Developers should build mixed/multi-use neighborhoods rather than continuing to expand sprawling suburbs. Mixed/multi-use neighborhoods have a combination of residential, commercial, and office spaces designed around pedestrians. They provide suburbs with vibrant architecture and a sense of community that is currently lacking. They are also more economically and fiscally responsible for communities compared to typical car-dependent suburban developments. The author argues that mixed/multi-use neighborhoods will revitalize suburbs by making them more human-centered places to live, work and spend time.

1. GET THE PADDLES:
R E S U S C I TAT I N G S U B U R B I A
By Holly Wolf

2. The Problem
Aliens O n Planet Ear th
We are not on
Mars, are we?
Suburban
neighborhoods
are not designed
for humans, they
are vehicle-
dominated
environments.
We are alienated
in our own
neighborhoods,
stuck in our cars,
going through
drive-thrus. No
evidence of
human life is
anywhere.

3. Developers should focus on incorporating
vibrant, mixed-use or multi-use neighborhoods
rather than expanding sprawling suburbs,
because mixed/multi-use developments give
suburbs back the architecture they lack, are
economically and fiscally more responsible
than typical suburban developments, and
revitalize the sense of community lacking in
many of America’s cities and suburbs.
The Proposal
D i v o r c i n g E x p a n s i o n

4. What Is A Mixed/multi-use
Neighborhood?
Qualities:
•Combination of
retail, leisure,
civic, residential,
and office space
•Pedestrian-
scaled
environment
•Vibrant, “live,
work, play”
environment

5. Vehicle-Dominated v. Pedestrian Friendly
 Curving, looping, cul-de-sacs
 Limited access points
 Isolated from business districts
 Axial street patterns
 Great permeability (physically
and visually)
 Different building types
connected
Typical Suburban
Neighborhood
Mixed/Multi-use
Neighborhood

6. The History
L a n d i n g o n P l a n e t S u b u r b i a
 It starts over 100
years ago when the
largest wave of
immigrants came to
America in the mid
to late nineteenth
century. The
wealthy fled the
cities leaving them
to fall into poverty.

7. ( H i s t o r y C o n t i n u e d )
 As railroads and streetcars
developed, those who
could afford it, moved out
of the dangerous city. Then
industry followed when
they discovered cheaper
suburban land. With the
invention of the automobile
and the push of the
government for more
highways and roads, by
mid 1900s most people
lived in the suburbs.

8. Developers should build mixed/multi-use
neighborhoods, because they give the suburbs
the architecture it lacks:
Multiple fields of design employed to make for
design-rich schemes.
Gives a “sense of place” in the sea of monotony
The Architecture
… or lack thereof

9. Redesigning the Un-designed
A Tas k for a Team
 The suburbs are not a result
of intentional planning. They
are a result of thoughtless,
rapid expansion. A multi-
function development calls for
a team to design it.
Architects, landscape
architects, planners, graphic
designers, engineers, and
market researchers can all be
strategic in the planning
process. This results in a
carefully articulated plan that
functions properly as a whole
composition.

10. A “Sense of Place”
 A “sense of place” is a
common term in
architecture referring to
a space that is
memorable and unique.
Mixed/multi-use
neighborhoods, unlike
suburban
neighborhoods give
people a sense of place
and identity. They
increase the integrity of
the surrounding
architecture and city.

11. The Opposition
D e v e l o p e r s t h i n k w e a r e o u r p a r e n t s
 “Why care about
architecture?
Suburbanites won’t
see the point or
care. They like their
lives just the way
they are.”

12. A Misconception
We Ar e Lik e Our Par ents
 It is a misconception to think
that modern suburbanites
would not appreciate a sense
of place. True, modern
suburbanites still like the
slower paced lifestyle as
opposed to the downtown fast
lane, but in the last twenty
years the demographics of
the suburbs have changed
and now “are often as diverse
– in terms of race, household,
size, culture, income, age,
sexuality, and lifestyle – as
the cities they surround”
(Gupta, 6).

13. Many people are scared (especially when speaking of
residential) of “the time frames [for the community] to
develop,” and they believe it can “result in delay, and add cost
to the development” (Gupta, 54).
The Economics: More Skepticism
The Dreaded Price
Often, the land has to be rezoned, causing a longer
development time and a higher price.
Developers often hesitate building multi-function
communities, because it is more expensive

14. Government Payday
AKA Easy Rezoning
 It used to be more
difficult to get
government approval
on rezoning land for
multi-function
developments, now
the governments are
starting to actually
encourage mixed-use
developing. Why you
ask? The property tax
payoff. They get back
almost ten times the
amount of property
taxes back per acre on
a mixed-use
development than a
stand-alone.

15. Benefits for Public
At NO cost to them!
oRaises real estate
values for area
surrounding
development
o“ensures a market
share premium over
the competition
[immediately]”
(Booth, 153).
oSustainable growth
for future
generations.
oDraws people from
city to help suburban
economy

16. Still Nervous?
If scared about
development time,
phased building can
be implemented with
mixed use
developments. This
allows developers to
change the plan as
they go. For example,
Apartments or Office
space can later be
added above retail.
You cannot do this
with typical suburban
shopping districts.

17. Complete streets means less congested
roads
Pedestrian-friendly roads mean a more
active, social, and healthy community
“Inter-visibility” offers more safety than
suburban backyard
The Community

18. Many developers and inhabitants think
that suburban neighborhoods are designed
with safety in mind. They are afraid that by
condensing into a multi-function
development crimes rates will increase.
The Opposition
My Kids Aren’t Safe

19. Misconception:
You are safe because you live in a suburb
 Studies show that most
burglaries happen in “the
spatially most segregated and
unconstituted part of the
burglars’ own neighborhood”
(van Ness, 479).
 The number one access point
for a burglar is a back door in
a fenced yard.
 The best safety method
developers can use is “inter-
visibility” (i.e. seeing
pathways entrances and
exits).
 Which would you rather walk alone?

20. No More Road Rage
 “Complete streets”
serve multiple modes
of transportation:
cars, bikes, public
transit, pedestrians,
etc. They get more
people through the
same amount of
space, in a more
efficient manner. A
major goal of multi-
function developing is
to take advantage of
this.

21. An Active, Social Community
Developers can improve the
health and lifestyle of
inhabitants:
 Pedestrian-friendly streets
encourages walking and
jogging.
 Smaller business spaces,
mean smaller businesses,
and smaller businesses get to
know their customers.
 Less vehicles and cleaner air
quality
 Public events, such as
concerts, are in walking
distance

22. It is time that the suburbs stop
expanding and condense.
Developers need to invest in multi-
function developments that bring
architecture and place into suburbia,
economically benefit the community
and government much more than
suburban shopping districts, and
strengthen and protect the
community both physically and
mentally. It is time developers land
on planet earth and take back the
human landscape.
The Conclusion:
R e - humaniz ing the s ubur b

23. Bibliography
Booth, Geoffrey, et al. Transforming Suburban Business Districts. Washington, D.C.: ULI-the Urban Land Institute,
2001.
Gupta, Prema Katari, et al. Creating Great Town Centers and Urban Villages. Washington, D.C.: ULI- the Urban
Land Institute, 2008
Hillier, Bill. The Social Logic of Spaces. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1984.
Minicozzi, Joseph. "The Smart Math Of Mixed-Use Development." Planetizen. 23 Jan 2012: n. page. Web. 29 Jun.
2013.
Nes, Akkelies van. "Burglaries in the Burglar's Vicinity." 5th International Space Syntax Symposium . 1. (2005): 479-
492. Print.

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g
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25. ( c o n t i n . )
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