Skip to Content
Streetsblog USA home
Log In
Streetsblog.net

“Urbanism Should Be Second Nature”

11:40 AM EDT on March 13, 2013

What type of place is your city? Can you step out of your home day or night and catch a bus without too much hassle? Can you pick up your favorite sweet treat or a much-needed toilet paper refill with just a short stroll? Perhaps most importantly, can you find a place to live you can afford that puts you within easy access of the aforementioned transit stop and a toilet paper dispensary?

Making cities that function well for people can be a lot of work, whether it's advocating for transit-oriented development or blogging about your vision for safe streets. Kristen Jeffers at the Black Urbanist is yearning to reach the point where good urban places just happen, without demanding so much effort:

Yes, the urban environment is largely an object of creation and reinvention, but eventually, you want to get to the point where all you NEED to do with it is to provide maintenance. If you want to make something new, great! Here’s to you great urban pioneer!

However, some people just aren’t the pioneering and creative type. They like that there’s sidewalk cafes, but they don’t want to build them. Or maybe they are the lounge singer, but not the painter that owns the art gallery. Just because someone is creative doesn’t mean they can create and engineer everything about a city.

She continues:

I need urbanism to mature to a point where I can have a conversation with my family about what I write about and not have to dumb down the language. Where sprawl repair, tactical urbanism, and good governance are just simply

PLACE.

Elsewhere on the Network today: Boston Biker shares an elegant graphic explaining the "cycle of automobile dependency." Cyclelicio.us checked in on South Dakota, where recent pedestrian safety efforts produced a non-binding resolution urging cyclists and pedestrians to wear bright-colored clothing. And the Architect's Newspaper reports that unassuming Cleveland, Ohio, has the best BRT corridor in the United States.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog USA

Friday’s Headlines Are Tired Out

Whether it's from degradation or the dust resulting from wear and tear, it's becoming increasingly clear that tire and brake emissions are harmful, perhaps even exceeding tailpipe emissions.

September 22, 2023

Study: What Road Diets Mean For Older Drivers

"After a road diet, all motorists seem to drive at a rate that feels comfortable to a mildly-impaired older adult."

September 22, 2023

Op-Ed: Why Is Fare Evasion Punished More Severely than Speeding?

A.B. 819 offers California the opportunity to decriminalize fare evasion and replace punitive measures with more equitable approaches.

September 21, 2023

Talking Headways Podcast: Local Culture and Development

We chat with Tim Sprague from Phoenix about supporting local culture through development projects and the importance of sustainable development and transportation.

September 21, 2023

City of Yes Yes Yes! Adams Calls for Elimination of Parking Mandates on ALL New Housing

Mayor Adams today announced the historic end to one of the city’s most antiquated — and despised — zoning laws requiring the construction of parking with every new development.

September 21, 2023
See all posts