Laura Pike Seeley

The town is hoping to avoid repeating the patterns of other suburbs in the region. “Strip malls, subdivisions, big-box stores, all that stuff we see all over North America,” says Jerschow. “The vision for the Orbit was about rethinking that approach.”

Creating pedestrian plazas like the one in Times Square is prevalent in many European and Asian cities like Amsterdam and Tokyo. They prioritize public transportation and cycling infrastructure while U.S. cities often favor cars.

Deep work is the ability to focus without distraction on a cognitively demanding task. It’s a skill that allows you to quickly master complicated information and produce better results in less time.

"A lot of our older spaces had a sea of desks and no one wants that anymore," she said.