6 ms·

3-5 story isn't very tall. Tear them down and go taller.

ant6n 8y ago
Firstly, the higher you build, the more space you need between buildings, and the more space inside the buildings is used for infastructure. There are diminishing returns, and it runs out that areas with good coverage of 5 story buildings can have very high density, often more than areas with high rises. Plus, Berlin likes to protect their heritage; often tearing down and rebuilding whole neighborhoods turned out to be a very bad idea.
- Xylakant 8y ago
  > Plus, Berlin likes to protect their heritage; often tearing down and rebuilding whole neighborhoods turned out to be a very bad idea. As I mentioned further downthread: This is especially pronounced in Kreuzberg, the whole district was supposed to be torn down and turned into a planned utopian living quarter. The Kottbuser Tor was supposed to be turned into a highway crossroad and the buildings there stem from those plans.
- pixl97 8y ago
  >often tearing down and rebuilding whole neighborhoods turned out to be a very bad idea. Reminds me of this http://slatestarcodex.com/2017/03/16/book-review-seeing-like-a-state/ http://slatestarcodex.com/2017/03/16/book-review-seeing-like...
titzer 8y ago
This "tear it all down and just go higher" attitude pisses people off to an extent that is difficult to convey. People are sick of being mugged by economics and having their homes, neighborhoods, villages, streets ravaged by "more at all costs." People are sick of being priced out to the suburbs, displaced by rich corporations and all these rich young people. Come to a European city and walk through streets with hundreds of years of history for some perspective. Then you can advocate to tear it all down and build it all up for some passing tech bubble fad straight to their faces and see what kind of response you get.
- visarga 8y ago
  > People are sick of being priced out to the suburbs, displaced by rich corporations and all these rich young people. "these rich young people" are people, too
usrusr 8y ago
After the big pan-european city teardown of the mid-twentieth century that was mostly invented in Berlin, people have grown kind of fond of the surviving buildings. If anything gets torn down in Berlin to build new highrises it will be existing, unfashionable highrise. Plenty of those available for teardown, just not at popular locations. Not popular precisely because they are not surviving pre-war stock.
bogomipz 8y ago
Please walk us through how "Tear them down and go taller" works in practical terms? Do you just throw those occupants out on the street? Families, the elderly etc? If not where and how do you relocate them? Where does that money come from? How about the apartments that are privately owned? How does that work?

Firstly, the higher you build, the more space you need between buildings, and the more space inside the buildings is used for infastructure. There are diminishing returns, and it runs out that areas with good coverage of 5 story buildings can have very high density, often more than areas with high rises. Plus, Berlin likes to protect their heritage; often tearing down and rebuilding whole neighborhoods turned out to be a very bad idea.

Xylakant 8y ago
> Plus, Berlin likes to protect their heritage; often tearing down and rebuilding whole neighborhoods turned out to be a very bad idea. As I mentioned further downthread: This is especially pronounced in Kreuzberg, the whole district was supposed to be torn down and turned into a planned utopian living quarter. The Kottbuser Tor was supposed to be turned into a highway crossroad and the buildings there stem from those plans.
pixl97 8y ago
>often tearing down and rebuilding whole neighborhoods turned out to be a very bad idea. Reminds me of this http://slatestarcodex.com/2017/03/16/book-review-seeing-like-a-state/ http://slatestarcodex.com/2017/03/16/book-review-seeing-like...

titzer 8y ago

This "tear it all down and just go higher" attitude pisses people off to an extent that is difficult to convey. People are sick of being mugged by economics and having their homes, neighborhoods, villages, streets ravaged by "more at all costs." People are sick of being priced out to the suburbs, displaced by rich corporations and all these rich young people. Come to a European city and walk through streets with hundreds of years of history for some perspective. Then you can advocate to tear it all down and build it all up for some passing tech bubble fad straight to their faces and see what kind of response you get.

visarga 8y ago
> People are sick of being priced out to the suburbs, displaced by rich corporations and all these rich young people. "these rich young people" are people, too

usrusr 8y ago

After the big pan-european city teardown of the mid-twentieth century that was mostly invented in Berlin, people have grown kind of fond of the surviving buildings. If anything gets torn down in Berlin to build new highrises it will be existing, unfashionable highrise. Plenty of those available for teardown, just not at popular locations. Not popular precisely because they are not surviving pre-war stock.

bogomipz 8y ago

Please walk us through how "Tear them down and go taller" works in practical terms? Do you just throw those occupants out on the street? Families, the elderly etc? If not where and how do you relocate them? Where does that money come from? How about the apartments that are privately owned? How does that work?