5 ms·

Pretty much like a Normal Rockwell painting. A community near to you and all the advantages that come with it. - The ability to just stop by a neighbor for a d

by trgn 9y ago

Pretty much like a Normal Rockwell painting. A community near to you and all the advantages that come with it. - The ability to just stop by a neighbor for a drink or a chat - Somebody to give your house keys to while you're on vacation, without inconveniencing them since they live so close - Being able to call your doctor off hours in an emergency because you have a personal relation beyond your yearly visit - The grapevine that will let you know if somebody saw your kid hang-out with the trashy teenagers - Ability for your kids to walk to school, so you're not wasting your time driving them. Same for your parents, they walk for their daily groceries, instead of whining about how they no longer can drive and making you feel guilty for not chauffeuring them around - Ability to use your neighbor's car when yours is in the shop, because he doesn't need it since he generally bikes to work Basically, supreme convenience. A small town has everything you need for daily life, at your fingertips. There's redundancy and fallbacks literally around every corner for life's little setbacks, because you have actual convivial relationships with your neighbors. Some people really don't care about that. Other people really do. In America, the second group is SOL. If they want that convenience, they'll pay dearly for it. In other countries, it's the other way around. The norm is the walkable town, and the exception is the sprawling burbs.

chc 9y ago
This seems to imply that most people in the US don't already have many neighbors within walking distance. I don't think that's the case at all, even in the sprawliest of suburbs. For most people, if you don't stop by your neighbor's house for a drink or a chat, or you don't have anyone nearby you can give your house keys to, it's because of lack of interest on one or both of your parts — not because you can't conveniently reach their door. Changing street layouts won't fix a problem that doesn't stem from street layouts.
- trgn 9y ago
  No, but car-suburbs don't give you the convenience of having transportation options for all ages. It also doesn't give you the convenience of having services and amenities in walking distance. Living close-by does strengthen informal ties, because you're more likely to run into eachother, literally. The alienation of the car-dependent suburb is admittedly a literary trope, but it is rooted in reality. Different people, different strokes, suburbs have a different appeal. But it's a sliding scale. People that don't enjoy car-dependency have very little inexpensive options in this country. The market has spoken, and the demand for town-living is far greater than the supply. It's reflected in the house prices, virtually any metro, the walkable areas are more expensive than the car sprawl.
jimmaswell 9y ago
Most of that sounds like a normal small town, besides walking to school, which I don't think I'd ever let a kid of mine do in the city before maybe late high school. In most towns there are school buses that have routes in the morning to bring kids to school from their houses. It's not a choice between only driving and walking.
- trgn 9y ago
  It indeed sounds like a normal small tow! From my perspective, we have bitter few of them. For me and many others, walkability is fundamental. It's fine if others don't agree. Our segment of the market is woefully underserved though, and we can see that in the fact that walkable neighorhoods and towns are always almost more expensive than areas that require car-dependency. I also think that price-differential is because of the constrained supply of walkable towns because collectively we prioritize speedy car travel at the expense of everything else.
- crispyambulance 9y ago
  Well, there's "small towns" and there's "large cities" and there's "suburbs". All three are different and within each there's significant variation. A small town or "streetcar suburb" in Jane Jacobs parlance functions very much like a city microcosm in terms of walkability, amenities and vibe. Most modern American suburbs are entirely different than small towns.

by trgn 9y ago

chc 9y ago

This seems to imply that most people in the US don't already have many neighbors within walking distance. I don't think that's the case at all, even in the sprawliest of suburbs. For most people, if you don't stop by your neighbor's house for a drink or a chat, or you don't have anyone nearby you can give your house keys to, it's because of lack of interest on one or both of your parts — not because you can't conveniently reach their door. Changing street layouts won't fix a problem that doesn't stem from street layouts.

trgn 9y ago
No, but car-suburbs don't give you the convenience of having transportation options for all ages. It also doesn't give you the convenience of having services and amenities in walking distance. Living close-by does strengthen informal ties, because you're more likely to run into eachother, literally. The alienation of the car-dependent suburb is admittedly a literary trope, but it is rooted in reality. Different people, different strokes, suburbs have a different appeal. But it's a sliding scale. People that don't enjoy car-dependency have very little inexpensive options in this country. The market has spoken, and the demand for town-living is far greater than the supply. It's reflected in the house prices, virtually any metro, the walkable areas are more expensive than the car sprawl.

jimmaswell 9y ago

Most of that sounds like a normal small town, besides walking to school, which I don't think I'd ever let a kid of mine do in the city before maybe late high school. In most towns there are school buses that have routes in the morning to bring kids to school from their houses. It's not a choice between only driving and walking.

trgn 9y ago
It indeed sounds like a normal small tow! From my perspective, we have bitter few of them. For me and many others, walkability is fundamental. It's fine if others don't agree. Our segment of the market is woefully underserved though, and we can see that in the fact that walkable neighorhoods and towns are always almost more expensive than areas that require car-dependency. I also think that price-differential is because of the constrained supply of walkable towns because collectively we prioritize speedy car travel at the expense of everything else.
crispyambulance 9y ago
Well, there's "small towns" and there's "large cities" and there's "suburbs". All three are different and within each there's significant variation. A small town or "streetcar suburb" in Jane Jacobs parlance functions very much like a city microcosm in terms of walkability, amenities and vibe. Most modern American suburbs are entirely different than small towns.