Emerging Trends in Urban Community Forms

1. Emerging Trends in Urban Community Forms • New towns as Intentional Communities • The concept of building intentional communities is very old -- Utopian Plans • Plato’s Republic (375 B.C.) • Thomas More’s (Utopia 1516) represents the perfect social and economic society • Francis Bacon’s New Atlantis (1627) • B.F. Skinner’s Walden II (1948)

2. Two Early American Utopian Communities--Shakers & Oneida • Longest survived utopian community in the U.S. -- First founded in 1787 and the final Shaker died in 1980s • Founded by “Mother” Ann Lee who was thought to be the second coming of Christ and women were in charge of the community and sex roles were unimportant • lived jointly but celibate

3. Two Early American Utopian Communities--Shakers & Oneida • The “perfectionists” founded a community in Oneida NY, led by John Noyes in 1848 • They believed that the second coming of Christ had occurred and society was evolving to a perfect state -- to be accomplished in Oneida • They practiced “complex marriage” and all lived together

4. Two Early American Utopian Communities--Shakers & Oneida • They were prosperous economically--moving into small manufacturing--especially steel traps • Non-members in surrounding communities were outraged by free love practices • In 1879 Noyes escaped to Canada to avoid arrest • The community reformed in 1881 as a joint-stock corporation and is now the largest producer of stainless steel flatware in the U.S.

5. New Towns: Garden Cities • Ebenezer Howard Garden Cities of Tomorrow (1898) • fully planned in all aspects--with a central garden-park • limited population (about 32,000) • The city is surrounded by an agricultural green belt • Garden cities could not expand at it’s edges, instead a new city would be built • Greenbelt, MD; Radburn, NJ; Letchworth, U.K.;Wyomissing, PA

6. The Evolution of Garden Cities: The New Town Movement • New Town movement began after World War II to relieve overcrowding in English cities and house returning U.S. soldiers • The main points of the New Town movement are summarized as follows • Predetermined population size -- 32,000 of garden cities would be o the low end, most being around 60,000

7. The Evolution of Garden Cities: The New Town Movement • The main points of the New Town movement are summarized as follows • Fully planned and under single ownership -- at least during development, the plan includes location of activities, parks, and open spaces. • Self-Contained and autonomous -- new towns contain a complete range of retail, professional, educational, cultural, and recreational services • Diverse and balanced population -- because of the self-contained economy residents with diverse occupations would be needed to be self-sufficient -- mix SES housing areas

8. The Evolution of Garden Cities: The New Town Movement • New Towns in America tend to follow all the guidelines except self-sufficiency and maintaining a diverse and balanced population • Burby and Weiss in 1976 conducted a study evaluating the success of new towns • people like living in new towns • the town’s design does not have an impact on social interaction • None are self-contained and autonomous and most fall down on diversity issues

9. Examples of New Towns: Columbia, MD & Sun City, AZ • Columbia is located between D.C. and Baltimore, MD and was planned by Developer James Rouse • 21 square miles and currently has 120,000 residents • well-planned open spaces, scenic views of woods, hills, and fields • Strict building codes and zoning for multiple-mixed land use • Rouse remains in control of all commercial space

10. Examples of New Towns: Columbia, MD & Sun City, AZ • Sun City, AZ is located southern Arizona • Developed by the late Del Webb in 1960 and is an exclusive and famous retirement community • Webb took the new town principle and applied exclusively to retirees -- which violates the principles of diverse population

12. Examples of New Towns: Columbia, MD & Sun City, AZ • By catering to elders Webb’s community as a profit making venture has many advantages • does not have to worry about job opportunities • transportation corridors to outside the community are not important • can locate in the middle of nowhere for cheap land • no need for educational and recreational facilities for young people

13. Examples of New Towns: Columbia, MD & Sun City, AZ • Has a stadium for Milwaukee Brewers spring training • Six shopping centers • 26 churches • two private country clubs • 260 bed hospital, 60,000 square feet medical arts center • Many motels and restaurants • Residents tend to go north for the summer

14. Current Trends That Impact Community Development • Changes in manufacturing will continue • American Cities, especially in the South and West will continue to decentralize • “I worry that my country is becoming a loose confederation of shopping centers.” Pierre Trudeau • Of the fifty fastest growing counties in the U.S., twelve are in the state of Florida

15. Current Trends That Impact Community Development • The major trend of the previous century, rural to urban migration is slowing and may reverse in the near future (it had reversed for a few years) • Decentralization offers enormous opportunity for good, reshaping the way we live • but, we cannot forget the people that remain in the urban core and rural hinterland

16. Current Trends That Impact Community Development • Most of us do not concern ourselves with the shape of cities but cities begin to shape us • our culture does not value cities -- we have an anti-city bias • people tend to want to live in the suburbs where there is space • when people disperse traffic and the impact on the environment become issues • We compete for space and time and with each other and with products of our culture

17. Current Trends That Impact Community Development • New cities are not attractive because of cosmopolitan lifestyle but their access to natural resources (Tampa, Miami, Knoxville, Denver, Tucson) • New cities tend to be poly-nucleated with giant regional malls often serving as the hub of the community

18. Current Trends That Impact Community Development • Old cities tended to be organized for production, now there is an emphasis on consumption • Less corporate identity among workers and more emphasis on where you live and how you recreate • New towns have citizen-controlled private governance that are in some ways more powerful than local government

19. Current Trends That Impact Community Development • Household size is getting smaller, from 4.6 in 1970 to 2.3 in 1990 • condominiums and smaller houses are now growing faster than traditional 3/2 houses • Euclidian zoning is being transformed into mixed-use zoning • new housing developments blur legal definitions of renting and owning

20. Current Trends That Impact Community Development • Patron Saint of current New Towns is Walt Disney • Use of illusions and psychological packaging of main streets that might never actually existed • Packaging becomes really important, many places are organized around communal space but careful not to sell the point too much -- people when oversold generally say “ I just want to be left alone ”

21. Current Trends That Impact Community Development • Developers try to create a theme that evokes nostalgia and nature from an actually or made up story line -- people tend to buy into the myth • Developers create themed villages within a larger development -- targeting different demographics and separating by SES

22. Current Trends That Impact Community Development • The single-interest developments is a growing phenomenon • golf • singles • country club • retirement • equestrian • nudist lifestyle

23. Current Trends That Impact Community Development • Golden-Age Ghettos • age restrictions • children are not welcome • condos -- self contained -- do not have to leave compound • keep out others in community • often have progressive care/living arrangements

24. Current Trends That Impact Community Development • Bunker Sweet Bunker • gated communities sell security • especially marketed to elders • local volunteer crime watch • Quayside in Miami-Dade is on it’s own island across from Bal Harbour • laser beams circle the perimeter (even over water) • everyone enters a central checkpoint • constant video survelience