What is the deal with these new entertainment districts such as L.A. Live by Anschutz Entertainment Group and Kansas City Live by the Cordish Company? These are just two examples of the new mega downtown developments which are popular these days, and apparently the word "Live" is the new buzz word... some past hot words (just off the top of my head): Marketplace, Promenade, street addresses like One Rodeo, um... let's see... oh yeah, and remember old skool words like Plaza and Mall?
These two projects by different developers (although Anschutz is building the arena in Kansas City) but share some other similarities beyond the name. Both are centered around the city convention center, include a sports arena, and will include retail, residential, office and entertainment. The mixed use nature is key to this kind of project, thanks in part to the New Urbanism. We're all in favor of mixed use, however these types of developments tend lack the very thing that they are attempting to recreate, that is the organic, multi-scale nature of urban centers; instead they are singular, mega-malls with little or no room for progressive intervention or evolution. Past mega efforts in major cities have become sore spots, such as the late 70's Les Halles in Paris which is now the site of high profile effort to mend the damage. But, perhaps these Live projects will at least be fun for a while.
Link: Kansas City InfoZine
Link: Los Angeles Downtown News
Reference: Ephemeral cities (L+L)