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There does seem to be considerable distaste for the suburbs on regular display in large parts of the media. This title captures that perfectly: while the housi

by kodis 11y ago

There does seem to be considerable distaste for the suburbs on regular display in large parts of the media. This title captures that perfectly: while the housing stock remains the same, it magically transforms from tasteless when suburban to beloved when the suburban area becomes urban.

mc32 11y ago
I think the echoes of the new topographics remains loud and in people's consciousness. It pervades with thoughts of materiality and alienation. Robert adams's Colorado springs.
Turing_Machine 11y ago
There does seem to be considerable distaste for the suburbs on regular display in large parts of the media Yes, this is eternal. Meanwhile, the people who actually buy and live in these houses continue to want the things they've always wanted -- an affordable dwelling with space for the children to play, along with room for a cookout and maybe a small garden, in a safe neighborhood, with decent schools. Conformance with the latest theories of architectural aesthetics isn't even on their lists, much less at the top of it.
- deleted 11y ago
  [deleted]
- eru 11y ago
  From the article: One is that everything old was once new, and new things often provoke a backlash. We ought to be humble in believing that our opinions represent some timeless, objective truth, looking backwards or forwards. The same bungalows that seem to us quaint and charming were tacky and soulless to many of the people watching them be built; it seems more than possible that the new apartment buildings we vilify today will be thought of sentimentally by future generations who know them only as an important part of their city since they were born.
- paulojreis 11y ago
  Hum. Would you say that the evident distaste in media's suburbs portrayal is "architectural aesthetics* related? My perception is that, although there's an architectural critique component when they portray suburb houses as "all the same", most of the disdain arises from a notion of individuals which "settled" for something less their dreams; from a notion of individuals which accepted that that's "all there is", a nice-y house and a family.
eitally 11y ago
Relocating from suburban North Carolina to the Bay Area has really opened my eyes to one fact: the majority of America has no f'ing clue what the problem is because almost no one (percentage-wise) has experienced both sides of the "problem." There just aren't that many metros that are growing so fast they have the kinds of problems that exist here (SFBA). I lived in a city of 150,000, where my beautiful 4300+sqft/400m^2 home in a very nice neighborhood with manicured lawns, a playground, neighborhood pool, and 2mi/3.2km of wooded walking paths can be had for ~$600,000. In the majority of the country, that's a high end luxury home price. In the Bay Area, it's a hovel price but -- even if you could find a house like it, which is very hard -- would be a $4m house on a postage stamp lot in a cramped neighborhood. I know it's impractical to build neighborhoods and homes like that in a place like the peninsula, but I would be lying if I said I didn't miss it... a lot. If you can't afford to live near work out here, and if you don't rent in an actual urban center, by the time you get home in the evenings the traffic has drained you so much it's hard to be motivated to do anything besides eat & sleep, rinse * repeat. To your point, if you transplanted some of the nicer neighborhoods in Palo Alto or Menlo Park, for example, almost anywhere else in the country, and they'd just be slightly run down, mostly mediocre neighborhoods most middle/upper class folks would pass up in favor of new construction. And those are $3-5m houses here! <rant off. Can you tell I'm frustrated by the auction-like homebuying process and stratospheric prices?>
- eru 11y ago
  The auction-like homebuying isn't to blame. It's the paucity of supply. Damn NIMBYs.
  - marincounty 11y ago
    It's also location. I never appreciated where I lived until I traveled across the United States. It's being close to mountains, nice mild weather, close to the beach, close to well paying jobs. Never cared about being close to "the excitement of San Francisco" though. I always felt it was a boring city. For years, certain parts of the Bay Area were kept secret. They have pretty much all been exposed--thanks mainly to the Internet, and I guess Apple/tech? I still regret not buying the small house out in west Marin I could have bought for under $100K. I should have just bought it.

by kodis 11y ago

mc32 11y ago

I think the echoes of the new topographics remains loud and in people's consciousness. It pervades with thoughts of materiality and alienation. Robert adams's Colorado springs.

Turing_Machine 11y ago

There does seem to be considerable distaste for the suburbs on regular display in large parts of the media Yes, this is eternal. Meanwhile, the people who actually buy and live in these houses continue to want the things they've always wanted -- an affordable dwelling with space for the children to play, along with room for a cookout and maybe a small garden, in a safe neighborhood, with decent schools. Conformance with the latest theories of architectural aesthetics isn't even on their lists, much less at the top of it.

deleted 11y ago
[deleted]
eru 11y ago
From the article: One is that everything old was once new, and new things often provoke a backlash. We ought to be humble in believing that our opinions represent some timeless, objective truth, looking backwards or forwards. The same bungalows that seem to us quaint and charming were tacky and soulless to many of the people watching them be built; it seems more than possible that the new apartment buildings we vilify today will be thought of sentimentally by future generations who know them only as an important part of their city since they were born.
paulojreis 11y ago
Hum. Would you say that the evident distaste in media's suburbs portrayal is "architectural aesthetics* related? My perception is that, although there's an architectural critique component when they portray suburb houses as "all the same", most of the disdain arises from a notion of individuals which "settled" for something less their dreams; from a notion of individuals which accepted that that's "all there is", a nice-y house and a family.

eitally 11y ago

Relocating from suburban North Carolina to the Bay Area has really opened my eyes to one fact: the majority of America has no f'ing clue what the problem is because almost no one (percentage-wise) has experienced both sides of the "problem." There just aren't that many metros that are growing so fast they have the kinds of problems that exist here (SFBA). I lived in a city of 150,000, where my beautiful 4300+sqft/400m^2 home in a very nice neighborhood with manicured lawns, a playground, neighborhood pool, and 2mi/3.2km of wooded walking paths can be had for ~$600,000. In the majority of the country, that's a high end luxury home price. In the Bay Area, it's a hovel price but -- even if you could find a house like it, which is very hard -- would be a $4m house on a postage stamp lot in a cramped neighborhood. I know it's impractical to build neighborhoods and homes like that in a place like the peninsula, but I would be lying if I said I didn't miss it... a lot. If you can't afford to live near work out here, and if you don't rent in an actual urban center, by the time you get home in the evenings the traffic has drained you so much it's hard to be motivated to do anything besides eat & sleep, rinse * repeat. To your point, if you transplanted some of the nicer neighborhoods in Palo Alto or Menlo Park, for example, almost anywhere else in the country, and they'd just be slightly run down, mostly mediocre neighborhoods most middle/upper class folks would pass up in favor of new construction. And those are $3-5m houses here! <rant off. Can you tell I'm frustrated by the auction-like homebuying process and stratospheric prices?>

eru 11y ago
The auction-like homebuying isn't to blame. It's the paucity of supply. Damn NIMBYs.
- marincounty 11y ago
  It's also location. I never appreciated where I lived until I traveled across the United States. It's being close to mountains, nice mild weather, close to the beach, close to well paying jobs. Never cared about being close to "the excitement of San Francisco" though. I always felt it was a boring city. For years, certain parts of the Bay Area were kept secret. They have pretty much all been exposed--thanks mainly to the Internet, and I guess Apple/tech? I still regret not buying the small house out in west Marin I could have bought for under $100K. I should have just bought it.