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> Finally, it should be mentioned that buildings are owned by private companies and individuals, who generally have a right to do whatever they want to them! E

> Finally, it should be mentioned that buildings are owned by private companies and individuals, who generally have a right to do whatever they want to them! Err, no. A city can and should decide what the "overall look and feel" is. London fails at that spectacularly. Pretty much all cities that are considered beautiful have building guidelines in place that support that. Like: you can build only to the height of neighboring buildings, windows need to line up, specific styles and mandatory balconies to fit into the environment. Think of Amsterdam or Barcelona. The overall look of a city is part of the quality of life of its citizens. If you leave it to property developers, well, you get something like London. EDIT: "The school of Life" made a video that explains that pretty well. [1] 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hy4QjmKzF1c https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hy4QjmKzF1c

SmellyGeekBoy 8y ago
> A city can and should decide what the "overall look and feel" is. London fails at that spectacularly. London's skyline is one of the most iconic skylines in the world. The more recent additions like the London Eye (or whatever it's called these days), the "walkie talkie" and the Shard just add to its unique character IMO.
- cleansy 8y ago
  An iconic skyline sure. But unless you are one of the few who can afford renting/buying and apartment higher up you mostly notice how much shadow a cluster of high rise buildings casts onto the street level. Walking from the tube to my office I noticed 3 story buildings next to 10, then 5 then 3 again. Old brick buildings next to soviet style apartment blocks. Even for the pavement they used 6 different materials or styles from the station to the office, around 400m. It is not that hard nor expensive to make an attractive looking city. You just need the political will for it.
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SmellyGeekBoy 8y ago

> A city can and should decide what the "overall look and feel" is. London fails at that spectacularly. London's skyline is one of the most iconic skylines in the world. The more recent additions like the London Eye (or whatever it's called these days), the "walkie talkie" and the Shard just add to its unique character IMO.

cleansy 8y ago
An iconic skyline sure. But unless you are one of the few who can afford renting/buying and apartment higher up you mostly notice how much shadow a cluster of high rise buildings casts onto the street level. Walking from the tube to my office I noticed 3 story buildings next to 10, then 5 then 3 again. Old brick buildings next to soviet style apartment blocks. Even for the pavement they used 6 different materials or styles from the station to the office, around 400m. It is not that hard nor expensive to make an attractive looking city. You just need the political will for it.

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