Hills: More + or - for cities (neighborhoods, car, bike)

[edsg25]

Hills add beauty to a city but they also create problems.

think of American cities that are the most hilly, including but not limited to San Francisco, Los Angeles, Seattle, Cincinnati, & Pittsburgh…

…and on the whole, do you think the hills lean more toward benefitting cities or adversely affecting them?

[Ghengis]

never cared as much for hills as I do dales, much easier to ride my bike to

[kidphilly]

Originally Posted by edsg25

Hills add beauty to a city but they also create problems.

think of American cities that are the most hilly, including but not limited to San Francisco, Los Angeles, Seattle, Cincinnati, & Pittsburgh…

…and on the whole, do you think the hills lean more toward benefitting cities or adversely affecting them?

depends - when its all hills it is not a great thing functionally

LA has a lot of flat areas with peaks, which are visually dramatic while still allowing for easier logistics.

Pittsburgh and SF (lessor extent) have hills that can be quite onerous

I like the view they afford, example LA, SF, Seattle Pittsburgh has them but are so tight they impede the view and functionality in many ways moreso then they enhance the vistas an amenity

In general being to hilly without larger flat spaces is detrimental IMHO -( ie Morgantown WV and Pittsburgh (now not saying all bad but the tight and fairly undulation can be daunting) with their logistical challenges

SF has them too but also has more relatively flat area with peaks sprouting if that makes sense

[Tex?Il?]

pro hills in cities here.

[bluecarebear]

They are nice until it snows.

[MLSFan]

Pro hills... while being in the pancake state

hills are nice, only con is generally for the people that are unfit to walk them... but they aren't outside hiking

I like flat country sides though, but hilly cities are nicer

[aquest1]

Hills are great! And they often times promote density and denser development. And as another plus, they're pretty and you have some really visually interesting places that result from it. Hills++++

[eschaton]

Here's how I see it:

Pros:
Provide nice vistas (from the top) and backdrops (from a distance)
Help to provide a "sense of place" in that they create concrete barriers between neighborhoods
Arguably limit sprawl

Cons:

Hard to bike up

IMHO the pros win out.

[cheese plate]

Originally Posted by bluecarebear

They are nice until it snows.

Agreed. Duluth MN is pretty, but it's murder there in the winter.

[ATUMRE75]

I wouldn't say hills help or hurt a city. I prefer hills over flat terrain. They can be a challenge in icy weather, hiking, or driving a car with a manual transmission. The vantage point you get on hills makes it well worth it IMHO.