How do we keep the “everyday cacophony” of modern-day cities?

Our cities are growing rapidly.  With this growth comes the new dawn (or plague) of large mid-rise apartment complexes.  Density is good right?  In theory density makes cities vibrant and people moving back to downtowns means the growth of businesses and amenities, but in reality we are seeing these apartment complexes take over cities.

Protecting the multiplicity of everyday urban life amid the collective is not a priority for developers.  The goal of a developer is to maximize profit margins, which equates to building as much value as possible for as little as possible.  The results are bland, cheaply built, always include a ton of parking, fill the invisible box created by zoning regulations and focus on checking off all the little boxes.  Large closets? Check.  Swanky kitchen? Check.  Community amenities? Check. Free parking? Double check.  Attention to city scale? ….. Understanding of the social geography? ….

The apartments distance residents from the city, alienate residents from one another and promote the loss of social intersections, or “the places where differences collide or interact [which] are the most potent sites of everyday urbanism.”  They target the most viable market, not people.  So how do we as architects respond to this?  Can our power or involvement reach beyond our narrowly set confines?  

“Architects are pretty much high-class whores. We can turn down projects the way they can turn down some clients, but we’ve both got to say yes to someone if we want to stay in business.”

– Philip Johnson

^ what everyday urbanism does not want