Zoning is losing its power. New ventures are able to reach a meaningful scale before regulators (and competitors) react. The boundaries between different uses are blurring, with people lodging in apartment buildings, living in hotels, working in restaurants and retail malls, and sleeping or socializing at the office.

Charleston, Paris, Ozark, Dardanelle, Mansfield, Booneville and others are trying to revitalize their downtowns.

The challenges of many small towns in the US have been well documented, in some cases being nothing less than a fight for survival. Leckey commonly hears that the need for affordable housing, broadband internet, day care, and economic development, as well as the toll of the opioid crisis, are among the key struggles facing small communities. But he... See more