Traditional City Post Heroic Materialism

A person contacted me who is working on a development project that would build basically a small neighborhood in a rural/exurban part of a Southern…

As a person becomes aware of the advantages of Narrow Streets for People, they soon begin to think about how to convert today’s existing very…

Today, $1 trillion+ has been invested in “renewable energy,” backed by government programs, ESG nonsense, etc. etc. I think this is a lot like the…

In the US, which is trying to climb out of its long, deep error of automobile suburbia, there has been a battle of “NIMBYs Vs.…

Some people have got to talking about the “fifteen-minute city,” which is a fine idea. I will basically translate that from time into space: the…

Usually, we will have to adapt our Traditional City principles to real-life existing situations. In many cases, this will mean something that is compatible with…

We have been laying out a plan to radically improve the Sunset district of San Francisco, along the way doubling, tripling or quadrupling the number…

We have been imagining how to recreate the Sunset district of San Francisco, in a way that not only adds multiples of new living space,…

We were discussing how we can recreate the Sunset district of San Francisco, in a manner that is much more pleasing and beautiful, more pleasant…

Tokyo is one of the most expensive cities on earth; and also, a place where one can live cheaply, and well. Here’s why: Abundant low-cost…

Today, let’s take our Traditional City principles and get to work on a concrete example. Specifically, we will talk about how to rebuild the Sunset…

“What comes after Heroic Materialism?” I asked in 2009 — ten years ago! — and … I was right. November 22, 2009: What Comes After…

The Guardian (UK) recently did a survey to find the most densely populated square kilometer in every major country in Europe. What they found —…

Maybe autonomous vehicles will make all talk of parking obsolete in a few years. But that day has not yet come, so let’s figure out…

Today, I want to talk about the idea of free parking, a rather bad habit that a lot of American cities have gotten into. Actually,…

Previously, we looked into how much homes should cost. Basically, we concluded that the cost of homes should be a function of construction costs, which…

It’s been a long time since I talked about “Heroic Materialism.” However, I find that these themes are rising in the broader culture, so let’s…

How much homes cost is the most popular topic at any dinner party. But, people rarely think about how much homes should cost. If this…

Suburbia doesn’t scale. Most people’s vision of the “suburban ideal” involves large single-family houses on plots of 0.25 to 2.0 acres. This results in population densities of around…

It seems like people don’t have much of an idea of how cities change. It is mostly done by private individuals (and corporations), for profit,…

In the past, I’ve written about “Life Without Cars.” This time, I think we will have a little change of tone: “Life After Cars.” People…

(This item originally appeared at Strongtowns.org on September 26, 2016.) http://www.strongtowns.org/journal/2016/9/22/the-50000-san-francisco-studio-apartment I have been spending some time in San Francisco, and of course everyone complains…

Often, there is an opportunity to build out street systems as part of a new development. This would include any greenfield situation, and many infill…

Hudson Yards is a major new highrise development planned for the west side of Manhattan, New York. The site is a railyard, which is being…

Parks and Squares 4: Smaller Squares October 11, 2015 I’ve been describing the basic elements of Traditional City design. They are: Streets (mostly Narrow Streets…

Parks and Squares 3: Squares August 16, 2015 We’re talking about public space in the Traditional City that is not streets. Mostly, these are parks…

Parks and Squares 2: Smaller and Closer August 2, 2015 Last week, we laid out some basic propositions regarding parks: July 26, 2015: Parks and…

For a long time, I’ve been asserting that the basic building blocks of the Traditional City are Narrow Streets for People, amounting to perhaps 80%…

Population Densities in Paris April 29, 2015 Since I didn’t have anything for you on the weekend, here is some data I compiled a long…

Narrow Streets For People 4: Organizing The Street April 12, 2015 A basic characteristic of a Narrow Street for People is that it is one…

Narrow Streets for People 3: A Shopping Center Example March 22, 2015 We’re talking about some of the details of making successful Narrow Streets for…

We’ve been discussing in greater detail some of the characteristics of what I call Narrow Streets for People, including things that work well and things…

Since the beginning of this series, I’ve said that the key to making beautiful urban environments is a focus on what I’ve called “Really Narrow…

Life Without Cars 2014 December 28, 2014 Once a year, we take a little time to imagine Life Without Cars. Many people live without cars…

How to Be a Part of the Traditional City Movement December 6, 2014   If you are a professional municipal planner, architect, or property developer…

HTMAPODWTTC 14: Mobile Homes and Manufactured Housing September 7, 2014 We’ve been working on a series of ways that our Traditional City ideas can be…

HTMAPODWTTC 13: Getting Other People’s Cooperation July 13, 2014 A friend who works in a municipal government in Canada wrote to me recently (reprinted with…

HTMAPODWTTC 12: Trailer Parks and Mobile Home Parks May 18, 2014 For a while, I’ve been proposing actionable, specific ways to create Traditional City neighborhoods…

Environmentalism is the Key to Growth May 8, 2014 (This item originally appeared at Forbes.com on May 8, 2014.) http://www.forbes.com/sites/nathanlewis/2014/05/08/environmentalism-is-the-key-to-growth/ After you figure out the…

I thought that I would say a few things about what I call “arterial streets,” and also the larger “grand boulevards.” Arterial Streets are designed…

How To Make Billions While Making People Happy and Saving the Planet April 10, 2014 (This item originally appeared at Forbes.com on April 10, 2014.)…

The notion of an “eco-technic civilization” is popular these days. It is a good alternative to the “retro-eco” idea which is everywhere today — that…

The New World Economics Guide to Curing Affluenza 2: the Affluenza of the Poor December 15, 2013 Earlier this year, I looked at the thinking…

Life Without Cars: 2013 Edition December 8, 2013 Every year about this time, we pause and take a little time to imagine what life could…

The Triad of City Design Failure November 24, 2013 One thing you start thinking about, when you understand what I am talking about regarding the…

Let’s Take a Traditional City Break 2013 September 15, 2013 I haven’t done so much on the city design or Traditional City theme this year.…

How to Sell the Traditional City June 23, 2013 Some people, who have been reading this website, now understand the basic rightness of the Traditional…

The New World Economics Guide to Curing Affluenza June 16, 2013 I’ve talked in the past about “Scarcity and Abundance.” September 20, 2009: The Problem…

Let’s Take a Tokyo Fashion Break March 10, 2013 Tokyo is a very special example of a Traditional City environment, because it is has so…

HTMAPODWTTC 11: The Diminishing Returns of Suburbia January 20, 2013 Recently, I’ve talked about the diminishing returns of Heroic Materialism. December 4, 2011: The Diminishing…

Life Without Cars: 2012 Edition December 27, 2012 Once a year, we talk about what life could be like without cars. Actually, we talk about…

How To Make a Pile of Dough With the Traditional City 10: Let’s Bulldoze a Big Box Shopping Center 2: No, Seriously November 11, 2012…

Corbusier Nouveau 3: Really Narrow Streets With High-Rises September 23, 2012 We’ve been working on ways to combine our Traditional City design techniques with high-rise…

We’ve been discussing ways to mix high-rise buildings with Traditional City design elements, to make a much more pleasant environment than what you usually get…

Courbusier Nouveau August 18, 2012 We’ve been having fun with various Traditional City-inspired solutions that are basically drop-in replacements for today’s typical Suburban Hell single-family…

How To Make a Pile of Dough with the Traditional City 9: Townhouses With Parking July 1, 2012 We’ve been working on a series of…

How To Make a Pile of Dough with the Traditional City 8: Shared Parking April 22, 2012 We have been looking at ways to use…

How To Make a Pile of Dough With the Traditional City 7: Let’s Bulldoze a Big Box Shopping Center April 1, 2012 Touch your nose…

Life Without Cars: 2011 Edition December 25, 2011 Once a year, we stop and think what it would be like to live without cars. December…

The Diminishing Returns of Heroic Materialism 2: End of the Line December 4, 2011 We’ve been talking about the Diminishing Returns of Heroic Materialism: October…

Let’s Take a Traditional City Break 5: Stuff that Works November 6, 2011 Our theme here is to show examples of nice urban places for…

Let’s Take a Traditional City Break 4: Many Variations, One Theme September 25, 2011 Really Narrow Streets Buildings side by side and up against the…

How To Make A Pile of Dough With the Traditional City 6: Better Than a Thousand Words August 21, 2011 Guess where this is! OK,…

How To Make a Pile of Dough with the Traditional City 5: The New New Suburbanism July 31, 2011 I often call the “New Urbanists”…

How To Make A Pile of Dough With the Traditional City 4: More SFDR/SFAR Solutions July 17, 2011 First: Note that I have put this…

The New World Economics Guide to Men’s Fashion July 3, 2011 If you’ve been following along, you’ve noticed that the overarching theme of many of…

How To Make a Pile of Dough with the Traditional City 3: Single Family Detached in the Traditional City Style June 12, 2011 First: I…

How to Make a Pile of Dough with the Traditional City 2: A Ski Resort Village May 15, 2011 By happenstance, I began a conversation…

Let’s Take a Traditional City Break 3: Life With Really Narrow Streets May 1, 2011 Today we have another collection of Traditional City pics. The…

Let’s Take a Trip to the Skinniest House in New York April 3, 2011 A couple weeks ago, we took a trip to Julianne Moore’s…

Let’s Take a Trip to Julianne Moore’s House March 20, 2011 We have to get over certain mental difficulties. On the other side of these…

Let’s Take a Traditional City Break 2: More Really Narrow Streets Than You Can Shake a Stick At February 13, 2011 I was travelling the…

Let’s Take a Traditional City Break February 6, 2011 While I’ve been writing all this material on gold standard systems, my Traditional City photo folder…

Life Without Cars: 2010 Edition December 19, 2010 About once a year, I encourage people to think about what life could be like without cars.…

The Problem of Scarcity 3: Resource Scarcity October 18, 2010 We’ve talked about the Problem of Scarcity in the past. How is it that we…

Let’s Kick Around the New Urbanists October 3, 2010 The “New Urbanists” have the right idea, sorta, maybe, but they remain a rather befuddled bunch.…

The Service Economy 2: It’s Already Here A while ago, I introduced the idea of the “service economy.” May 16, 2010: The Service Economy Economics…

Sometimes people ask me how we — Americans in particular, who have dug their Suburban Hell hole the deepest — can transition to a Traditional…

Once people get into their heads that maybe the personal automobile is not really such a good idea — in other words, after they have…

Once you start talking about the Traditional City, you get a lot of people who say “but I don’t want to live in your Traditional…

Some people who read my series on Traditional Cities then ask: how to we transition from Suburban Hell, or the 19th Century Hypertrophic City, or…

The Service Economy May 16, 2010 What an economy is and what people think it is can be very different. An economy’s purpose is to…

How to Live the Good Life in the Traditional City April 18, 2010 OK, rich guys: I know that you aren’t really going for this…

The Problem With Little Teeny Farms 2: How Many Acres Can Sustain a Family? April 4, 2010 Welve been bashing the idea of “little teeny…

The Problem With Little Teeny Farms March 28, 2010 If you look at the history of little teeny farms, it isn’t good. This is usually…

The Traditional City: Bringing It All Together March 14, 2010 You may have wondered why I have been spending so much time talking about City…

Let’s Take a Trip to Suburban Hell March 7, 2010 I suppose Suburban Hell is not really a place we need to take a trip…

Toledo, Spain or Toledo, Ohio? February 21, 2010 We’re continuing our theme of the 19th Century Hypertrophic City versus the Traditional City. The basic characteristics…

Let’s Take a Trip to New York 2: The Bad and the Ugly January 31, 2010   We’ve been on a trip to New York,…

Let’s Take a Trip to New York City January 24, 2010   This is a Trip that I’ve been postponing for a while, because it’s…

We Can All Be Wizards January 10, 2010   I keep my eye out for things that serve as an example of an alternative to…

What A Real Train System Looks Like December 27, 2009   For most Americans, the only image they have of passenger rail systems, and subways…

Life Without Cars: 2009 Edition December 13 ,2009   Life used to be without cars. Over 5000 years of civilization, we’ve had cars for only…

We live in the latter stages of the Age of Heroic Materialism. That’s the name given to this period by Kenneth Clarke, in the classic…

Let’s Kick Around Carfree.com November 15, 2009   I don’t know of anyone who has come closer to my ideas of the Traditional City than…

If you take an honest look at The Future, I think you have to conclude that it stinks. Most of the stuff in The Future…

Let’s Take Another Trip to Venice October 18, 2009   Two years ago, we took a virtual trip to Venice. October 7, 2007: Let’s Take…

I haven’t talked too much yet about why the Traditional City works, and other designs do not. I figured you would just get the message…

Let’s Take a Trip to Barcelona September 28, 2009   I haven’t been writing too much about economics recently. I think people are in denial…

The Problem of Scarcity 2: It’s All In Your Head September 20, 2009   We’re talking about the Problem of Scarcity: September 13, 2009: The…

The Problem of Scarcity September 13, 2009   We have too much of everything. And not enough. Here, in early 21st century America, we are…

Let’s Visit an American Village 3: How the Suburbs Came to Be July 26, 2009   We’re not done with our American Village yet. July…

Let’s Take a Trip to an American Village 2: Downtown July 19, 2009   Last week, we took a trip to an American village: New…

Let’s Take a Trip to an American Village July 12, 2009   We continue our tour of villages with a visit to an American village.…

A Bazillion Windmills May 3, 2009 Some people are prone to take, let’s say, the present total electricity generation in the U.S., and try to…

Let’s Kick Around Those “Sustainability” Types April 19, 2009   “Sustainable” this and that seems to be on the upswing these days, and with Peak…

Let’s Visit Some More Villages March 15 ,2009   By this point you should be getting pretty good at designing villages. Do you think you…

Let’s Take a Trip to the French Village February 15, 2009 The English Village is nice, but some of the villages in France are almost…

Let’s Take a Trip to the English Village February 1, 2009   The U.S. began as an English colony, and the culture is fundamentally English.…

Currency Management for Little Countries January 4, 2009   In 1971, John Connally reportedly told his European counterparts that “the dollar is our currency, but…

Currencies are Causes, not Effects December 28, 2008   Of all the things that can cause economic problems, currency instability is one of the biggest,…

Life Without Cars December 21, 2008   Life used to be without cars. Before 1925 or so, only the wealthy had automobiles, and before 1900…

Visions of Future Cities August 10, 2008   A couple weeks ago, I distinguished between what I call the Traditional City, and a 20th-century fever…

The Traditional City Vs. The “Radiant City” July 20, 2008   I’ve talked about real cities vs. the suburban disaster. The basic characteristic of real…

How To Buy Gold on the Comex January 25, 2008 The “Comex” (it is now part of Nymex, which in turn was acquired by the…

Let’s Take a Trip to Tokyo December 2, 2007   I was in Tokyo for two weeks in early September. What a city! I lived…

Let’s Take a Trip to Venice October 7, 2007   We will continue with our tour of urban environments that don’t suck, as we consider…

No Growth Economics July 9, 2007 Our topic for today is the idea of “no growth economics.” We’re trying to expand the concept of economics…

Recipe for Florence June 17, 2007 Sorry to be gone for a while there. I spent a week in Tuscany, south of Florence, to attend…

The Eco-Metropolis March 26, 2006   There is a group of people who have been calling themselves the “New Urbanists.” Basically, they think that post-World…