Suburban Nation - Andres Duany [125]
bx
Actually, Portland’s growth boundary does not deserve to be accepted uncritically as an unqualified success. It was originally drawn not at the edge of urbanization but at a distance many miles out, anticipating and effectively sanctioning twenty years of bad growth. Currently, thanks to the removal of a highway, the introduction of light rail, and considerable wise investment, the downtown is indeed in excellent shape. But the growth boundary contains within it thousands of acres of the most mundane sprawl. And now that the edge has finally been reached, Portland’s suburban developers—who, have never been told “no” before and are thus particularly unruly—fight relentlessly for its expansion.
by
A gloomy discussion is currently making the rounds about how to preserve agricultural land in the face of development pressures. While it is said that we are approaching a population crisis in which the planet will fail to feed its inhabitants, fear of that crisis has yet to raise the value of farmland. It is fair to say that many American farmers in suburban locations are seriously considering the “developer sellout retirement plan.” Since the loss of farmland to development is, for all practical purposes, permanent, it would seem wise to create a program for mothballing a certain percentage of this land until it becomes valued for its production capacity alone. Similarly, an acknowledgment of limited resources would recommend an approach to farmland distribution that allocates a minimum local agriculture reserve around each city, so that it can meet its food needs without excessive transportation or energy costs. This approach was plainly articulated by Ebenezer Howard over one hundred years ago.
bz
On the day of this writing, the Atlanta government has advised all of the city’s residents—not just asthmatics—to stay indoors because of a severe air-quality crisis.
ca
The regional-scale issues of environmental conservation and restoration, transportation, social services, affordable housing, the location of Lulus, and economic development, to name a few, should be managed by a single regional jurisdiction, or by existing regional agencies working in close coordination. Meanwhile, middle-scale issues such as local planning and zoning, policing, and maintenance should remain in the hands of municipal government, while local issues such as community enhancement and redevelopment, quality of life, and tourism should be attended to by neighborhood organizations. This redistribution recognizes that the success of governance at every scale depends on the assignment of responsibilities to the smallest jurisdiction that can handle it comprehensively.
cb
This is not to denigrate the positive influence of organized group activities, and downtown is certainly the best location for the stadium and the performing arts center—especially given its ready access to transit—as well as for the fairs and street festivals simply not possible in the suburban hinterland. But all the festivals in the world will not overcome the lack of a pedestrian-friendly physical environment in getting people to come downtown. Convincing evidence of the power of successful urbanity can be seen in the many downtown destinations to which suburbanites will drive two to three hours for the experience of strolling, shopping, and dining in a lively public place. Greenwich Village, Coconut Grove, and Georgetown have even spawned a new real estate industry classification: the “urban entertainment center.” Most of us would prefer to call it a city.
cc
Planner Vincent Ponte, in William Whyte, City: Rediscovering the Center, 198. Only in the most extreme conditions has bad weather proved capable of eliminating pedestrian traffic along a properly designed street. There is more sidewalk-fronting retail space in Toronto than in all the cities of the Sun Belt combined.
Many authors have commented on the social implications of the privatization