Suburban Skyscrapers, The Anti-McMansion Movement, Permalancers, More
Boston’s Youthful Urban Planners
“When middle school students from Roslindale teamed up with architects from Boston’s Gund Partnership to brainstorm ways to improve the Jackson Square MBTA Station on the Orange Line, the architects got an earful.
The program, sponsored by Citizen Schools Boston, was created to give minority and low-income students the knowledge that they have a voice in the development of their neighborhoods, and in particular, their T stations. Many of the students in the program live in Roxbury, Dorchester, or Mattapan, or regularly use the Orange Line.”
“According to recent news reports, Professor Shlomo Hasson of the Hebrew University considers this a worrisome phenomenon. It is claimed that as a result of the demand for tourist apartments, entire neighborhoods are empty for most of the year. A number of reporters referred to these neighborhoods as “ghost towns.” The proposed remedy: encouraging more young people to move to the city center.”
A Skyscraper for Evanston
A controversial proposal to build a skyscraper in downtown Evanston cleared its first big hurdle late Wednesday.
The Evanston Plan Commission voted in favor of the project despite some who said the building will dramatically alter the historic character of the north suburb.
Cities Absent From Presidential Debates
In mid-October, I noted that the Democrats and Republicans had held 17 or so presidential debates (the number can vary, depending on who’s counting), but that with all the gabbing they managed not to focus on America’s cities.
Well, two months have passed, and that observation is no longer valid. The candidates have now held 25 or so debates without talking about urban issues.
“Two governing forces are now set to rectify the problems that the “mansionization” trend has caused throughout the San Fernando Valley, as well as in many other areas of the City. The first, is a new Ordinance created by the Department of Planning that regulates the Floor Area Ratio (FAR) for all properties zoned single family residential (R1, RS, RE9, RE15, RA, RE20, and RE40) not located in the Hillside Area or Coastal Zone. The second, is the Mulholland Design Review Board that holds public hearings and makes key determinations on all construction in the hills within 1/2 mile of Mulholland Drive.”
Also, here’s a great article by Anya Kamenetz, author of Generation Debt, in the Nation about the dubious, yet potentially empowering position of being a “permalancer.”
She writes, “Gawker.com is a gossip blog best known for mocking Lindsay Lohan and generally lowering the level of discourse in the New York media world. But starting on December 4 the website put snark aside and helped instigate one of the most unlikely and successful labor campaigns of recent years.”
This one should be great for discussion. Post a comment below.
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“Glocalization,” Neighborhoods as Brands
