Sprawl vs. walkable, mixed-use communities
I mentioned this on the GreenListDC Twitter feed the other day, after seeing it on a friend's tweet. (Gosh, never thought I'd use that term!)
Recently, the American Prospect published a story, "A Tale of Two Exurbs," comparing Leesburg, Va., to the Kentlands community in Gaithersburg, Md.
The story uses the two places to contrast two very different ways of developing outer suburbs. One is hard to reach via transit, the other fairly easy to get to. One is unwalkable in many places, the other was planned to be walkable and to encourage walking to a central shopping center.
Yes, the first one is Leesburg, the second Kentlands. Author Ben Adler's point is that we have a choice when we build the new Leesburgs and Kentlands, the new exurbs. We can make them livable, walkable communities if we want. We just have to plan them that way and insist on smart development.
Read the story, then post your comments!
Recently, the American Prospect published a story, "A Tale of Two Exurbs," comparing Leesburg, Va., to the Kentlands community in Gaithersburg, Md.
The story uses the two places to contrast two very different ways of developing outer suburbs. One is hard to reach via transit, the other fairly easy to get to. One is unwalkable in many places, the other was planned to be walkable and to encourage walking to a central shopping center.
Yes, the first one is Leesburg, the second Kentlands. Author Ben Adler's point is that we have a choice when we build the new Leesburgs and Kentlands, the new exurbs. We can make them livable, walkable communities if we want. We just have to plan them that way and insist on smart development.
Read the story, then post your comments!
Labels: american prospect, Ben Adler, exurb, Gaithersburg, Kentlands, Leesburg, smart growth, sprawl
posted by Dan Kulpinski at
10:10 PM
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