The Advocate: Upper Canal Street showing signs of revival

The New Orleans Advocate interviewed Sherif Ebrahim, lecturer in management and director of entrepreneurship and innovation education at the A. B. Freeman School of Business, for a story on the revival of Upper Canal Street, which has been the beneficiary of nearly $650 million in investments over the last several years.

New ground-floor retail may find suitors, experts say, particularly as more stores look to leave suburban malls and move into downtown New Orleans — back to the area many of them or their predecessors fled in the 1960s and ’70s.

“Retail follows where people live, and there’s certainly a trend of populations shifting back to urban environments,” said Sherif Ebrahim, a professor of strategy and innovation at Tulane University.

With the added population density downtown, there’s a growing need for amenities like restaurants and shopping that is within walking distance of all the new condos and apartments, Ebrahim added.

“There’s certainly been a longtime move, or a longtime slow march up Canal from the river, but I think you’re beginning to finally see some impact,” he said.

To read the story in its entirety, visit theneworleansadvocate.com.

http://www.theneworleansadvocate.com/news/16067706-123/upper-canal-street-showing-signs-of-revival