JANE JACOB'S RECIPE FOR URBAN DESIGN
1. Mixed Primary Uses
“The district, and indeed as many of its internal parts as possible, must serve more than one primary function; preferably more than two. These must ensure that presence of people who go outdoors on different schedules and are in the place for different purposes, but who are able to use many facilities in common.”
Primary
uses are the reasons that people go to a district, like a thriving
entertainment hub. Secondary diversity accounts for all of the
enterprises that move into an area to support the primary uses, like
restaurants and coffee shops. The secret to a successful mix of uses is to keep the streets busy at all times of the day with all kinds of people. In order to achieve this, an area needs to draw 9–5 office workers,
daytime shoppers, students, restaurant patrons, and residents.
A
single-use business district without secondary diversity is doomed,
since the area will be deserted after 5pm. After the district becomes
vacant, businesses move away to be nearer to clients and draw more
desirable talent. However, a business district that is also host to
residential units, restaurants, shops, and theaters can expect to thrive
and evolve.
2. Short Blocks
“Most blocks must be short, that is, streets and opportunities to turn corners must be frequent.”
Short blocks ensure that pedestrians aren’t limited to an isolated
route. Allowing frequent opportunities to turn the corner and explore a
new path can enrich the social life of a district and help businesses in
all locations flourish. This gives the new independent grocery store or the new
bookstore a fighting chance of attracting customers, thus strengthening the
economy overall.
3. Mixed-Aged Buildings
“The district must mingle buildings that vary in age and condition, including a good proportion of old ones so that they vary in economic yield they must produce. This mingling must be fairly close-grained.”
Buildings
must be mixed in age and condition so that people of all socioeconomic
backgrounds are able to make the neighborhood home and participate in
its economic life. Aging buildings are necessary in order to be able to
host non-profits, artist studios, and affordable housing units. Older
buildings and lower rents create opportunities for news businesses to
gain their footing.
Too
often, when a neighborhood is ‘up-and-coming,’ developers seek to tear
down what exists and install sleek new and often expensive architecture. This
displaces lower-income tenants, is visually repetitive, and alters the
character that caused the neighborhood to flourish in the first place. New development is important, but space must be left for economic
diversity.
4. Maintain Population Density
“There must be a sufficiently dense concentration of people, for whatever purposes they may be there. This includes a dense concentration in the case of people who are there because of residence.”
In our modern reality, density supports a diverse economic life. While
suburbia can only support the economic demand of the majority, cities
have the luxury of supporting a variety of cultures, scenes, and
industries. This provides opportunities for establishments ranging from Italian restaurants to cutting-edge microbreweries to co-exist, share
customers, and make the city an attractive place to live.
Comments
Post a Comment