What makes buildings catalytic? How cultural facilities can be designed to spur surrounding development

Stadiums, museums, office buildings, and other facilities are sometimes considered catalysts: they receive public support in order to spur development in the immediate surrounding area. Focusing only on cultural catalysts, this article draws on urban design literature, pedestrian research, and consumer behavior research to suggest concepts through which facilities can be assessed for their catalytic potential and designed for greater catalytic impact. In general, planners should design catalysts to create direct linkages between the catalyst and the commercial area it will serve, taking into account walking distances, exit and entry points, crowd flow, and land uses. One of the planner's primary aims should be to create the vital street life that sustains nearby commerce. To do so, the planner should seek to balance, on the one hand, the comings and goings that the facility generates with, on the other, the crowding that the dependent commercial area can accommodate.