Radiant City
This is a documentary about life in suburbia and how it's just plain wrong for a future that includes energy scarcity. It is Canadian, and I suspect it is the counterpart to a recent American documentary called The End of Suburbia, but I haven't seen that one yet. So before you all go trotting out to suburbia give it a watch. Yes, it's biased, but it raises some important issues that we all need to grapple with as a society.
The basic premise that is suggested is that people often move to the suburbs because that is where one can buy a large house at an affordable price. Once they get there many find out that it doesn't offer everything they expected. However even though many people genuinely enjoy the suburbs, we need to realize that just because there is a demand for something doesn't make it right. A place where you have to drive to everything is not sustainable in a future with scarce energy. The conclusion is that we don't necessarily have to give up on suburbs, but we have to design them with mixed use planning so that people can walk to work and shopping, and existing suburbs need to be refitted to achieve this end. "When you see a suburb, think of it as a first generation construction project."
Andrew's rating: 4 stars
Melissa's rating: 3.25 stars
Labels: City Life
posted by A&M @ 9:45 PM
3 Comments:
I want to talk through these ideas with you two in person sometime soon.
I suspect that most people don't really think about what they want when they live anywhere, whether suburb or not. People buy condos downtown because it's trendy and shows off their "urban traits", but do they really like everything the urban lifestyle has to offer?
Redesigning suburbs isn't going to happen. Do you really want your house next door to a large factory? Particularly one that's noisy? Maybe some people don't care, but most don't want that kind of thing. You're not going to see industrial and residential zones intermingled for that reason alone, not to mention the huge cost and environmental impact of rezoning.
Living in the suburbs doesn't have to be a huge environmental drain. Yes, housing isn't as space-efficient as an apartment, but on the other hand, the heating and elevator costs add up too. Not everyone living in the suburbs needs or wants a huge house; Jen and I want a house that's on the small side. Yes, you have to drive to most places (driving to school is generally not necessary unless you're in a special program or are intentionally going to a school out of your zone), but the smart suburbanite does things at once. Running one errand each day is both less energy-efficient and less time-efficient than running 5 or 6 at once.
The suburbs have their problems, but they're not all bad, and when the cost of living and the safety and education of our children is concerned, it's an obvious choice.
Thanks for this, now I have to move into an apartment. :(
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