I once met a Norwegian planner who called fragmented peri-urban development "piffle"... I assume she meant the Enlish word meaning "nonsense".. unless piffle means something else in Norwegian.
I once met a Norwegian planner who called fragmented peri-urban development "piffle"... I assume she meant the Enlish word meaning "nonsense".. unless piffle means something else in Norwegian.
I'll take credit for the term classical urban renewal as used to differentiate the mid-century slum clearance from the rebuilding done now. I came up with this in light of people insisting that the phrase "urban renewal" be used to describe applications of New Urbanism, despite the fact that the phrase "urban renewal" has a very specific connotation to planners.
I'd like to think it was me who coined PedShed in the early naughties. If not 'coined', then 'popularized'.
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Give a man a gun, and he can rob a bank. Give a man a bank, and he can rob the world.
I was feeling bad because I couldn't think of anything and I felt my life was wasted, but then I reviewed that motivational poster thread and remembered my architectural criticism from a few years ago:
Stalag Luft Suburban: Residential or commercial developments where the dominant architectural feature is guard towers. In residential areas the guard towers are often freestanding at entrances. In commercial areas the guard towers are often built into the stip centers as a fake parapet or fake second floor on a corner. Stalag Luft Suburban is a more militaristic extension of the common clock tower or lighthouse theme, but without any active uses in the tower other than observation. Also related to the "giant wall and oversize guard shack entrance" residential areas, but with a prison-camp instead of protective vibe. May be symptomatic of overdosing on CPTED theories.
Actual rendering from a local project. Note the additional pair of towers in the distance.
This might be a good time to borrow a planning term from across the pond, regeneration, to distinguish current revitalization efforts from old-fashioned slum clearance urban renewal.Originally posted by bsteckler
Growth for growth's sake is the ideology of the cancer cell. -- Edward Abbey
Alternative Lifestyle Center
When a developer proposes a "Lifestyle Center" development but is unable to secure the required tenants to meet the Lifestyle Center definition, scrapes the project, and proposes a revised development. Signs you have an Alternative Lifestyle Center: the planned Crate & Barrel is now a Cracker Barrel.
I'd like to add to the list: Princess and the Prius. I'll start off with the Hans Christian Anderson fairy tale, The Princess and the Pea.
Princess and the Prius is the similar phenomenon, only involving traffic. It's the belief that a tiny, mathematically insignificant increase in traffic from a small project will be as noticeable and unbearable as the pea under 20 mattresses that kept a princess awake in a childhood fairy tale. For example, residents of an established neighborhood with hundreds of homes may demand traffic studies for a very small infill project of 20 houses, believing that the traffic generated will result in unbearable congestion, attract a criminal element, hurt property values, and so on.The story tells of a prince who wants to marry a princess, but is having difficulty finding a suitable wife. Something is always wrong with those he meets, and he cannot be certain they are real princesses. One stormy night .. a young woman drenched with rain seeks shelter in the prince's castle. She claims to be a princess, so the prince's mother decides to test their unexpected guest by placing a pea in the bed she is offered for the night, covered by 20 mattresses and 20 featherbeds. In the morning the guest tells her hosts—in a speech colored with double entendres—that she endured a sleepless night, kept awake by something hard in the bed; which she is certain has bruised her. The prince rejoices. Only a real princess would have the sensitivity to feel a pea through such a quantity of bedding.
Here's a recent real world example: the belief that a proposed 12,000 square foot Trader Joe's in suburban Buffalo will have a significant impact on traffic on a street with an AADT of 34,500, in an area that now has over two million square feet of retail space.
Growth for growth's sake is the ideology of the cancer cell. -- Edward Abbey
hehe. This reminds me of a project I worked on where were at cross-purposes with the client over whether or not the PUD in question should be gated or not (late in the process, their marketing people told them they needed a gate, as the architects and planners we refused to design them one and cautioned that they'd never be able to get it permitted anyway). We reached a compromise for tower-like posts and a manned guard station but without a physical gate or actual restrictions on access.
A good example of that was the planned redevelopment of the 1950s-era Cedar Center shopping center in South Euclid, Ohio. It was originally planned to be an upscale, mixed use, pedestrian-oriented lifestyle center.
The Great Recession hit just as the site was cleared. Here's how it ultimately turned out.
If Cedar Center had a jingle, it would probably be this.
Growth for growth's sake is the ideology of the cancer cell. -- Edward Abbey
Nice one!
A recent case of infill development on the border between an urban single-family neighborhood (sic) and the growing urban mid- and high-rise mixed-use area has led me to think about "Amberville" for neighborhoods which are supposed to be enjoyed by their landowners, and admired from the outside, but never, ever changed.
When I worked in Arizona the residents of the many nearby Del Web communities (Sun City, Sun City West, Sun City Grand) dubbed themselves "God's Waiting Room" They all knew they were there to have a good time and move on.
I'm not one of the more creative planners out there (except when using the flying monkey solution) so I could use some help putting a term to this one...
I believe like all residents that apartment dwellers are all criminals. Many of us have lived in apartments and so were criminals. Once we moved out we were pardoned of all our wrong doings and now like an ex-smoker attack an apartment project.
You haven't ignored the last of me!
1979, during my first planning (technician) gig. I was car-free, and really hated using the city pool vehicle for any reason.
Wrote an article about it, published in Bicycle Forum magazine.
Property Owners (Mortgagers usually) Perogative?
I'm pretty sure that Cardinal coined the term "Goditorium," a mega-church building.
A nuisance may be merely a right thing in the wrong place — like a pig in the parlor instead of the barnyard.
I coined Nerd Surge as the antonym for Brain Drain.
example: New Orleans has experience an economic and demographic shift thanks in part to the Nerd Surge after Katrina.
OK, there are two that I feel I played some role in:
Architectural Determinism: The concept that, if you just get the design right, all the other planning issues will take care of themselves. The Hope VI program in the 1990's was one example (just design the housing right and the problems of public housing will go away). New Urbanism when taken straight with no chaser is another.
Old Urbanism: The urban fabric we already have and should mend.
I thought i have been using that one since 2003. Another one of my favorites. "The new, old look"
Replicating designs from the turn of the century circa 1900's with new faux material and finishes.
Brotip #2418 - know when it's time to switch from being "the little engine that could" to the "little engine that said, 'f*ck it'"
I think we have all used Old Urbanism at one point or another.
We hope for better things; it will arise from the ashes - Fr Gabriel Richard 1805
How about hippie urbanism? Some defining traits:
* Intentional lack of property maintenance, or lack of polish and attention to details -- weeds poking through the driveway, foundation, etc.
* Front yard and tree lawn areas have flower/vegetable gardens, or grow wild. Mowed/trimmed grass and formal landscaping is rare.
* Vacant lots remain so, not because it's urban prairie, but because the owners won't sell despite high demand and high land prices. They place a very high value on their "open space", veggie garden, etc, despite choosing to live in a dense urban setting.
* New development often incorporates "natural" random setbacks, building orientation, and so on for its own sake.
* Dirt or gravel driveways, even in an urban setting.
* Plenty of community gardens and urban permaculture.
Generally, blurry lines between nature and the built environment on a micro scale, despite its urban setting.
Examples of hippie urbanism: Fall Creek in Ithaca; South Austin; Nederland, Colorado.
Growth for growth's sake is the ideology of the cancer cell. -- Edward Abbey
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