New Urbanism Lacks Taste
New Urbanism lacks depth in every way from the dull architecture
to the chain shops, to the awful food. Think of any New Urbanism development,
have you ever had good food there? No, and architecture is the cause. The lack
of diversity in the ages and quality of the buildings does not allow for new
business to get started, only businesses that can afford the high rents in the
flashy new buildings can sustain. Jane Jacobs speaks passionately about this
subject in her book, "The Life and Death of Great American Cities". I
experienced this first hand at a New Urbanism development, Freshfields Village
this weekend on Kiawah Island, an exclusive island just outside of Charleston.
The "Mexican" restaurant there was no way near authentic, but for
some reason was happily satisfying the zombie consumers that lack taste and are
afraid of anything new.
The next day for lunch I ventured off a mile down the road I
experienced the best tacos I’ve had outside of Mexico from a food truck, that
hand-made their tortillas with lard the way they would be made on the street in
Mexico City. As many landscape trucks and trailers pulled up, along with crews
of carpenters I realized they are filling a much-needed demand for the many workers
seeking lunch during their shift at the housing development that feeds the New
Urbanism. The Mother-Daughter entrepreneurs were creative in finding a solution
to a problem, but why not cause this lack of diversity in the first place? In
areas outside of a city is there a way to design a new development while
providing economic diversity?
These are NOT tacos. (Notice the flour shell and coleslaw)
These are Mexican street tacos. (Notice the hand-made shells and simple toppings)
I like the point you make about the connection between poor architecture and poor products. The best food I've had is usually in hole-in-the-wall places like the Mexican food truck you described. There is a lack of taste in architecture in most places in the US and consumers don't seem to mind at all.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you sometimes the most simple solutions end up becoming the most used. I wonder if we as architects should invest more time into understanding everyday solutions by people to make a impactful change in Everyday Urbanism.
ReplyDeleteThe vibrancy of the informal sector is something that architecture definitely lacks today. Even when it tries imitating that aspect, the spaces become superficial and mostly leave a certain population out.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if there is a method that allows for the informal sector to merge with the existing fabric to provide that flavor.
We have always had cities with such a culture but our obsession to clean them is making us not enjoy those cities anymore.
I agree with everything you said. New Urbanism is a good idea in theory, but from what I've experienced, I have yet to find a really successful example of it. And it's still getting praise and is seen as a good thing while ignoring the consequences. I've been to Seaside in Florida and at first it seems cool and unique, but then the more you walk around, the more cold it feels. It's essentially luxury living for retirees; nothing is affordable and the locals are unfriendly, especially to outsiders. New Urbanism was supposed to make places walkable and accessible for everyone but in the end it has accomplished the exact opposite.
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