One of the element which can be used to create a downtown is the pedestrian street.

A pedestrian street has some characteristic features. Here we can start to explore them:

1) A significant amount of housing all around the street
2) A big attractor (i.e. an university, or some office building) along the street
3) streets open to both cars and pedestrians (boulevards) on the surrounding blocks
4) parking spaces or transit stops all around
5) Landscaping of the street (curved layout, monuments at the two ends, trees)
6) Coffees and bars, possibly with outdoor seating, all along the street
7) Events on the street all around the year (and a « street events » company who organizes these events)

in the next days we’ll see some examples of pedestrian streets.

(source: cooltownstudios.com)