Edgier Cities

Though most attention has been given to revitalizing/preserving central cities, the real action in the future will be to transform the strip-mall suburbs. We have an enormous social investment in their infrastructure and each (now ugly) commercial corner represents an opportunity for repair and a potential urban village. The indication that such is happening, along the lines of Richard Florida's Creative Class will be when 'artists and bohemians' per are found in the revitalizing suburbs. Hitherto, "[o]ne of the reasons edge cities haven't attracted many artists and bohemians is that so much of it is brand-new and therefore expensive" said says Joel Garreau.

Comments

[Brent]

Yeah, edge cities are more expensive than older, central cities -- parts of Jacobs' "Daeth and Life" deals with this phenomenon, which helps to explain why commercial development in the suburbs tends to be just "brand-name" stores, restaurants etc.

But there's another reason why artists and bohemians gravitate to the older cities, rather than newer suburbs (even supposedly neo-traditional ones): because the way of life is so much different. I just moved to an apartment in the Beach, an older streetcar suburb in the east end of Toronto, where if I want to go to a grocery store, it's a four-minute walk to the west to one, or a four-minute walk the other way to another, and there's a drug store, hardware store etc. if I need to pick up something else on the way. My girlfriend lives in suburban Toronto, though (Brampton) -- though she lives in one of the older, nicer areas, most things she needs require her to go out into the suburban hell, big-box part. I can get most anything I need, on the other hand, just by walking down the street with hundreds of other Beachers.

[Frank of Urban Paradoxes]

Might want to check out out two reinstated blogs: http:urbanparadoxes.blogspot.com (this week: "The New Urbanism - Co-opted") and http://flanuer.blogspot.com (this week: using Cleveland as our backdrop, along with excursions ot other cities, we begin a series on seeing neighborhoods as a flanuer and what that has to say about redevelopment of our cities).

Frank