massurban:

The Atlantic Cities: 

“The Coming Bold Transformation of the American City

Enrique Penalosa. April 30, 2013

In 40 years, 2.7 billion more people will live in world cities than do now, according to the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs. Urban growth in China, India, and most of the developing world will be massive. But what is less known is that population growth will also be enormous in the United States.

The U.S. population will grow 36 percent to 438 million in 2050 from 322 million today. At today’s average of 2.58 persons per household, such growth would require 44.9 million new homes. However American households are getting smaller. If one were to estimate 2.2 persons per household—the household size in Germany today and the likely U.S. size by 2050—the United States would need 74.3 million new homes, not including secondary vacation homes. This means that over the next 40 years, the United States will build more homes than all those existing today in the United Kingdom, France, and Canada combined. Urban planner and theorist Peter Calthorpe predicts that California alone will add 20 million people and 7 million households by 2050.

To meet this demand, completely new urban environments will have to be created in the United States. Where and how will the new American homes be built? What urban structures are to be created?”

Photo: Battery Park City in Manhattan exemplifies how the quality of urban life can be enhanced by replacing waterfront roadways with parks or pedestrian infrastructure. (Left); A “highway” for pedestrians, bicycles, and transit on Jiménez Avenue in Bogotá, Colombia. (Right) Photo courtesy of Enrique Peñalosa.

massurban:

GOOD:

“Vacancy to Vibrancy: How Pop-Ups Invigorated a San Francisco Neighborhood

Imron Bhatti. April 9, 2013

Despite big names moving into the neighborhood, San Francisco’s Mid-Market—and many neighborhoods across the country—is still full of vacant spaces. Millions of square feet are going unused. SquareFoot is putting that space to use, connecting entrepreneurs to underutilized space, and using pop-ups as a vehicle for neighborhood revitalization.

Pop-ups can be about more than high concept dining or a fresh Japanese retail concept: Short-term leases give residents a chance to invigorate the neighborhood and initiate new connections, spurring growth from the bottom-up. They give creative entrepreneurs a platform to prototype new ideas, unencumbered by the cost and red tape of long-term leases. Rapid experimentation can shift the assumptions we have about how we use our neighborhood spaces, helping us envision new possibilities while also creating a space for the local community to strengthen bulwarks against displacement by the rising tide of property values.”

Photo: Original Image via (cc) flickr user Randolph Gardner

 

secretrepublic:

World’s Smallest Hotel & Cafe, Copenhagen

tinyhousesmallspace:

New Tumbleweed Tiny House! The Cypress 20 is a larger version of the popular fencl model

dailybungalow:

“Queen Anne Style” - Edwardian style in San Francisco by sftrajan on Flickr.

McAllister Street in the Western Addition

urbanination:

These two Orlando area homes share a back fence but take 17 minutes to drive between.

urbanination:

Lisbon’s Crono Project commissions artists to transform the fronts of neglected buildings with street art. 

massurban:

GOOD:

“Vacancy to Vibrancy: How Pop-Ups Invigorated a San Francisco Neighborhood

Imron Bhatti. April 9, 2013

Despite big names moving into the neighborhood, San Francisco’s Mid-Market—and many neighborhoods across the country—is still full of vacant spaces. Millions of square feet are going unused. SquareFoot is putting that space to use, connecting entrepreneurs to underutilized space, and using pop-ups as a vehicle for neighborhood revitalization.

Pop-ups can be about more than high concept dining or a fresh Japanese retail concept: Short-term leases give residents a chance to invigorate the neighborhood and initiate new connections, spurring growth from the bottom-up. They give creative entrepreneurs a platform to prototype new ideas, unencumbered by the cost and red tape of long-term leases. Rapid experimentation can shift the assumptions we have about how we use our neighborhood spaces, helping us envision new possibilities while also creating a space for the local community to strengthen bulwarks against displacement by the rising tide of property values.”

Photo: Original Image via (cc) flickr user Randolph Gardner

 

humanscalecities:

The San Francisco Parklet Manual (PDF)

architectureofdoom:

Mumbai, India