DOCSLIB.ORG

Tel Aviv: from Patrick Geddes' Utopian Social City to the International City of Late Capital Ism

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Tel Aviv: from Patrick Geddes' Utopian Social City to the International City of Late Capital Ism ACSA EUROPEAN CONFERENCE LISBON GEOGRAPHY OF POWER 1995 107 Tel Aviv: From Patrick Geddes' Utopian Social City to the International City of Late Capital ism HORACIO SCHWARTZ Technion/lsrael Institute of Technology Israel In contemporary society - according to Dennis Potter's While this area was absorbed by the expanding cornrner- dictum - citizens have been transformed into consumers. The cia1 downtown and its fimctions and texture radically changed, shift in social power behind this process is mirrored in the Neve Tzedek, after a long period of social and physical changing shape ofthe city. Tel Aviv, founded just eighty five decay, is undergoing a process of renewal through years ago, is an extreme example of the interaction between gentrification. urban conceptions and configurations and dominant social forces. UTOPIA NOW: GEDDES' MASTER PLAN OF 1925 By means of a schematic section through the history ofthe When Scotsman Patrick Geddes, "social evolutionist and city, this paper attempts an assessment of the role of those city planner," was invited to formulate a Master Plan for Tel forces and conceptions - or their absence - in determining the Aviv, "the idea of community building had been verywhere nature and scope of the present transformations of the urban in the air" - in Ebenezer Howard's words; having pioneered fabric. a "sociological approach to the study of urbanizationWand Tel-Aviv is an assemblage ofpast and recent urban utopias, having laid down the groundwork for a new understanding constrained by conditions, scaled down and transformed, but of the city- region relationship, Geddes' philosophy had still identifiable and influential. Partly "collision city" and influenced the very concept and scope of planning through partly "collage city" in Colin Rowe's terms its growth, - - the "idea that social processes and spatial form are intimately while chronologically continuous, resulted in a fragmented related." Geddes' report is pemeated by his anarchist pattern; each district reflecting the urban ideals and historical worldview and commitment to the garden city idea, but also conditions under which it came into being. Four determinant by the realization that the layout schemes of previous garden stages can be detected in the ascent of the city. cities could not be applied to an existing and expanding major urban environment. His proposal was an hierarchical THE FIRST SUBURBS system of main streets ("mainways") which defined large Neve Zedek, the Hipodamic Grid urban blocks ("home blocks"), structured by narrow residen- Founded as Jewish cooperative in 1887 with an orthogonal tial streets ("homeways") which, together with pedestrian disposition of streets, 6 meters wide, and houses built as a lanes, led to a public park or enclosed avenue at the core of continuous mass on the street line. No hierarchy existed, the "home block," with "playgrounds, tennis courts, rich except for the allocation of larger plots at the edges. It was gardens and orchards." This was to be embodiment of the a blend of western influences in urban layout and local "Garden Village in the very heart of the city." Geddes architectural typologies. describes enthusiastically his vision of a "new type of civic grouping, at once more beautiful and more health giving than The Garden Suburb, Ahuzat Bait any previous form of large community in human annals" ... Its foundation in 1909, marks both the beginning of Tel Aviv "fruit emblazoned in purple and gold." as an autonomous urban entity and the first attempt of During the following decades, implementation of the plan implementation of the garden suburb concept. Based on an converged with the architectural utopian vision ofthe Modem orthogonal grid and a building code imposing recessed front Movement and produced a sui generis - perhaps unique - lines and limitations of hight and land coverage, leading to urban pattern: the "Bauhaus" district ofcenter-north Tel Aviv, detatched one or two leveled houses. Neoclassical in its a trove of thousands of modernistic buildings interspersed in architectural spirit, the main street led to the civic monument the Geddesian urban structure. A new society was the slogan of the time: the neighbourhood's high school, a landmark of that summerized the spirit of the times and the greater civic orientalistic architecture. interest was the main driving force behind urban formation. 108 ACSA EUROPEAN CONFERENCE LISBON GEOGRAPHY OF POWER 1995 Tel Aviv was and still is a predominantly a middle class provides a reductive solution to densification of housing city. Most of its land resources are privatly owned, in a areas in the inner city, erasing the existing fabric. While the pattern of small plots of about 5OOSqm each, thus generating interplay of corporate power and real estate speculation a spatial and social equilibrium evidenced in the urban shapes the urban skyline, social and geographical stratifica- morphology and the typical "Tel Aviv house," a three or four tion and urban decay follow, as inevitable counterparts. level apartment building on a discontinuous street facade, a Through the haphazard drive of market forces a different city contemporary version of the pavilion street. Workers hous- replaces the existing one going often against its grain and ing projects were built on state owned land, harmonically spirit. Conflict replaces concensus. It is significant that in the integrated in the mass and architectural character. "The last two decades few civic places have been created or white city" as poet Natan Alterman wrote about it. With the renovated by public initiative, since the public domain is first magor cultural complex, the Habima theater and Mann increasingly considered a by-product of commercial devel- auditorium, this period came to a climax and closure. opment; the aridity of some of the non-habitable spaces thus built, is a reflection at the semiotic level of their residual THE INSTITUTIONAL PERIOD nature, not focused on social interaction. The present predicament stems also from the receding From the fifties on, independence and institutionalization, role of urban design and the reluctancy of planning authori- led to organized and planned new social housing; ties to excercise their considerable statutory powers beyond neighbourhoods were laid out according to the established the task of moderators. Narrowing of the scope of urban canons of the European siedlung. While adressing the discourse has reduced it to the preservation against develop- quantitative parameters of mass housing, the fabric of the ment antithesis. Advocacy groups for the preservation of the city, as elsewhere, was disrupted; this approach reached its vast early 20th century and modem architectural heritage, peak during the seventies and the eighties in the new northern operate as the main alternative in the absence of an urban areas beyond the Yarkon river. The local version of the . policy that establishes qualitative goals, while urban design Corbusian "city oftowers" sprangup as paradoxically, a high as a means of acheiving them is conspicously missing. middle class, streetless motopia; this magor extention of the In 1995 the new modem- eclectic building of the Tel Aviv city, is not only devoid of the qualities of traditional urban opera house was inaugurated. environments, but lacking also in its quantitative param- eters: it is the least dense district in the city with the highest proportion of - mostly unused - open spaces. State power, EPILOGUE being the dominant social force, guided and informed urban While the first neigbourhoods were the result of democratic planning. Massive institutional building reached its peak urbanism, implemented by citizens and cooperatives, almost with the Tel Aviv University campus, yet another reflection without mediation, Geddes' plan and more so the northem of the isolated "building in the park" concept. district implied adelegation of power to the planner or the planning authority as trustee of the common interest. C.B.D. THE CITY OF THE CORPORATION Geddes' vision, although centered in the environmental AND THE CONSUMER qualities of dwelling, permitted the integration of emerging In the late sixties, the first high school, by then a civic interests and activities without disruption, in spite of a symbol, was demolished and replaced by the first high rise population increase well beyond the original forecast. ofice building, signaling the emergence of private enter- Although not a multi layered historical city, Tel Aviv - the prise as the dominant force in the social and physical map of imprint of the aspirations that formed and sustained it. In any the city. From than on architectural programs and typologies urban environment, rediscovery and renewal of its specific follow the transformation of Tel Aviv into a major financial ethos should be the foundation of planning policy, mani- business and production center and the hub of the metropoli- fested in the constant recreation and enrichment of the web tan area of nearly two million mhabitants. This radical of public places, which is the raison d'etre of urban culture: change in the structure of power and gradual integration of therefore the task of urban design is to create the conditions Tel Aviv in the global network of multy national production for a democratic synthesis ofthe urban texture. In the present and marketing, demand a major transformation of the city. phase, the acsent of the post industrial city seems to be in This is happening at the expense of the civic dimension of
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Landscape and Urban Planning Xxx (2016) Xxx–Xxx
    G Model LAND-2947; No. of Pages 11 ARTICLE IN PRESS Landscape and Urban Planning xxx (2016) xxx–xxx Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Landscape and Urban Planning j ournal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/landurbplan Thinking organic, acting civic: The paradox of planning for Cities in Evolution a,∗ b Michael Batty , Stephen Marshall a Centre for Advanced Spatial Analysis (CASA), UCL, 90 Tottenham Court Road, London W1T 4TJ, UK b Bartlett School of Planning, UCL, Central House, 14 Upper Woburn Place, London WC1H 0NN, UK h i g h l i g h t s • Patrick Geddes introduced the theory of evolution to city planning over 100 years ago. • His evolutionary theory departed from Darwin in linking collaboration to competition. • He wrestled with the tension between bottom-up and top-down action. • He never produced his magnum opus due the inherent contradictions in his philosophy. • His approach resonates with contemporary approaches to cities as complex systems. a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t Article history: Patrick Geddes articulated the growth and design of cities in the early years of the town planning move- Received 18 July 2015 ment in Britain using biological principles of which Darwin’s (1859) theory of evolution was central. His Received in revised form 20 April 2016 ideas about social evolution, the design of local communities, and his repeated calls for comprehensive Accepted 4 June 2016 understanding through regional survey and plan laid the groundwork for much practical planning in the Available online xxx mid 20th century, both with respect to an embryonic theory of cities and the practice of planning.
    [Show full text]
  • Module 3.2: Paradigms of Urban Planning
    Module 3.2: Paradigms of Urban Planning Role Name Affiliation National Coordinator Subject Prof Sujata Patel Department of Sociology, Coordinator University of Hyderabad Paper Ashima Sood Woxsen School of Business Coordinator Indian Institute of Technology, Mandi Surya Prakash Content Writer Ashima Sood Woxsen School of Business Content Reviewer Prof Sanjeev Vidyarthi University of Illinois-Chicago Language Editor Ashima Sood Woxsen School of Business Technical Conversion Module Structure Sections and headings Introduction Planning Paradigms in the Anglophone World The Garden City 1 Neighbourhood unit as concept and planning practice Jane Jacobs New Urbanism Geddes in India Ideas in Practice Spatial planning in post-colonial India Modernism in the Indian city Neighbourhood unit in India In Brief For Further Reading Description of the Module Items Description of the Module Subject Name Sociology Paper Name Sociology of Urban Transformation Module Name/Title Paradigms of urban planning Module Id 3.2 Pre Requisites Objectives To develop an understanding of select urban planning paradigms in the Anglophone world To trace the influences and dominant frameworks guiding urban planning in contemporary India To critically evaluate the contributions of 2 planning paradigms to the present condition of Indian cities Key words Garden city; neighbourhood unit; New Urbanism; modernism in India; Jane Jacobs; Patrick Geddes (5-6 words/phrases) Introduction Indian cities are characterized by visual dissonance and stark juxtapositions of poverty and wealth. “If only the city was properly planned,” goes the refrain in response, whether in media, official and everyday discourse. Yet, this invocation of city planning, rarely harkens to the longstanding traditions of Indian urbanism – the remarkable drainage networks and urban accomplishments of the Indus Valley cities, the ghats of Varanasi, or the chowks and bazars of Shahjanahabad.
    [Show full text]
  • Organic Evolution in the Work of Lewis Mumford 5
    recovering the new world dream organic evolution in the work of lewis mumford raymond h. geselbracht To turn away from the processes of life, growth, reproduc­ tion, to prefer the disintegrated, the accidental, the random to organic form and order is to commit collective suicide; and by the same token, to create a counter-movement to the irrationalities and threatened exterminations of our day, we must draw close once more to the healing order of nature, modified by human design. Lewis Mumford "Landscape and Townscape" in The Urban Prospect (New York, 1968) The American Adam has been forced, in the twentieth century, to change in time, to recognize the inexorable movement of history which, in his original conception, he was intended to deny. The national mythology which posited his existence has also threatened in recent decades to become absurd. This mythology, variously called the "myth of the garden" or the "Edenic myth," accepts Hector St. John de Crevecoeur's judgment, formed in the 1780's, that man in the New World of America is as a reborn Adam, innocent, virtuous, who will forever remain free of the evils of European history and civilization. "Nature" —never clearly defined, but understood as the polar opposite of what was perceived as the evil corruption and decadence of civilization in the Old World—was the great New World lap in which this mythic self-concep­ tion sat, the simplicity of absences which assured the American of his eternal newness. The authors who have examined this mythic complex in recent years have usually resigned themselves to its gradual senescence and demise in the twentieth century.
    [Show full text]
  • From Darwinism to Planning – Through Geddes and Back
    from darwinism to planning – through geddes and back One hundred and fifty years after the publication of On the Origin of Species, urban theorists are giving renewed attention to Darwinian interpretations of urban change, beyond those pioneered by Patrick Geddes over a century ago. Stephen Marshall and Michael Batty suggest some implications for urbanism and planning Since the publication of On the Origin of Species Patrick Geddes – biologist turned town 150 years ago this month,1 Darwin’s theory of planner evolution has not only had a revolutionary impact on Geddes originally trained as a biologist, somewhat natural history and the life sciences, but has also unconventionally under the tutelage of his mentor helped to prompt the emergence of disciplines such Thomas Huxley in the 1870s in London, where he as ecology, sociobiology and evolutionary also met Darwin. Although his interests in civics psychology. It has also given rise to evolutionary and sociology dominated his working life, his belief interpretations of topics as diverse as linguistics, in evolution as the underpinning science of cities economics and the history of technology. culminated in his book Cities in Evolution, published Evolutionary theory has even had an impact on the in 1915.2 field of town planning, principally through the Yet Geddes’ own ideology of planning was fraught pioneering work of Patrick Geddes. with tensions, apparent in the conflict between However, while Geddes’ planning ideas are well solving social problems collectively from the top known, his biological theories are much less well down and the workings of evolutionary processes understood. In fact, Geddes’ view of biological which suggest that fitness for purpose emerges evolution differed substantially from Darwin’s, and from the bottom up.
    [Show full text]
  • Las Escuelas Nacionales De Arte De La Habana
    En el límite de la arquitectura-paisaje Las Escuelas Nacionales de Arte de La Habana Escuela Técnica Superior de Arquitectura Universidad Politécnica de Madrid Departamento de Proyectos Arquitectónicos Tesis doctoral Autora: María José Pizarro Juanas, arquitecto Director: José González Gallegos, doctor arquitecto 2012 Universidad Politécnica de Madrid Escuela Técnica Superior de Arquitectura Tribunal nombrado por el Mgfco. Y Excmo. Sr. Rector de la Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, el día ................................................................. Presidente D. Vocal D. Vocal D. Vocal D. Secretario D. Realizado el acto de defensa y lectura de Tesis En el límite de la arquitectura- paisaje. Las Escuelas Nacionales de Arte de La Habana el día .................... ........................de 2012, en la Escuela Técnica Superior de Arquitectura de Madrid Califi cación: EL PRESIDENTE LOS VOCALES EL SECRETARIO A Mara, Álvaro y Óscar Indice 10 AGRADECIMIENTOS 12 RESUMEN 15 INTRODUCCIÓN 23 CRONOLOGÍA Capítulo I. HISTORIA DE UN ENCARGO: UNA ACADEMIA DE LAS ARTES PARA LOS HIJOS DE LOS TRABAJADORES 33 • UNA PARTIDA DE GOLF EN EL HAVANA COUNTRY CLUB. ENERO 1961 45 • UN VIAJE FORMATIVO. 1950ͳ1961 47 La Habana. 1950 53 Venecia. 1951 63 Milán. 1952 67 Caracas. 1957 73 La Habana. 1960 77 • LAS PREEXISTENCIAS CULTURALES: LA HABANA 1900ͳ1961 79 La Habana de principios de siglo 85 La Habana moderna. Entre la tradición y la modernidad 95 La Habana de los primeros años de la revolución Capítulo II. LOS PRINCIPIOS INTEGRADORES: PAISAJE, MATERIALIDAD Y SISTEMA CONSTRUCTIVO 105 • LA CONSTRUCCIÓN DE UN PAISAJE PARA LA REVOLUCIÓN 107 I. De la naturaleza al paisaje: el arquitecto paisajista 121 Del paisaje público al paisaje social: Olmsted y Burle-Marx 131 Del paisaje cultural a la búsqueda de la idenƟ dad nacional 145 II.
    [Show full text]
  • The Evolutionary Spirit at Work in Patrick Geddes
    Geddes Institute for Urban Research University of Dundee Working Paper [This Research Paper was developed in part to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the publication of Cities in Evolution. It formed the background for a presentation at the University on November 20th, 2015, as part of the programming that complemented the exhibition, The City is a Thinking Machine. The paper is offered here in part to explore interest in an idea advanced in the paper, namely, the call for an ‘integral biography’ of Patrick Geddes. Prospective collaborators are invited to contact [email protected]] The Evolutionary Spirit at Work In Patrick Geddes Ian Wight PhD, Senior Scholar, City Planning Faculty of Architecture, University of Manitoba <[email protected]> Abstract: A larger than life presence in his day, the influence of Patrick Geddes lives on in the present. Many fields have felt his influence and acknowledge his, often formative, contribution. What was the spirit that powered him then – to such heights, and breadths and depths; that was embodied in his thinking and acting – and ‘machine-making’ - that might be tapped afresh? In particular, what might admirers have missed or downplayed, because they were not so spiritually attuned, nor so integrated in their beliefs and convictions? What does the Geddes then, say to us today; that merits our attention; that might cause us to revise our intentions - in regard to our practice dispositions and operating systems? This presentation offers an integral perspective on such lines of questioning. Looking at Geddes afresh through an integral lens yields some intriguing insights. There have been integral, holistic influences at work, philosophically, for centuries – but they have mostly, especially in the recent century, been highly subordinate to more exclusively scientific perspectives, associated with differentiation, and reductionism.
    [Show full text]
  • Reconsidering the Geddesian Concepts of Community and Space Through the Paradigm of Smart Cities
    sustainability Review Reconsidering the Geddesian Concepts of Community and Space through the Paradigm of Smart Cities Chiara Garau *, Paola Zamperlin and Ginevra Balletto Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Architecture, DICAAR, University of Cagliari, via Marengo, 3, Cagliari 09123, Italy; [email protected] (P.Z.); [email protected] (G.B.) * Correspondence: [email protected]; Tel.: +39-070-675-5565; Fax: +39-070-675-5521 Academic Editor: Nicos Komninos Received: 21 July 2016; Accepted: 23 September 2016; Published: 30 September 2016 Abstract: The 100th anniversary of Geddes’ book “Cities in Evolution” has just passed, and the authors of this paper present a contribution towards understanding “how” Geddes might address the paradigm of the “smart city”. Geddesian concepts have greatly revolutionized the design and building of modern cities around the world. As a botanist and a scientist, Geddes incorporated the concept of the appearance of gardens when designing towns. His success in pioneering the planning of his city of residence in Scotland inspired further involvement in designing towns and the renovation of old structures and buildings. His concepts regarding the planning and development of towns and cities have created a foundation of interest in research, professionalism, and educational development. This study analyses the concepts of space, communities, and smart cities, and repositions Geddesian ideas in contemporary learning strategies in relation to the wider political spectrum associated with the paradigm of smart cities. The authors explore the relevance of his thoughts and perspectives in the current design environment geared towards the creation of smart cities. The study also evaluates the challenges of developing smart cities in relation to Patrick Geddes’s ideas.
    [Show full text]
  • Apolonija Sustersic's Artistic Research
    Apolonija Sustersic’s Artistic Research Peio Aguirre Apolonija Sustersic’s participation in Santiago de Compostela is significant for two reasons. On the one hand, her analysis of the social, political and economic conditions that shape the aspect of cities today merges with a new critical sensitivity towards the urban debate; and on the other, her artistic research infiltrates, like a virus, a web of power-based relationships involving artists, politicians, urban developers, architects and citizens, where the off-centred symbolic capital characteristic of art serves us as a study tool. One of the preconditions we encounter on studying her work is that the widely commented “powerlessness” of art with regard to apparently superior structures must be queried. De-hierarchised and revised, this “powerlessness” is not diluted in an ocean of innocuousness, but—and considering these relations of base and superstructure—functions laboriously as an antidote against the apparent supremacy of these power structures. It has often been said that what characterises capitalism is its ability to carry off its latent contradictions while reproducing the patterns and modes of production. The specific economic models used in concrete situations can be exported, transferred and adapted to other contexts. Mutation, germination, grafting, parasites and fungus can all serve as metaphors of this expansive process, which is applicable to urban economy and growth. The success or failure of repeating models, from the “Bilbao effect” to the cosmopolitanism of Barcelona, will depend on how well local and particular values are accommodated by the models into which they are inserted. The idea that globalization eliminates local cultural differences has veered towards that of a globalization firmly rooted in values such as singularity and tradition.
    [Show full text]
  • Post–War CIAM, Team X, and the Influence of Patrick Geddes Five
    Post–war CIAM, Team X, and the Influence of Patrick Geddes Five Annotations by Volker M. Welter figure 1 Valley Section, Patrick Geddes, 1909 88 Post–war CIAM, Team X, and the Influence of Patrick Geddes To consider in detail the influence of the Scottish ur- banist Patrick Geddes (1854-1932) on the architectural discourse of CIAM and Team X would require a far longer study than the pages of this bulletin allow. Instead, the following five annotations will map some basic lines of inquiry and will outline areas of Geddesian influence during the late 1940s and 1950s which are well documented, even if not well known. Geddes’s thoughts were influential on both CIAM after the sec- ond World War and on the efforts of Team X to overcome the dogmatic positions of the earlier generations of architectural mod- ernists. The first two annotations will briefly outline Geddes’s theory of the city. They are followed by three more, which illus- trate how that theory was disseminated, for example through the work of the British planner and urban theoretician Jaqueline Tyrwhitt; how one particular aspect of that theory, the idea of a heart of the city, became official policy of CIAM at the 8th con- gress in Hoddesdon in 1951; and, finally, how the British Team X member Alison and Peter Smithson reacted against the dogma- tism of CIAM 8 and resorted in their search for an alternative to a different aspect of Geddes’s theory, to the valley section. 89 First annotation: valley region and region-city Throughout his entire life Geddes was a biologist, a scientist of life.
    [Show full text]
  • Jane Jacob's Moral Explorations Sam Bass Warner, Jr
    Boston College Environmental Affairs Law Review Volume 28 Issue 4 A Symposium: Jane Jacobs & The New Urban Article 8 Ecology 1-1-2001 Jane Jacob's Moral Explorations Sam Bass Warner, Jr. Follow this and additional works at: http://lawdigitalcommons.bc.edu/ealr Part of the Law Commons Recommended Citation Sam B. Warner, Jr., Jane Jacob's Moral Explorations, 28 B.C. Envtl. Aff. L. Rev. 609 (2001), http://lawdigitalcommons.bc.edu/ealr/vol28/iss4/8 This Essay is brought to you for free and open access by the Law Journals at Digital Commons @ Boston College Law School. It has been accepted for inclusion in Boston College Environmental Affairs Law Review by an authorized editor of Digital Commons @ Boston College Law School. For more information, please contact [email protected]. JANE JACOBS'S MORAL EXPLORATIONS SAM BASS WARNER,JR.* Abstract: This essay reviews Jane Jacobs's three major books: The Death and Life of Great American Cities, Cities and the Wealth of Nations, and The Nature of Economies. It traces her development of a hierarchy of places from neighborhoods to city regions to nations and the earth. All her places are defined by their predominant social activities, not by geographical boundaries. The themes of diversity, experimentation, adaptability, and democracy inform all her writings and form the basis of her moral analysis. Jacobs's methods are contrasted to those of Lewis Mumford and the similarities of their moral concerns noted. Her latest book, a review of the basic hypotheses of ecology, successfully presents the idea that through self-correction, differentiation, and diversification, humans and their fellow organisms can best find sustain ability.
    [Show full text]
  • Building Community Across the Rural-To-Urban Transect
    Building Community across the Rural-to-Urban Transect Charles C. Bohl with Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk Eighty percent of everything ever built in America has been built in the last fifty years, and most of it is depressing, brutal, ugly, unhealthy and spiritually degrading. — James Howard Kunstler, The Geography of Nowhere1 In 2030, about half of the buildings in which Ameri- cans live, work and shop will have been built after 2000. While these projections may seem overwhelming, they also demonstrate that nearly half of what will be the built environment in 2030 doesn’t even exist yet, giving the current generation a vital opportunity to reshape future development. — Arthur C. Nelson, Toward a New Metropolis: The Opportunity to Rebuild America2 other professional tools shape the possibilities for place The 80 percent of the American built environment making and community building long before any designer described by Jim Kunstler as the “geography of nowhere” ever picks up a pencil.5 has appeared incrementally over the last half century under Among those studying American development trends, the infl uence of land use regulations and a web of codes, real estate analyst Christopher Leinberger has written standards, and business practices that now represent a that the development industry is now focused on building national system for the mass-production of sprawl. The the same nineteen real estate product types in every com- placeless character of what passes for community build- munity in America.6 These generally represent single-use, ing today is the product of an ad hoc framework that now stand-alone properties with fl oor-area ratios from 0.1 to governs making and remaking the physical form of neigh- 0.4 (i.e., where buildings cover only between 10-40 percent borhoods, cities, rural areas—and entire regions.
    [Show full text]
  • Sustainable Economic Development A+DS Report on the RTPI Sir Patrick Geddes Commemorative Lecture 2010 Sustainable Economic Development
    Sustainable Economic Development A+DS report on the RTPI Sir Patrick Geddes Commemorative Lecture 2010 Sustainable Economic Development A+DS report on the RTPI Sir Patrick Geddes Commemorative Lecture 2010 The 2010 RTPI Sir Patrick Geddes Commemorative Lecture, entitled ‘Sustainable Economic Development: towards the emerging Ecological Age’, was delivered by Peter Head OBE, Arup Director in charge of the first eco-city at Dongtan near Shanghai. The event was introduced by Stewart Stevenson MSP, Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Climate Change, and was sponsored by the Scottish Government, Scottish Water, SEPA and Architecture + Design Scotland. The lecture topic links with the Scottish government’s central purpose of creating a more successful country through increasing sustainable economic growth. A major conclusion is that Scotland is well placed to capitalise on an emergent ‘Ecological Age’. Global research and practice were used to demonstrate how public and private investment in the built environment can be more “By leaves we live. Some people effective when adopting sustainable development principles. The have strange ideas that they live by broad ranging talk considered demographic and resource pressures, money... we live not by the jingling of our coins, but by the fullness of our and identified the importance of living in harmony with the harvests.” Patrick Geddes (1888) environment. An important ‘Geddesian’ dimension to the talk was of supportive eco-systems and how sustainable economic development is interdependent across space (urban/rural) and across scales (national / regional / local). The lecture provides a timely complement to the Scottish Sustainable Communities Initiative (SSCI), and the development of Scotland’s Sustainable Land Use Strategy as required by the recent Climate Scotland 2050: Change (Scotland) Act.
    [Show full text]