„More Experience. More City. More Future.“
How can city centers once again become places where people enjoy spending their time? This question was the focus of the GCSP Municipal Conference held on June 16 and 17, 2026, in Essen. Under the theme “More Experience. More City. More Future – Health, Sport, and Entertainment as New Anchor” representatives from municipalities, retail, and the real estate industry discussed the future of urban spaces.
A central theme of the conference: Successful city centers need more than just retail. They require Quality of Stay, places for social interaction, and diverse uses that give people a genuine reason to linger.
Footfall is Driven by Experience and Quality of Stay
As reported by the industry portal HI-Heute, among others, the German Council of Shopping Places (GCSP) invited participants to what was now the fourth Municipal Conference […] this time held in Essen. The conference made it clear that city centers are increasingly evolving into multi-functional living spaces. Alongside retail, sectors such as health, culture, sport, gastronomy, and entertainment are gaining importance as footfall drivers. At the same time, retail remains an indispensable component of vibrant urban centers.
Boris Böhm from Dr. Lademann & Partner aptly summarized the discussion: “The city center needs footfall. But above all, it needs reasons for people to go there in the first place”.
The GCSP also emphasized in advance that social interaction, physical activity, safety and quality of stay will play just as important a role in the future as retail itself.
Sustainable Urban Development Requires Green Spaces
For Green City Solutions, the conference confirms many trends we have observed for years Anyone looking to make city centers more attractive must improve both the urban climate and the quality of stay simultaneously.
Green infrastructure helps make public spaces more pleasant, reducec heat and creates areas where people love to dwell. This creates exactly the qualities that municipalities and urban developers are increasingly prioritizing today.
Photos: GCSP, GCS
Best Practice from Hamburg: Sustainability in Shopping Centers
A project featured in the GCSP “shopping places magazine” demonstrates that shopping destinations themselves can become building blocks of a sustainable city center. In the article “Shopping Centers as a Component of Urban Sustainability” the Marktplatz Galerie Hamburg presents its greening project featuring the CityBreeze.
The article in the first 2026 issue clearly illustrates how innovative greening, improved quality of stay, and sustainable site development can work together effectively.
From Impulse to Implementation
The conference in Essen has shown: The city center of the future thrives on an intelligent mix of retail, leisure, culture, health, and attractive public spaces. Sustainable greening and climate-resilient solutions make a significant contribution, ensuring that people enjoy spending time in the city — especially on hot days.
At Green City Solutions, we see this as a decisive cornerstone for livable, resilient, and future-proof city centers.
Ready to increase the quality of stay at your location? Let’s start a conversation and discover together how green and tangible anchor points can make cities more livable.