Urban planners and developers in the Western United States could learn a lot from Munich, Germany, argues one online commentator.
"Many, who begin reading this might have a knee-jerk reaction and think "liberal-waco" on his soap-box preaching Socialism.
However, my agenda in this piece isn't to offer Socialistic solutions for the United States. I firmly believe the United States can maintain a free-market economy, lower taxes and increase living standards, by implementing many ideas found in sprawl-free cities like Munich. Its clear in looking at many Western Cities, where substantial growth has occurred in the past fifty-years, compared to Eastern Cities, where substantial growth occurred prior to WWII-- that the Western United States is growing with very little regard for land conservation or smart growth policy.
As a result of European land conservation, many of their cities both large and small are centralized, dense, vibrant and full of slender people walking around town doing their errands. I first witnessed European land-use on a bicycle touring trip from Paris to Amsterdam. This trip made me wonder why our cities are not working to preserve our open-spaces, views and mountains, especially in such a naturally beautiful place as Utah? Why instead are we so car convienience oriented? Where the top priorities are freeway infrastructure resulting complete car dependence."
Thanks to Richard Markosian
Comments
Land supply
Interesting story about munich.
But one should never forget that munich somehow forgot to create new residential spaces during the last 30 year. The result is that every year new students cannot find a place to live and have to stay in gymnasiums for weeks. At the same time, real estate prices are so high and offers so few that many people have to commute from far away cities every day.