4 ms·

I mostly agree but I think it's important to have perspective that things like historicity or the quality of a neighborhood can be a public good. And a democrat

I mostly agree but I think it's important to have perspective that things like historicity or the quality of a neighborhood can be a public good. And a democratic population might choose to invest in such a public good. Obviously it would be better though if the coat of these public goods were being paid more directly by the public and not externalized onto those living most precariously.

imtringued 6y ago
You can have that to a certain extend. When people are saying you should build more they don't mean modern style 10 story buildings next to a single family home. They mean a duplex or triplex that fits in with the rest of the neighborhood or a 2-3 story apartment with a nice facade that is in the spirit of the neighborhood.
- DubiousPusher 6y ago
  Uh, I think it's both. Have you been to Houston TX? Housing is cheap there for a large city. They also happen to often have 10 story buildings right up next to single family homes.
  - dublinben 6y ago
    Houston is only a "cheap" city if you look at housing costs but not transportation costs. The ridiculous sprawl of Houston increases transportation costs so much that it is actually less affordable than "expensive" cities like New York City.[0][1] This doesn't even take into account the externalities of the higher emissions that come from living in a car-dependent place. [0] https://htaindex.cnt.org/fact-sheets/?lat=29.7604267&lng=-95.3698028&focus=place&gid=25649#fs https://htaindex.cnt.org/fact-sheets/?lat=29.7604267&lng=-95... [1] https://htaindex.cnt.org/fact-sheets/?lat=40.7127753&lng=-74.0059728&focus=place&gid=16861#fs https://htaindex.cnt.org/fact-sheets/?lat=40.7127753&lng=-74...
    - DubiousPusher 6y ago
      I'm not making the case that Houston is a good solution to the housing problem. My whole point is that Houston is evidence of what happens when you ignore most preferential factors and just build. I've enjoyed visiting there but the city is aesthetically unappealing, feels vacant of community and yes is a nightmare to traverse.
lotsofpulp 6y ago
> the quality of a neighborhood can be a public good. And a democratic population might choose to invest in such a public good. This manifests as keeping poorer people out by restricting zoning to larger plots of land and detached single family homes, which also has a nice side effect of making cars a necessity. Everyone wants to live around others at or above their own socioeconomic level.
- DubiousPusher 6y ago
  I agree. But the solution is not to throw out all considerations and give developers their way. There must be a way to balance the interests of those who want a neighborhood to remain a nice place to live with open space, gardens and services while also preventing Nimbys from filibustering density.

imtringued 6y ago

You can have that to a certain extend. When people are saying you should build more they don't mean modern style 10 story buildings next to a single family home. They mean a duplex or triplex that fits in with the rest of the neighborhood or a 2-3 story apartment with a nice facade that is in the spirit of the neighborhood.

DubiousPusher 6y ago
Uh, I think it's both. Have you been to Houston TX? Housing is cheap there for a large city. They also happen to often have 10 story buildings right up next to single family homes.
- dublinben 6y ago
  Houston is only a "cheap" city if you look at housing costs but not transportation costs. The ridiculous sprawl of Houston increases transportation costs so much that it is actually less affordable than "expensive" cities like New York City.[0][1] This doesn't even take into account the externalities of the higher emissions that come from living in a car-dependent place. [0] https://htaindex.cnt.org/fact-sheets/?lat=29.7604267&lng=-95.3698028&focus=place&gid=25649#fs https://htaindex.cnt.org/fact-sheets/?lat=29.7604267&lng=-95... [1] https://htaindex.cnt.org/fact-sheets/?lat=40.7127753&lng=-74.0059728&focus=place&gid=16861#fs https://htaindex.cnt.org/fact-sheets/?lat=40.7127753&lng=-74...
  - DubiousPusher 6y ago
    I'm not making the case that Houston is a good solution to the housing problem. My whole point is that Houston is evidence of what happens when you ignore most preferential factors and just build. I've enjoyed visiting there but the city is aesthetically unappealing, feels vacant of community and yes is a nightmare to traverse.

lotsofpulp 6y ago

> the quality of a neighborhood can be a public good. And a democratic population might choose to invest in such a public good. This manifests as keeping poorer people out by restricting zoning to larger plots of land and detached single family homes, which also has a nice side effect of making cars a necessity. Everyone wants to live around others at or above their own socioeconomic level.

DubiousPusher 6y ago
I agree. But the solution is not to throw out all considerations and give developers their way. There must be a way to balance the interests of those who want a neighborhood to remain a nice place to live with open space, gardens and services while also preventing Nimbys from filibustering density.