"As in the
pseudoscience of bloodletting, just so in the pseudoscience of city rebuilding
and planning, years of learning and a plethora of subtle and complicated dogma
have arisen on a foundation of nonsense."
For Your
Files.
Article plus quotes,
books, links from Project for Public Places
http://www.pps.org/info/bulletin/jane_jacobs
http://www.pps.org/info/placemakingtools/placemakers/jjacobs
Perspectives
Cities as Ecosystems
Jacobs approached cities as living beings and ecosystems. She suggested that
over time, buildings, streets and neighborhoods function as dynamic organisms,
changing in response to how people interact with them. She explained how each
element of a city - sidewalks, parks, neighborhoods, government, economy -
functions together synergistically, in the same manner as the natural
ecosystem. This understanding helps us discern how cities work, how they break
down, and how they could be better structured.
Mixed-Use
Development
Jacobs advocated for "mixed-use" urban development - the integration
of different building types and uses, whether residential or commercial, old or
new. According to this idea, cities depend on a diversity of buildings,
residences, businesses and other non-residential uses, as well as people of
different ages using areas at different times of day, to create community
vitality. She saw cities as being "organic, spontaneous, and untidy,"
and views the intermingling of city uses and users as crucial to economic and
urban development.
Bottom-Up
Community Planning
Jacobs contested the traditional planning approach that relies on the judgment
of outside experts, proposing that local expertise is better suited to guiding
community development. She based her writing on empirical experience and
observation, noting how the prescribed government policies for planning and
development are usually inconsistent with the real-life functioning of city
neighborhoods.
The
Case for Higher Density
Although orthodox planning theory had blamed high density for crime, filth, and
a host of other problems, Jacobs disproved these assumptions and demonstrated
how a high concentration of people is vital for city life, economic growth, and
prosperity. While acknowledging that density alone does not produce healthy
communities, she illustrated through concrete examples how higher densities
yield a critical mass of people that is capable of supporting more vibrant
communities. In exposing the difference between high density and overcrowding,
Jacobs dispelled many myths about high concentrations of people.
Local
Economies
By dissecting how cities and their economies emerge and grow, Jacobs cast new
light on the nature of local economies. She contested the assumptions that
cities are a product of agricultural advancement; that specialized, highly
efficient economies fuel long-term growth; and that large, stable businesses
are the best sources of innovation. Instead, she developed a model of local
economic development based on adding new types of work to old, promoting small
businesses, and supporting the creative impulses of urban entrepreneurs.
