Examining New Urbanism...Design Considerations

Pedestrian Circulation & Open Space Planning Analysis

A major component of smart growth, New Urbanism and sustainable design are the integration and celebration of the pedestrian and accessible open space.

All of the developments described in this study have successfully created progressive pedestrian circulation systems and development open space plans.

The celebration of the pedestrian environment within each of these developments helps to reduce the dependence on the private automobile as the primary form of transportation.

This celebration is achieved primarily through the clear separation of uses that is enhanced by the implementation of buffers between the pedestrians and vehicles.

These buffers can take various forms that include on-street parking to act as a barrier between the pedestrian and the road, landscape buffers that provide for a cleaner pedestrian environment or by removing the automobile from the equation all together.

The open space systems of these developments help to demonstrate that developments can achieve high levels of density without sacrificing the preservation or creation of accessible open spaces within the community.

Whether it is through the creation of pocket-parks, waterfront parks or large community spaces, the importance of accessible open space cannot be ignored.

Accessible open space benefits not only the members of the immediate community, but it contributes to the improvement of the global environmental community by discouraging the unchecked development of our natural lands.

Normative qualities can be associated to the successful design of pedestrian and open space systems that will ensure their sustainability.

Pedestrian and open space systems should be planned to provide for a connected, combined, contained, consistent and re-configurable system.

Paying careful attention to these qualities will allow designers to create viable pedestrian circulation systems that will reduce the dependence on the private automobile and result in an improvement of our global environmental community.

In addition to improving the environmental community, pedestrian circulation systems enhance the opportunities to engage in inter-personal communication that helps to improve our social community.

These systems should be clearly defined and should strive to integrate multiple uses into the system.

Finally, the systems should maintain a high level of flexibility so that they may be re-configured to respond to developmental challenges that they will face over time.

Our houses are such unwieldy property that we are often imprisoned rather than housed by them. -Henry David Thoreau

Examining New Urbanism...I'on's Sustainable Qualities

Intensity of Use

The original design for I’on that included 1,240 residences, 440 of which would have been multi-family units, would have yielded a density of around five units per acre. However, the approved design produces a density yield of only 3.1 units per acre that results in a considerably less-dense development. Due to this adjustment, I’on fails to create a compact and consolidated development strategy.

The development strategy does successfully yield higher-density within each of the individual neighborhoods, but the regulations that govern the design and implementation of TNDs in Mount Pleasant severely handicaps the developments ability to provide a density yield that is considerably higher than existing residential neighborhoods in the municipality.

The blame for the lack of a compact and consolidated development plan does not rest solely on the regulations set forth by the planning commission. The developers of I’on chose to create six separate neighborhoods in the hopes of increasing the density of the development, but on a compartmentalized level.

The large lot sizes of a majority of the boroughs also contribute to its disappointing overall density yield. These large lots, coupled with the construction of sometimes unnecessarily large homes with wide side-setbacks are contributing factors to the lack of a compact and consolidated development.


Diversity of Use

I’on provides 30,000 square feet of commercial space in the development’s commercial core on the southern edge of the development. I’on, however, does not provide a diverse mix of housing types anywhere in the entire development. There are no rowhouses, townhomes or mixed-use units within the commercial core.

The only type of dwelling available at I’on is single-family detached housing, and the residences at I’on are anything but modest. Due to the small amount of commercial space, lack of multiple housing types and absence of mixed-use housing, I’on fails to create a development that is comprehensive and complementary with regards to the diversity of use of the land.

I’on does achieve some success through the planning of the development’s overall land-use plan. While the commercial core is insufficient in size to address the needs of the entire development (the commercial core covers approximately one-acre compared to the developments size of 243-acres), the development plan provides ample amounts of open space throughout the development by creating small pocket-parks within each individual neighborhood.

In addition to open space planning, I’on plans to open a school and two churches within the development in the future, however there is ongoing litigation concerning the legalities of implementing these uses.


Extent of Use

I’on’s 243-acre site has been carefully planned to ensure that existing natural ecosystems will not be disturbed by development and the boundaries of I’on are clearly defined to ensure that the neighborhood will not sprawl-out into the landscape. Because of this, I’on has been successful at creating a contained and consistent development with regards to the extent of use of the land.

Many opponents of I’on felt that the development would have a significant negative impact on the existing neighborhoods, but that has not been true to this point. The effort to protect the natural features of the site is one of the most successful facets of the overall design strategy.

The walking trails that wind throughout the development, many of which are in sensitive portions of the overall ecosystem, have a minimum impact of the environment. The only foreseeable issue that I’on may face with regards to extent of use of the land is whether or not additional commercial space will be required as the development grows in population and where the additional commercial space will be located.

People should think things out fresh and not just accept conventional terms and the conventional way of doing things. -R. Buckminster Fuller

Examining New Urbanism...Communication

For the purposes of this research endeavor, communication can also be referred to as transportation. Sustainable developments encourage inter-personal communication in the design of the transportation network of the development. This is usually achieved through the promotion of pedestrian movement over the reliance on the private automobile.

In addition to pedestrian movement, various forms of public transportation may be utilized to encourage inter-personal communication within the development. The communication system of a sustainable development embraces the normative qualities of providing a connected and combined system of movement within the boundaries of the development.

The connected and combined communication plan for a development is one of the most important elements that contribute to an increase in social interaction between the users of the development. Through the implementation of a connected pedestrian circulation system, opportunities for greater amounts of inter-personal communication can be achieved. This increase helps to unite the residents of the development while encouraging higher levels of social diversity throughout the community as a whole.

A communication plan that is both connected and combined reduces the amount of land that will be disturbed in the construction of the vehicular-uses system. Coupled with the reduction in land consumption, the combined and connected plan aims to decrease environmental impacts by encouraging pedestrian circulation in favor of automobile use through a clear separation of uses, reducing the travel-time required for each automobile trip by providing a more efficient transportation network and therefore reducing carbon-based emissions and finally by encouraging the interaction between users by providing access to open-spaces as well as naturally preserved areas.

It is through the connected and combined system that a development can achieve a higher level of economic sustainability. The elimination of the costs associated with the construction and maintenance of excessive roadways provides the development with the opportunity to invest the capital required into other aspects of the development such as open-space planning and the construction of civic structures.

Residents also benefit from a combined and connected communication network through a decreased dependence on the private automobile as well as decreased operational expenses associated with private automobile ownership.

I want my children to be able to meet and play and communicate with many other children on their own, not only when they are driven somewhere. I want them to grow up in an environment that is not just a place where people sleep but where people work... and where people enjoy themselves. -Moshe Safdie

Examining New Urbanism...Extent of Use

The extent of use of the land required to implement a sustainable development should strive to maximize the land upon which it is built. This will ensure that as the development grows in terms of population and uses, it will not consume more land than is necessary.

This is an important factor in ensuring a development’s sustainability as well as a tool in combating the negative effects of suburban sprawl. To maximize sustainability, a development should strive to achieve the normative qualities associated with extent of use by formulating a plan that is contained and consistent.

A contained and consistent development plan limits the amount of land ultimately utilized for the implementation of the development; however it does not limit the amount of growth that can occur within the determined bounds of the development. Suburban sprawl does nothing to address the extent of use of the land and encourages low-density growth as a re-active planning measure as opposed to a pro-active measure.

The contained and consistent plan ensures that a larger and more diverse community matrix will evolve through the life of the development. Additionally, by providing clear boundaries to denote the place itself encourages the community to develop its character in an organic manner as opposed to a place with no clear boundaries that has a difficult time identifying itself.

As previously mentioned, the contained and consistent plan encourages a certain level of social interaction as well as the creation of a unique social character. Providing boundaries for the development will ensure that uses will remain in close proximity to each other and will encourage inter-personal communication and interaction. This helps to ensure the communities ability to sustain itself on a social level through the continuous interaction of people who belong to the same place but may originate from completely different backgrounds or be members of different socio-economic groups.

From an environmental standpoint, a contained and consistent plan maximizes the amount of land that will be consumed through the implementation of the development. This does not limit the ultimate population of the development nor does it limit the amount of diverse uses located within the development.

What it does limit is the overall amount of land the development requires in order to achieve a higher level of sustainability. The utilization of the existing land that is available to the development throughout its evolution is an excellent tool in combating the sprawling nature of developments that consume new land as they see fit.

The economic benefits of the contained and consistent plan are that the development will have the opportunity to retain the positive aspects of the commercial uses located in the development. The boundaries of the development allow for the continued growth, both physical and economic, of the development while ensuring that the services provided within the development will probably not relocate to an area that is not easily accessible.

While the notion that businesses will not relocate is not totally guaranteed, as the population of the development increases within the boundaries of the development the consumer-base available to businesses will most likely increase within close proximity to the commercial uses. This helps to ensure the economic sustainability of the businesses by being located to a “built-in” customer base.

There is an increasing awareness of the interrelatedness of things. We are becoming less prone to accept an immediate solution without questioning its larger implications. -Arthur Erickson

Examining New Urbanism...Diversity of Use

Within the context of our study, diversity of use refers to the overall land-use plan associated with the design of the development. Developments that embrace a diversity of use are often referred to as mixed-use developments or they have designated a portion of the development as mixed-use.

In order to measure a development’s level of diversity of use, empirical formulas don’t provide a clear methodology for determining the diversity of a development. Utilizing analytical methods helps to determine how diverse the use of land is and what level of sustainability the development can expect to achieve.

The normative qualities that can be applied to the study of the diversity of use of a development are whether or not the development has been planned to provide for a comprehensive and complimentary land-use plan.

A comprehensive land-use plan details the scope of the intended uses that will be located within a development. Addressing the needs of all the residents and users of the development in order to promote the community’s sustainability involves the mixing of uses in order to ensure that goods and services will be readily available to all portions of the development.

These uses should be sited in a manner that is complimentary to one another to help promote pedestrian movement within the development as well as providing a safer environment by ensuring that there will be “eyes on the street”. Sprawl discourages the implementation of land-use plans that promote a diversity of uses and results in a higher reliance on the use of the private automobile.

The sustainable development that utilizes a comprehensive and complimentary use of the land encourages a higher level of social interaction within the development. The mixing of residential and commercial uses ensures that users can interact with each other in close proximity to their residences.

Often times, the mixed-use portion of the developments become one of the primary landmarks in the community due to the fact that every resident and user of the development engage in social interaction on a face-to-face basis within this portion. This inter-personal communication can only be achieved by siting complimentary uses in close proximity one another.

The reduction of environmental impacts through the implementation of a comprehensive and complimentary land-use plan help to ensure that the development will be able to achieve a higher level of sustainability than a typical sprawl-inspired development. The amount of land consumed in order to provide commercial uses within the development is one of the most significant advantages associated with the implementation of a comprehensive and complimentary land-use plan. Providing accessible open-spaces in which residents may engage and interact with the natural environment is another benefit of a sustainable land-use plan.

The economic development of a design that successfully promotes sustainability through its land-use plan will not only benefit the development itself, but the larger economic community as well. Through the implementation of a comprehensive and complimentary plan that ensures a diversity of uses, business owners can reduce operating costs and maximize profits by providing goods and services that will be essential to the development as well as more affordable to the residents due to the reduction of the cost of transportation that the consumers incur when obtaining these products in a sprawl-driven neighborhood design.

In the long run, men hit only what they aim at. Therefore, they had better aim at something high. -Henry David Thoreau

Examining New Urbanism...Intensity of Use

Intensity of Use

Intensity of use refers to the overall density of the development, specifically as to how the development utilizes the land. The empirical measurement of density for housing developments is expressed as housing units per acre of land. While the use of the empirical measurement of density will be important to our study, there are design factors that will need to be addressed when determining the sustainable qualities of the density of the four developments.

The siting of uses and their proximity to one another is one of the qualities that we will explore when assessing the intensity of use within each development. For analytical purposes two qualities have been identified when determining density within developments. The normative qualities associated with the intensity of use within the developments are whether or not the developments have been planned to be compact and consolidated in order to promote sustainability.

A compact and consolidated development promotes sustainability on multiple levels while addressing the three factors discussed earlier. Providing a compact and consolidated development encourages a higher level of social interaction between the residents and users of the development. Suburban sprawl actually deters social interaction between residents by siting residences on larger plots of land and lowering the overall density of a neighborhood.

Sprawl promotes this lower density due to the fact that individualism is the over-riding principle behind typical suburban development. A high-density development encourages and embraces the notion of civic pride; in that the uses are located within close proximity to each other and the residents feel that they not only live in the development but they are an integral part of the neighborhood and the overall development.

From an environmental standpoint, a compact and consolidated development consumes less land for the overall development and therefore reduces the negative impacts associated with sprawling development. This reduction of negative impacts is attributed to the encouragement of pedestrian forms of transportation in order to access portions of the development.

A truly sustainable higher-density development reduces the dependence on private automobile use thereby reducing the negative environmental impacts associated with automobile use. Suburban sprawl encourages the use of the private automobile through the implementation of low-density designs that separate uses and increase the distance required to travel in order to utilize different facilities.

This emphasis on individualism can be directly attributed to the ideals that capitalism was based upon, private ownership and individual freedoms. While these freedoms are essential for a capitalist economic system, it detracts from the democratic ideals of equality and civic pride.

Sustainable developments encourage economic diversity by providing a compact use of the land that reduces the cost of purchasing or renting a residence due to the fact that more residences may be located on a smaller amount of land.

The heart is the chief feature of a functioning mind. -Frank Lloyd Wright

Greenwashing and Sprawl...Part Two

Discussions about the tangible and intangible costs of sprawl can be a bit exhausting, in addition to being a bit overwhelming. As we have mentioned, this could be a contributing factor as to why the problem has slipped to the back of the national consciousness.

But all hope is not lost, Frodo.

As this past year's election shows, when a dedicated group of people demand a change from the establishment, that change will take place. That being said, we must examine how the housing and development industry utilizes the cloak of greenwashing.

Firstly, when a developer or home builder claims that they are building a truly "green" community, ask yourself one question; how do you get to this community?

If you are required to drive your automobile to this community, guess what, it ain't green. Regardless of how many EnergyStar rated appliances the home has, or how many rain barrels are collecting runoff from the house; the fact that private transportation means were required to reach the destination disqualifies the development from joining the ranks of the sprawl-busters.

Secondly, if the design and layout of the "green" community includes wide, circuitous streets; cul-de-sacs, bulbs, elbows; and lacks on-street parking; guess what, it ain't green.

Study after study, the notion that wide, curvy streets with no on-street parking have been shown to be about as unfriendly to the pedestrian as humanly possible. Not only that, these extra-generous swaths of petroleum-based asphalt aren't exactly the most environmentally-sensitive or friendly. A community which is truly "green" features multiple levels of protection for pedestrians, multiple pedestrian or bicycle-accessible destinations which help fulfill a resident's daily needs and multiple opportunities for social interaction between residents.

Social interaction between residents is one of the most important elements for the creation of equitable and sustainable communities. It is through the creation of a strong "sense of community", ensuring that a connected, cohesive community will some day supplant the constructed neighborhood development.

(Note: Just because a developer or designer designs, constructs or creates a neighborhood does not mean that they have created a community.)

(Another quick note: This is by no means intended to be a comprehensive list of all of the elements of a truly equitable and sustainable community development theory, we just need to explore the three major areas in which developers and designers utilize the cloak of greenwashing)

Finally, examine the location of the new development not from the aspect of what means of transportation was utilized to reach the development, but with regards to what was the prior land-use. If the developer needed to change the zoning designation or amend the municipality's comprehensive plan in order to obtain approval for the project; it ain't green.

(Note: I will concede that at times the comprehensive plans are not always the best guides for the organic evolution of development patterns, but more often than not developers base their land-use recommendations on Hyper-Capitalist ideals that allow them to get the "best and highest use" of a tract of land.)

Ask yourself; are there complimentary adjacent land-uses? Are there multiple housing types within the community that will foster upward and lateral mobility for a variety of socio-economic levels? Are there complimentary and connected land-uses within the well-defined boundaries of the development? Are there open-spaces within each neighborhood of the development that will foster a connection to the landscape and positive social interaction?

Let us think back to the Garden City planning ideal. In the Garden City, there are a variety of complimentary and connected land-uses, all of which help to foster the creation of a sustainable community matrix. This does not necessarily mean that Garden Cities are the answer.

Once again, we are faced with the need for a system-wide paradigm shift with regards to our housing development ideals. This is an expression which I have been using quite often in our exploration of sustainability and sustainable development.

Let us think back to the election; the collective conscious of the nation demanded that our habits and practices take a new direction. The same change must be made with regards to our development and consumption habits and practices.

In other words, if we do not demand that a change take place, it won't.

And once again, Hyper-Capitalists need not worry about their ability to generate profits from the development and creation of equitable and sustainable communities. Their ability to generate profits from the creation of connected, complimentary communities will practically be guaranteed if we demand that these types of developments are what the collective conscious of the nation desires.

“We abuse land because we regard it as a commodity belonging to us. When we see land as a community to which we belong, we may begin to use it with love and respect.” - Aldo Leopold, 1949. A Sand County Almanac

Complimentary clucking...

What then, is the ultimate goal of comprehensive planning? Especially when it relates to integrating the principles of sustainability within the overall context of the plan?

The creation of a successful comprehensive plan is dependant upon the planning of compact, consolidated, connected and consistent land uses which are arranged (or identified, planned, sited,etc...) throughout the development area (in this case the term development is used to describe the overall evolution and development of a large community, i.e. a town as opposed to a single-family development). There should be a diverse mix of uses throughout the entire planning area, although those uses must be complimentary and consistent.

Nearly all of the modern zoning codes, comprehensive plans and unified development ordinances take into consideration complimentary and consistent land uses designations. The finest example of this segregation of uses is the in almost all municipalities in the United States, land owners are forbidden from siting an adult-oriented business in close proximity to a church or school (which in the case of the church, it is qiute ironic considering the company that Jesus kept, this means you Mary Magdalene!).

When considering the integration of agricultural uses within an urban context in order to promote a self-sustaining community, there is no better example than that of the Garden City. The Garden City concept is a utopian planning ideal created by Ebeneezer Howard in the early nineteenth century, as a response to the negative effects of the Industrial Revolution.

The Garden City concept established a central core to the city, a residential "belt" and an agricultural "belt" on the outmost portion of the city's development area. All of these uses were to be connected through greenbelts (or greenways as they are called today) as well as a light rail system that not only connected points within the city, but it connected graden cities to one another.

Two English cities have been planned according to Howard's vision, Letchworth Garden City and Welwyn Garden City. While planning utopias are exactly that, these two cities have managed to adhere and utilize Howard's original vision for the logical, sustainable and equitable development of urban, suburban and rural areas as one comprehensive whole.

This is the type of approach we, both locally and nationally, should wholly embrace to ensure that the needs of the current generation shall be met without compromising the ability of future generations to meet thier own needs.

“We shall never achieve harmony with land any more than we shall achieve justice or liberty for people. In these higher aspirations the important thing is not to achieve, but to strive.” - Aldo Leopold.