Reports of Its Death are Greatly Exaggerated

Pitt's Chris Briem has a nice commentary here about the state of Pittsburgh's downtown. Despite a variety of setbacks, aggregate downtown business employment is holding steady. Chris rightly zings the idea of bringing Wal-Mart downtown. With Wal-Mart, Sam's Club, and Costco tearing up the retail landscape with acres of free parking in the suburbs, why would anyone fight traffic and the parking tax to shop at Wal-Mart downtown?