Op-Ed Critiques the Pro-Density Arguments of Denver Planners

"With Mayor Michael Hancock about to be sworn in for a second term and seven new council members soon taking their seats, it may be a good time to hit the reset button on the debate over the Denver's growing density," according to an op-ed by Vincent Carroll.

To start a new conversation, Carroll writes, city leadership should cease the "us vs. them" rhetoric that pits density against sprawl: "a cliche that is invoked repeatedly and is, as it happens, grossly misleading."

Interestingly, Carroll relies on the example of Los Angeles to illustrate how misinformed the debate over density can become. So while Los Angeles gets cast as the dystopian outcome of sprawl to defend dense projects, the characterization does not reflect the reality.

Carroll then goes on to voice support for the potential that "nearby residents who loudly protest" might know better than planners that density doesn't belong in certain neighborhoods. Thus the op-ed becomes less of a reset to a shared middle ground, as it is a critique of a particular pro-density argument.