That was the news delivered by a panel of five experts from the Urban Land Institute (ULI) Friday, all of whom agreed that in order to save the historic landmark, not only would there need to be major and expensive overhauls to the building but also to the land immediately around it.

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ULI has made it easier to find and get the most out of its events, thanks to a new ULI Events mobile app for iPads, iPhones, and Android devices. The free app is designed to help ULI event attendees plan their schedules, communicate with each other instantly through Twitter—and even find nearby restaurants.

ULI gathers people from around the world, face-to-face and online, to share ideas and best practices. The institute offers large-scale events such as the Fall and Spring Meetings in the United States with thousands of attendees, and annual summits in Europe and Asia Pacific. But you can also find ULI members gathering locally nearly every day of the year, connecting to develop their skills, grow their professional network, and improve their neighborhoods and cities.

The ULI events app is now available for Android and Apple devices for use at the 2013 Spring Meeting in San Diego. To download the app, click on the icon below or search for “ULI Events” in your app store.

Whether you are planning to advance in your current career or your job duties have changed, get practical, hands-on education in real estate development or finance to make the most of new opportunities. Register now for ULI’s Real Estate School, to be held this June in Marina del Rey, California. Select from among six, intensive, three-day courses in real estate development or finance.

Over the next several months, successor agencies to the city’s and county’s redevelopment
agencies will be drafting property management plans and making decisions about which properties to sell and which ones to retain, said speakers at the Urban Land Institute, Los Angeles District’s Urban Marketplace event.

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Joining Garcetti for the plenary panel were Janet-Marie Smith (who has overseen the Dodger Stadium renovation) and Frances Anderton (KCRW’s Which Way, LA producer).

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Introduced as the man who “literally changed the retail landscape in Southern California,“ Rick Caruso opened a recent Urban Land Institute conference with thoughts on the economics of sustainable development. Up next, Mayor Bill Bogaard talked about milestones in Pasadena’s Green City Action Plan.

Caruso noted he hasn’t been successful yet in getting into Pasadena, and mentioned in an aside to Bogaard that Glendale [The Americana at Brand] would serve as a draw in the interim. He also said city building incentives have to work for developers: “Cities need to figure out how their bureaucracies can support construction”; and cited the helix design of The Americana’s parking structure, which reduces vehicle idling and improves traffic flow: “Through design we can solve problems.”

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The April 2013 edition of the forecast is now available. A summary is open to the public, but for now only ULI members and the media can access the full report. This is a member benefit! Here is a teaser text to the forecast webpage for the Center for Capital Markets and Real Estate. It contains a summary of the report, a link to the press release, a link to an Urban Land article, and information for members about obtaining the full presentation.

Real Estate Consensus Forecast

A new U.S.-focused real estate forecast from the ULI Center for Capital Markets and Real Estate and Ernst & Young reflects renewed optimism for growth in real estate capital markets and commercial real estate fundamentals, and even stronger expectations for housing than those made just six months ago. The full presentation is now available for ULI members. Read more.