Vital Organs

I absolutely loved Jane Jacobs article on streets and sidewalks and the role that they play in the city.  She states in this article that “Streets and their sidewalks, the main public places of the city, are its most vital organs.”  This really stood out to me because, when I consider a city, the first things that come to mind are massive skyscrapers, vehicular congestion, and vast crowds of people shuffling about to their destinations.  I don’t often consider the roads or sidewalks that permit all this to take place.

These streets and sidewalks define the city – not only physically with the borders and boundaries they create, but also socially with the feelings of safety and security (or lack thereof) that they evoke. However, their design and presence seems all too often to become a sort of background architecture that we take for granted: something you don’t realize the vital importance of until it is gone.  But it is not simply concrete, asphalt, or stone that determines this sense of security or comfort, it is the people that utilize these spaces on a daily basis.  I think that, as architects, we often focus our design on aesthetics – spaces that will be visually appealing.  We load renderings up with people and entourage to make the space feel as welcoming as possible when, in reality, the only thing that will likely drive people to that space is other people.  Crowds often attract crowds.  Jacobs was a vital advocate of this idea.  Generally speaking, people feel the most secure and comfortable when they are surrounded by other people.  That being said, we shouldn’t just be focusing on how spaces look – the certain aesthetic that they bring to the city.  While this is absolutely important, we also need to consider specific ways of engaging the community through design.  “[Buildings] cannot turn their backs or blank sides on [the streets] and leave it behind.”  There must be a certain level of interaction between the two.