The multiple market opportunities represented by
the growing urban desires of increasing numbers of
the baby-boom and echo-boom generations has
boosted the economic profile of urban villages in
America considerably, whether on recycled grayfield
or new greenfield sites. In May 2003, the Charlotte
developers of Birkdale Village announced they had
sold the majority share in the development to a
national Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT). This
purchase is significant because REITs comprise large
and powerful investors at the end of the development
chain. At the outset of any development process, all
developers try to establish their exit strategy, that is,
who will they be able to sell the development on to?
Until recently, urban villages were regarded as
unproven in the marketplace, and large investors
were skittish about their long-term value as
investment property. This in turn made the initial
developers nervous about making the original invest-
ments in these kinds of projects. The decision by the
cautious, conservative end of the financial markets to
put increasingly large investments into urban village
developments does a great deal to establish the cred-
ibility of the mixed-use center as a stable develop-
ment type.
We have specifically left the fourth factor, the preser-
vation of open space, till last because we want to high-
light a common American misconception about this
objective. In many ways, this is the most prolific of the
positive trends; it certainly has the most public support.
Between 1998 and 2002, 679 proposals to conserve
open space were placed on local election ballots across
the USA, and 565 passed, setting aside a total of
$21.5 billion (in US terms) for purchasing open land
(http://experts.uli.org/Content/PressRoom/press_release/
2003/PR_009.htm).
The conservation of open land highlights the
greatest difference between American and British
practice. In the UK, despite many instances of urban
encroachments into the protected greenbelts around
cities, the overall concept of a clear distinction
between urban and rural still holds. A conversation in
the Spring of 2003 between the authors and Mary
Newsom, a Charlotte journalist and advocate of
Smart Growth, who was giving a talk on open space
conservation to a rural county in the Charlotte
region highlighted the cultural gulf between the two
nations.
We loaned Ms Newsom slides of the small English
town of Ashburton, in South Devon, to use in her
presentation (see Figure 6.4). The images showed the
compact form of the historic town in its landscape,
with clear edges between the urban areas and the sur-
rounding countryside. We apologized for the slightly
faded quality of the slides, as they were 25-years old,
but assured our friend that they were still accurate, as
we often revisit the town (where the English author
lived in the late 1970s). Our American colleague was
astonished that development could be organized in
such a way as to preserve this natural beauty and
historic character over a quarter of a century. We
explained that the local and regional plans that regu-
late development directed new building to take place
on infill sites and reclaimed land from other, defunct
uses. New greenfield expansion was not permitted as
the town was not designated as a high growth area.
Other, nearby towns in the region fulfilled that role,
with some new peripheral development being
allowed in each of those communities. Ashburton’s
economy depends on tourism and farming, so the
landscape is a prime economic resource, as is the
charming historic character of the town itself. A free-
way bypasses the town taking all through traffic away
from the medieval center, but no development is
allowed at the interchanges. All commerce is kept in
the center of town, to ensure a vibrant urban area,
and to allow new subdivisions to sprawl into the pre-
cious landscape, and stores and gas stations to clutter
the highway would be unthinkable to the town’s
citizens and to business and civic leaders. Such devel-
opment would compromise the economic prosperity
of the town. Conservation is good for business.
CHAPTER SIX
●
URBAN DESIGN IN THE REAL WORLD
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