Streets with Nooks and Crannies Are Beloved and Endangered
theamericanconservative.com
Streets with Nooks and Crannies Are Beloved and Endangered
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Re: Streets with Nooks and Crannies Are Beloved and Endangered
#2Designing and building places people find nice to be in have gone out of style because building places that suck to be in the name of making them suck to do the "wrong" things is in fashion.
Re: Streets with Nooks and Crannies Are Beloved and Endangered
#3Agreed. My city's local "planning commission" has overstepped many old timers long planned future family-development agreements because big money has come in wanting to develop large scale housing communities. The communities once plotted as kid friendly cul-de-sac, have become thoroughfares for big business by touting "connectivity needs". It's a joke, especially when you see that the make up of the planning commission is 2/3 land developers and contractors.
Re: Streets with Nooks and Crannies Are Beloved and Endangered
#4Agreed. My city's local "planning commission" has overstepped many old timers long planned future family-development agreements because big money has come in wanting to develop large scale housing communities. The communities once plotted as kid friendly cul-de-sac, have become thoroughfares for big business by touting "connectivity needs". It's a joke, especially when you see that the make up of the planning commiss…
Meanwhile, other purists decry cul-de-sacs as a suburban abomination that inhibit walkability.
Re: Streets with Nooks and Crannies Are Beloved and Endangered
#5Designing and building places people find nice to be in have gone out of style because building places that suck to be in the name of making them suck to do the "wrong" things is in fashion. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hostile_architecture
This isn’t a one sided problem.
There are: owners, the public and law enforcement.
In SF there were (and are) laws against panhandling, being a nuisance, harassment, etc., yet owners and or business people had to pressure for additional laws (known as sit/lie laws) because police were not enforcing existing laws and some people were abusing and taking liberties. Yes there is an aspect of social failing in this, but local businesses and residents should not have to bear the brunt of this.
Re: Streets with Nooks and Crannies Are Beloved and Endangered
#6"Why are nooks and crannies no longer produced? One reason is that their value is not understood, and in any case no longer taught as part of place-making."
Many times they weren't deliberately produced, nor was their deliberate design taught: they were the result of accretion layers built up over time as new structures are built next to & on top of existing ones.
They're not dying out through lack of appreciation, they're dying out because most times it's just plain cheaper to tear down the existing structure and rebuild.
Re: Streets with Nooks and Crannies Are Beloved and Endangered
#7Weird, the masthead photo is the street where I grew up. Now clogged with people lining up to Instagram, sadly.
Plus nobody lives there anymore, really - they are all the owners’ vacation homes.
Re: Streets with Nooks and Crannies Are Beloved and Endangered
#8"Why are nooks and crannies no longer produced? One reason is that their value is not understood, and in any case no longer taught as part of place-making." Many times they weren't deliberately produced, nor was their deliberate design taught: they were the result of accretion layers built up over time as new structures are built next to & on top of existing ones. They're not dying out through lack of appreciation, t…
On addition some narrow alleyways are a bit dangerous —they are narrow and in the event of emergency they can find themselves blocked off (when fire escapes empty to them, as they usually do).
Re: Streets with Nooks and Crannies Are Beloved and Endangered
#9"Why are nooks and crannies no longer produced? One reason is that their value is not understood, and in any case no longer taught as part of place-making." Many times they weren't deliberately produced, nor was their deliberate design taught: they were the result of accretion layers built up over time as new structures are built next to & on top of existing ones. They're not dying out through lack of appreciation, t…
On addition some narrow alleyways are a bit dangerous —they are narrow and in the event of emergency they can find themselves blocked off (when fire escapes empty to them, as they usually do).
If a modern developer doesn't address liabilities first, they would quickly be out of business. Hence, design is restricted to the parameters of what one can successfully defend if sued.
Fire departments and fire codes are especially difficult to design around in tight spaces, as they can basically veto any construction that doesn't allow ample room for fire trucks to get around. The city also doesn't want to get sued for preventing the building from being built.
See the recent $800M MGM hotels settlement for the Las Vegas massacre. Expect more cameras, more searches, more cover your ass protocol. Not directly related to the article, but an example where one's first thought will be "how do I protect myself from being sued for any possibility in the future".
Re: Streets with Nooks and Crannies Are Beloved and Endangered
#10Agreed. My city's local "planning commission" has overstepped many old timers long planned future family-development agreements because big money has come in wanting to develop large scale housing communities. The communities once plotted as kid friendly cul-de-sac, have become thoroughfares for big business by touting "connectivity needs". It's a joke, especially when you see that the make up of the planning commiss…
Meanwhile, other purists decry cul-de-sacs as a suburban abomination that inhibit walkability.
That needn't be the case though. Many estates with cul-de-sacs are better designed and have paths between them so while cars can't drive straight through pedestrians (and depending on local rules, cyclists) can get around more freely.