News

New Urbanism popular with developers

January 19, 2006
By KIMBLER SLOAN Sun Staff Writer—THE NORTHSIDE SUN

WORK DAYS WITHOUT traffic jams or having to drive kids miles away to attend school or play baseball are long gone.

But some developers are looking to change this through reviving a simpler way of life through traditional neighborhood developments.

Since World War II, America has moved toward single use zoning, according to Developer Mark Frascogna.

Single use zoning is when retail is concentrated in one area, housing in another area and industry in another.

“We started moving toward single use zoning substantially in response to the industrialization and proliferation of the automobile,” he said.

“Basically communities were looking for ways to create buffers between residential areas and highways and industrial areas.”

The engineering community and city planners did not fully recognize the impact of single use zoning, according to Frascogna.

“Over the last 60 some odd years, this type of zoning has disembodied the community because everything is separated,” he said. “That has forced everybody to be commuters. You pretty much have to be in a car to do anything.”

About 60 to 70 years ago we stopped letting cities grow organically, according to Northsider Leland Speed.

“We switched and orientated everything around the automobile,” he said. “Now you can’t go anywhere without
getting in your car, and with new urbanism and traditional neighborhood developments, we are trying to get people on their feet.”

New urbanism is planning that seeks to rebuild core city neighborhoods with multi-use buildings and housing clustered near commercial service areas.

ABOUT 25 YEARS ago the notion of new urbanism and traditional neighborhood planning re-emerged and it was the reawakening of town planing the way it was done prior to the automobile, according to Frascogna.

“We need to take a closer look at the impact of the zoning and the community, and look at the principle of how older cities were created and what made them great,” he said.

“The most beloved places in America were built in a traditional sense.”

Traditional developments or new urbanism, and urbanism in general, are really not new, according to Andy Kunz, director of NewUrbanism.org.

“They are a new revival of urbanism, which goes back 5,000 years and across all cultures,” he said. “It is urbanism rediscovered and put back into practice in the modern age.”

There are several reasons why it has gained a new popularity, according to Kunz.

“General and growing dissatisfaction with the suburbs, rapidly growing traffic congestion, great investment going on in cities and the vitality, diversity and enjoyment of urban living, walkability, sidewalk cafes and public plazas,” he said.

THERE ARE VARIOUS conceptions of what new urbanism is, according to developer Clint Herring.

“Things are getting blended a bit,” he said, “But in the truest sense, new urbanism is a land planning method that does a conscious job of mixing single family detached and attached, townhouses, lofts and condos inter-mixed with office and retail.”

All of these are mixed together with community public elements like parks and public space, and are pedestrian friendly, according to Herring.

“These developments have to have all of these things in order for it to work and it has to be in the right location,” he said.

These developments are taking place all over the country, according to Herring, because we are creating a situation that has balanced transportation plans.

Harbor Walk developer John Burwell said traditional neighborhood developments are popular because people are tired of living in developments where they don’t know their neighbors.

“It is great because these developments have sidewalks and places for people to gather,” he said.

Burwell said there are several such developments planned to take place in the reservoir area.

“There are several things that are going to happen out here on the reservoir that I am excited about,” he said.

Developer Mike Peters said he thinks we are going to see more and more of these types of developments.

Other areas such as Flowood, Ridgeland and Madison are also looking to put residential properties downtown,
according to Peters.

“They are even doing these types of developments in the suburbs, but in Jackson particularly, it is going to happen more and more,” he said.

“We have communities in Jackson where all the infrastructure and stores are already there.

“Cool and nice non-traditional housing in those areas is going to be a trend and I think you will see a lot more of it being built.”

THE BENEFITS OF new urbanism and urbanism are that you are not attached to your car for everything you need, which means you are also not forced to fight traffic all day, according to Kunz.

“Traffic and driving are considered the most stressful things in people’s lives, so any way to reduce the time spent in this is a great relief,” he said.

“Things are close together, mixed, and you can walk to them. You can walk to work, to shops, restaurants, services, to pick up your dry cleaning, rent a movie or pick up a bottle of wine when you live in a mixed use community.”

This is not a passing fad or trend, this is a paradigm shift away from building sprawl, according to Kunz.

“There are still plenty of developers doing sprawl, but their numbers are going down,” he said.

Kunz said we will absolutely see more and more of these types of developments all over the country in the coming year.

“There are already over 500 new urbanist projects planned or under construction in the United States alone,” he said, “half of which are in historic urban centers.”

The past two decades have been a good indication of what is coming in the future, according to Frascogna.

“We had forgotten what was the most human friendly way to create a a community,” he said.

“We need to look at what is best for humans as opposed to automobiles.”