massurban: Urbanland:  “How to Make Suburbs Work Like Cities Successful strategies for creatively using and adapting infrastructure to support more dense development in America’s suburbs are highlighted in Shifting Suburbs: Reinventing Infrastructure for Compact Development, a new ULI report. (Download Shifting Suburbs here.) by Trisha Riggs. February 7, 2013 The report focuses on the growing trend for suburbs to be redesigned and redeveloped to be more people oriented than automobile dependent, offering more options for walking, cycling, or using public transit to get from one place to another. With the U.S. population anticipated to rise by 95 million over the next 30 years, and with the vast majority of this growth expected to occur in the suburbs of metropolitan areas, the challenge of providing the appropriate infrastructure to encourage compact growth has never been more important, notes Shifting Suburbs. Specifically, suburban arterials and first-ring suburbs would benefit from the development of new approaches to solving infrastructure and land use challenges, it says.” Photo: Urbanland Retrofitting the suburbs is the next step in urban planning. We all know that the traditional suburban model is unsustainable. The subdivision and cul de sac system creates a trap. You can’t leave without a car, you don’t feel a strong sense of neighborhood, and you waste a lot of energy. 

massurban:

Urbanland: 

“How to Make Suburbs Work Like Cities

Successful strategies for creatively using and adapting infrastructure to support more dense development in America’s suburbs are highlighted in Shifting Suburbs: Reinventing Infrastructure for Compact Development, a new ULI report. (Download Shifting Suburbs here.)

by Trisha Riggs. February 7, 2013

The report focuses on the growing trend for suburbs to be redesigned and redeveloped to be more people oriented than automobile dependent, offering more options for walking, cycling, or using public transit to get from one place to another. With the U.S. population anticipated to rise by 95 million over the next 30 years, and with the vast majority of this growth expected to occur in the suburbs of metropolitan areas, the challenge of providing the appropriate infrastructure to encourage compact growth has never been more important, notes Shifting Suburbs. Specifically, suburban arterials and first-ring suburbs would benefit from the development of new approaches to solving infrastructure and land use challenges, it says.”

Photo: Urbanland

Retrofitting the suburbs is the next step in urban planning. We all know that the traditional suburban model is unsustainable. The subdivision and cul de sac system creates a trap. You can’t leave without a car, you don’t feel a strong sense of neighborhood, and you waste a lot of energy. 

3 months ago · 12 notes · Reblogged from massurban

The Dead Suburban Mall

Yesterday I went to the salon to chop my hair off (from mid-back to chin-length bob, in case you’re wondering). My long-time stylist works out of a salon that’s in a dying suburban mall and every time I go I see more and more stores that are closed. The only things keeping the mall open are the anchor stores and movie theatre. Ten years ago when my family first moved to the area that mall was always packed, but now the ginormous parking lot is mostly empty. Contrasted with the vibrancy of downtown, which is full of cute shops in converted Victorian era homes set on a walkable grid system, it’s a testament to the direction we’re moving (or returning to).

9 months ago · 2 notes

Oh Suburbia and Your Dysfunctionality

I’m hanging out at my parents’ house for a few weeks before starting school. This is the first time in several years when I’ve been in town for anything other than a short holiday visit, and is therefore the first time in quite a while that I’ve tried to do things like walk and bike.

Walking downtown I couldn’t figure out why I couldn’t get a walk signal. Turns out the walk signal won’t go unless you call for it.

I miss the city (or at least suburbs not exclusively designed for cars).

10 months ago · 0 notes

Retrofitting the 'Burbs: Lessons from Europe

I truly believe that the new frontier in urban planning is retrofitting the suburbs to create walkable communities and town centers. Not “town-centers” that are really shopping malls and full or parking lots, but to revitalize downtowns and create better public spaces.

1 year ago · 8 notes