Jane Jacobs' Complex Legacy
Wickens considers the extent to which Jacobs' ideas are understood by contemporary planners and politicians. Part of the problem, he points out, is that
"she [will] never be widely understood, in part because news media...increasingly [opt] for simplistic explanations [and t]here are more intertwined concepts in The Death and Life than any newspaper story can outline.
But page 150...lists four conditions for any part of a city to generate 'exuberant diversity': that districts have a mix of primary uses; that most blocks be short; that buildings be of various ages; and that the area have sufficient density. It was indispensable that these areas accommodate various levels of income and commercial rents.
But simply to list the factors without the examples and complicated dynamics found in the book is almost to miss the point."
Topics
- Every Parking Lot, Visualized
- First Mile-Last Mile, Intermodalism, and Making Public Transit More Attractive
- To Learn About a City, Visit Its Neighborhoods
- An Interactive Map of the World's Climate in 2100
- A Boring Lesson for Planners
- Like City, Like Stadium
- Could Baby Boomers Make Room for Millennials?
- Study: 'Eyes on the Street' Have Real Value for Neighborhood Safety
- Big Transit Plans Approved for Richmond, Virginia
- Are Form-Based Design Standards Easier Than Form-Based Codes?
- Manhattan's Midtown East Rezoning Wins Critical Approval
- Trump Tells Residents to Leave Upstate New York
- New Pedestrian Crossing Between California and Mexico Opening Next Week
- Berkeley Wants to Fund a Tent City for the Homeless
- California's Business-Friendly, Bipartisan Approach to Climate Change
- Portland's 'Adaptive Biketown' Sets a New Standard for Access to Mobility
- Big Investment Firms Are Dominating the Landlord Business
- Long-Awaited Hartford to New Haven Commuter Rail Expected in 2018
- Art in the Face of Gentrification
- 10 Facts That Explain Crosswalks
