Chasing the widespread interest in city living, developers are exporting mixed-use urbanism to the suburbs and exurbs as "town center" projects, prompting Jonathan O’Connell to ask if "a city can be a city if it’s built in the middle of a cornfield."
Across America, builders are increasingly catching on to the value of the urban experience, and creating town center or "lifestyle center" projects (to the tune of 398 by the end of 2011) in suburbs, exurbs, and "on farmland alongside a highway." O'Connell looks at examples from around Washington D.C., such as the Village at Leesburg, where developers, "are aiming to replicate the culture and convenience of cities, minus their traffic and crime."
"Critics of town centers," contends O'Connell, "consider them soulless corporate replicas - no
more real cities than Disney World's fairy-tale fiberglass-and-concrete
showpiece is a real castle." As it becomes "harder to distinguish what makes a city a city," does it matter if every attempt to export mixed-use urbanism to the suburbs can't replicate the feel of Williamsburg in Brooklyn or U Street in D.C.?
"Developer and D.C. native Jair Lynch warned recently that suburban
city-like centers could steal the District's thunder. 'Just like the
suburbs kicked our butt on retail in the 1980s, that's exactly what's
going to happen with these transit-oriented, urban neighborhoods that
are coming up now,' he said." After all, says O'Connell, "At one point, even the most hardened and historic urban neighborhoods were shiny and new."
Developer Anthony Lanier, who "rebuilt Georgetown block by block," has a different perspective, however. "The feeling of walking down M Street in Georgetown or on U Street cannot
be duplicated, Lanier argues, because these areas were built not by a
developer with a singular vision but by time."
FULL STORY: Can city life be exported to the suburbs?

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly
Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.

San Francisco Suspends Traffic Calming Amidst Record Deaths
Citing “a challenging fiscal landscape,” the city will cease the program on the heels of 42 traffic deaths, including 24 pedestrians.

Amtrak Rolls Out New Orleans to Alabama “Mardi Gras” Train
The new service will operate morning and evening departures between Mobile and New Orleans.

The Subversive Car-Free Guide to Trump's Great American Road Trip
Car-free ways to access Chicagoland’s best tourist attractions.

San Antonio and Austin are Fusing Into one Massive Megaregion
The region spanning the two central Texas cities is growing fast, posing challenges for local infrastructure and water supplies.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
JM Goldson LLC
Custer County Colorado
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
Jefferson Parish Government
Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Claremont