The UK's 'Ciabatta Cities' Syndrome

Urban degeneration marches gnarled hand in chain store glove with redevelopment, writes the Guardian's architecture critic.

1 minute read

September 24, 2004, 9:00 AM PDT

By Chris Steins @planetizen


"No one knows, or is able to explain adequately, quite what one of these aggressive new sustainable communities is, or how you might build one. What we do know is that a local community capable of sustaining itself needs to agree certain shared values and institutions, and be supported by structures and services held willingly in common. What is disturbing is the fact that, while the debate on urban regeneration increases in volume, an ever-growing number of existing communities is being made unsustainable by policies and business practices encouraged, accidentally or otherwise, by the political parties."

Thanks to Wilson Smith

Thursday, September 23, 2004 in The Guardian Unlimited

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I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

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