After reading the thread on Suburbia with much interest, I wonder how other C-D members feel about the New Urbanism trend.
The work of Jane Jacobs, who was mentioned in that thread, has been used by supporters of New Urbanism and Traditional Neighborhood Design (TND).
Links to TND and New Urban Neighborhoods
After living in a nineteenth century city neighborhood in Providence for years, my husband and I recently relocated to Charleston. We were hoping to find something similar to what we left, which was a walkable, tight-knit community of 100+ year old small homes and local businesses. We had a tough time with that, because the historic sections of Charleston are prohibitively expensive for us at this point.
We were uncomfortable with the thought of moving to a typical car-centered suburban development, and wanted more of a "neighborhood" than a subdivision, if that makes sense. We ended up settling in a new urban-like community, and love it so far.
From the outside, it does have a master-planned and slightly cookie-cutterish feel to it, but a closer look shows that it's not so different from the historic neighborhood we left in RI. We are able to walk to the market, independent restaurants, and locally-owned shops. Parks are everywhere, and the streets are built on a human (walkable) scale. Lots are small, so neighbors get to know one another easily. And the home styles follow the Charleston vernacular, adding a timeless feel to the area.
If it weren't so clean, it would be hard to believe that there isn't a building here under 10 years old. And, unlike in my old neighborhood, I don't think I'll have to deal with any robberies.
So, are master-planned New Urbanist neighborhoods as upsetting to folks as standard spaghetti street subdivisions? Did I drink some kool-aid along the way that has made me forget my formerly urban bias?
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