After reading Right to the City and watching Rebel Architecture, I was re-inspired by the power architects have in shaping communities. Often it seems that our work follows the flow of money and we become the yes man to many other entities, government agencies, developers, etc. In the instances when these power dynamics get flipped and the community starts making those decisions, like in the Rebel Architecture video, beautiful creations happen. However, there is another side to participation that isn't so positive. Take for instance the housing crisis in the San Francisco Bay area. The Start-Up Tech boom that has been taking place in Silicon Valley for the past decade has led to constant increases in rent and property values. High demand for housing and low supply have led to many residents being priced out of the market. One of the culprits of this phenomenon has been a large NIMBY movement in the Bay Area. For those not familiar with NIMBY it stands for Not In My Backyard. California has laws that allow the public to participate in projects being permitted. Unfortunately, this participation has stymied multiple housing projects that could effectively provide affordable housing or aid in lowering housing costs by increasing supply. To be fair, NIMBY's premise is that they are trying to prevent Gentrification and being unsettled from neighborhoods that they have lived in for a long time, at the same time however their resistance has exacerbated the housing crisis. What are your thoughts on the NIMBY movement? Does it do more harm than good?
I think you hit a key issue in this country right on the head. We all can talk about the things that would make for a more just world in a theoretical discussion but things become very real when it involves you personally. For example, we all agree that we need more affordable housing in this country. But let's say that development is planned right across the street and you all the sudden have to deal with years of construction, strains on infrastructure, the destruction of an area you loved, etc. you're going to think very differently about it.
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