New Urbanism is an urban design stream
originated as an alternative to "modern" city growth which seeks to
return the concept of traditional neighborhood, where we can play in the
street, buy candies at the corner shop and walk every morning with our friends
to school.
The modern city was founded in the United
States under the theories of Le Corbusier, an architect than probably all of us
have heard at some point in our lives. He
generated city theories based on a machine with specialized and separate gears
that landed in neighborhoods stratified by purchasing power, with separate
zones for housing, school, work and fun, joined by wide avenues as umbilical
cord which while at the beginning were more than enough for vehicle charging,
today they are insufficient parking at peak hours. In this "modern"
model, the pedestrian have been changed by private vehicles and the neighborhood
stores by supermarkets with huge front parking lots, it is impossible to reach
on foot to its different districts and the historical city is surrounded by a
wall of peripherals and circuits that made it virtually impenetrable.
The American Dream promoted from the interwar
period, became the nightmare of many; a city like Detroit, which held nearly
2,000,000 people in 1950, now has less than the half, surrounded by abandoned
buildings and vacant lots while the new metropolitan environment, the suburbs
and outlying areas with high glass buildings forming the modern
"skyline", has more than 5,000,000 people who turned their back to
the real city, the traditional and historical one.
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| Portland |
In this scenario, repeated in many other cities
such as Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Buffalo, Scranton, Dayton or New Orleans, New
Urbanism might be the light at the end of the tunnel with the main objective of
improving the quality of human life, displacing private vehicle and returning
attention to the traditional neighborhoods full of life and activities.
Portland, a city with a "modern" inertia, tell us now a different
story after the population decided to destroyed an urban highway and took a
traditional city model... and so have Boston, Miami, Seattle or San Francisco.
The application of New Urbanism not only summarizes Santa Fe facades as many
assume, but a planning and integrated urban design complemented with the
correct open and architectural spaces to recover the city and bring more human,
sustainable, better connected and economically viable new developments, not
only for developers, but for all involved in the city: government, investors,
landlords, estate agents, architects and of course, residents and visitors.
How to achieve this? Through 10 basic premises:
Walkability by more friendly, comfortable and
safe designs for human beings, trying to generate pedestrian 10 minutes radios
to solve any needs of the inhabitants.
Connectivity between different paths to
generate more alternative routes to the inhabitants and a hierarchy between
them to allow easily recognition of the city.
Mixed-use & diversity generating varied and
diverse urban and architectural projects, accessible to the entire population
regardless of their age, income, culture, race, nationality or preferences.
Mixed housing providing diverse options for
each inhabitant according to their space needs and their budget, without
distinction or exclusive zoning.
Quality architecture & urban design which
make comfortable spaces efficiently distributed in the city and its neighborhoods
and recovering elements that provide historical and cultural identity in each
city.
Traditional neighborhood structure with central
public spaces, a wide range of uses for the entire population, identifiable
boundaries and continuous urban areas eliminating large abandoned spaces and
urban wasteland.
Increased densities generating more compact
neighborhoods with an efficient use of urban services and facilities.
Smart transportation with a high quality
network of different types of mobility, in preference to pedestrian and
non-motorized systems.
Sustainability developments with low pollution
impact by using eco-technologies and low consumption of fossil consumables, in
which the whole society is integrated to improve social networks and provide
economic alternatives for all income groups.
and finally, a higher quality of life
incorporating the entire population and generating neighborhoods and cities
that enrich the life of its inhabitants.
Could Los Cabos implement the New Urbanism
theories? Specific actions such as the recovery of the traditional downtown San
Jose, the rehabilitation of some public spaces and the night cyclist routes, seem
to indicate that it could; but these efforts are insufficient if the
inhabitants continue with the inertia of the "modern city", full of
wide roads, huge parking lots and peripheral fractionations. Is it possible
that Los Cabos breaks the inertia to become just another metropolis and reach true
quality of life away from "modernity"?
We really need your opinion, do not forget to
leave your comments.
JPV
newurbanism.org
envisioningtheamericandream.com
lwfaam.net
businessinsider.com
columbusunderground.com
mashable.com
endofsuburbia.com
