[PREV - JANE_JACOBS]    [TOP]

THE_GREAT_CITY

                                           June  26, 2006

Jane Jacobs great work was:

"The Death and Life of
 Great American Cities"

My summary of the the central thesis:
                                               JANE_JACOBS
    Cities are healthiest where
    shared regions are used by
    diverse ranges of people at      Her own summary of her conclusions,
    different times for              as supplied in a footnote in a
    different purposes.              later work, "The Economy of Cities"
                                     (chapter 3, page 100, Vintage paperback):
                              
  She makes the point that                     "... enterprises serving
  there was something crazy                    city consumers flourish
  about the obsession with                     most prolifically where the
  razing functional if funky                   following four conditions
  neighborhoods to replace them                are met:
  with massive government              
  housing projects that just                   "1) different primary uses,
  don't work.                                  such as residences and
                                               working places, must be
  In retrospect, there's                       mingled together, insuring
  an oddity about her                          the presence of people
  presentation:                                using the streets on
                                               different schedules but
     Where's the                               drawing on consumer goods
     conspiracy                                and services in common;
     theories?     
                                               "2) small and short blocks;
  Isn't it possible that
  the great push for                           "3) buildings of differing
  government "housing                          ages, types, sizes and
  projects" was not just                       conditions of upkeep,
  crazy or stupid, but                         intimately mingled;
  actively evil?          
                                               "and
  Someone made a lot of money 
  building lousy concrete                      4) high concentrations
  bunkhouses... not to mention                 of people."
  the guys in the demolition      
  business.                     
           
  Isn't it possible that Le
  Corbusier was not just the
  inspiration of a wave of           POWER_BROKE
  mass insanity, but a cloak
  for the same old
  profiteering?

      There are people out
      there who will exploit
      the dominant ideology
      whatever is...



--------
[NEXT - CURRENCY_EVENTS]