Dutch Cities are Better for the Environment (and my sanity)

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Recommends fayten · 2022-03 · on “Americans do not want to return to urban living”

There are quite a few factors, I'd encourage checking out the following videos by Not Just Bikes and Climate Towns that cover a broad range of city planning and zoning in the US. Strong Towns Play List by Not Just Bikes (This heavily covers city planning issues in the US): [LINK] The Suburbs Are Bleeding America Dry by Climate Towns (This covers zoning): [LINK] How The Auto Industry Carjacked The American Dream (This covers the auto industries impact on US cities.): [LINK] Dutch Cities are Better for the Climate (and my sanity) by Not Just Bikes (Not super relevant to zoning, but it's part 1 of The Suburbs Are Bleeding America Dry so I figured I'd link it.): [this video] These are pretty snarky,

Cites bradlys · 2022-04 · on “As climate fears mount, some are relocating within the US”

I am not a fan of more suburban sprawl which is what it sounds like you're advocating for. So, no thank you. Instead we should focus on building walkable neighborhoods that have higher density, less reliance on cars, and more emphasis on cycling+walking+public transit. Why it's bad: Suburbia is subsidized (many articles on HN similar to this video): [LINK] Climate change effects and other: [this video] Affordable housing is housing that is passed down from generation to generation. We don't need to build "affordable housing". We need to build good high quality housing that will then get transferred down to other people through sales. (And with proper land value taxes - these will not be appreciat

Cites throw0101a · 2022-05 · on “The home of Walmart wants to beat sprawl”

> Problem is that when you don't have a lot of space overall, cities start to sprawl and before you know it, the end of one city joins the beginning of another. Valuable open space and rural space is lost and often the housing it is replaced with is nothing near the same habitat for wildlife even if the gardens are big. A video of what's available via a fifteen minute bicycle ride from Amsterdam: * [LINK] See also: * [this video]

Cites throw0101a · 2022-05 · on “I'm retiring from the engineering profession”

> I have no interest in living in shoeboxes. No need. See the concept of "streetcar suburbs" and how things used to be built pre-WW2: * [LINK] * [LINK] * [LINK] * [LINK] High(er) density does not mean Manhattan and Hong Kong levels of density. 50-100 people per hectare (Hamburg, Paris, Stockholm, London, Brussels) is not crazy high: * [LINK] A video of what's available via a fifteen minute bicycle ride from Amsterdam: * [LINK] See also: * [this video] Fifteen minutes pedalling in one direction is downtown, fifteen minutes in the other is farm land. > Nope. Some just think quality of life isn’t about accounting and ROI. Do enjoy your shoebox though. * [LINK] * [LINK] IMHO you have a myopic view of

Cites throw0101a · 2022-05 · on “15-Minute City”

Before there's a silly comment about "shoeboxes", see the concept of "streetcar suburbs" and how things used to be built pre-WW2: * [LINK] * [LINK] * [LINK] * [LINK] * [LINK] High(er) density does not mean Manhattan and Hong Kong levels of density. You can have a backyard and a garage (usually adjacent to a laneway) if you want to. Just because only car-dependent suburbs have been built for the last few decades in North America does not mean that is the only type. Further, as you can see from the above street views, plenty of folks still own cars, but they become optional instead of being mandatory / a necessity, for many things. 50-100 people per hectare (5000-10'000 people/km^2) is not cra

Cites screye · 2023-01 · on “Canada bans most foreigners from buying homes”

I find this to be a bewildering opinion. I get that people are wired different, but I am surprised that you aren't capable of envisioning a situation where a huge percent of the world chooses to live in a city. > The city is obsolete in the era of WFH The first thing I did after negotiating WFH is to move to a dense neighborhood of NYC (soon). > Demand for nicer living conditions I am. I want to walk down to local markets & restaurants. I want to go anywhere in the city without exposing myself to the main cause of youth death (cars). When I am travel to another part of town, I'd rather absentmindedly read a book, than be stuck paying attention in bumper2bumper traffic. I want 100s of activit

Cites throw0101a · 2023-01 · on “CA Cities to Lose All Zoning Powers in 2 Days”

> Isn't it possible that people who live in beautiful neighborhoods with mature trees, nice big yards, and low traffic streets that are safe for kids to play around Basically how things were built pre-WW2? * [LINK] * [LINK] The Oh the Urbanity channel has a video on the (misguided) idea that "urban living" = Manhattan / Hong Kong apartment blocks : * [LINK] Examples (Streetview): * [LINK] * [LINK] * [LINK] See also: * [this video] Fifteen minutes pedalling in one direction is downtown Amsterdam, fifteen minutes in the other is farm land.

Cites throw0101c · 2023-04 · on “Maps show how parking lots “eat” U.S. cities”

> Humans shouldn't be living in shoeboxes stacked 40 floors high. You have a limited view of 'urban living'. Want a front yard, back yard, and garage (attached to a laneway)? Plenty of that was built pre-WW2, and there's no reason why it couldn't be again: * [LINK] * [LINK] The Oh the Urbanity channel has a video on the (misguided) idea that "urban living" = Manhattan / Hong Kong apartment blocks : * [LINK] Examples (Streetview) of urban tree-lined streets which can support transit and where cycling is practical (and where a car is an option versus a necessity): * [LINK] * [LINK] * [LINK] See also: * [this video] Fifteen minutes pedalling in one direction is downtown, fifteen minutes in the other