tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3739903651344104723.post846441385551363958..comments2023-04-27T04:15:23.935-04:00Comments on things too wonderful: Developments ExplainedNicholashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03876710927302794606noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3739903651344104723.post-48049074910235257772008-07-10T04:52:00.000-04:002008-07-10T04:52:00.000-04:00Hey Ben,Thanks a lot for the thoughtful comment. I...Hey Ben,<BR/><BR/>Thanks a lot for the thoughtful comment. I do think what I wrote here was too judgmental of too many people.<BR/><BR/>I appreciate hearing about your background. I think there's a slight difference between what we're talking about, though. The situation you're describing seems to be one in which houses were all cheaper by virtue of the economies of scale realized in producing them at the same time. Therefore, development houses were more affordable than alternatives, and helped younger couples afford them who perhaps couldn't otherwise own a home.<BR/><BR/>In the situation I'm more familiar with, development houses are actually <I>more</I> expensive than their older, more individually built counterparts. A major reason is they have lots of bedrooms/bathrooms and huge amounts of square footage. (So not only do the houses all look like each other, they're behemoths completely divorced from any context in place or time. People around here often call them "McMansions.")<BR/><BR/>So instead of young folks getting a jump start on a first home they wouldn't otherwise be able to have, you have young folks really stretching themselves to buy more house than they need or often can afford, perhaps because of the associated success signaling. Other, I would argue better, homes in neighborhoods no worse (but perhaps not as homogenous) are more affordable and perfectly available, but for whatever reason these folks don't opt for them. You can say that's their prerogative, and it is, but I think literally everyone would be better off if some different values were in place.<BR/><BR/>I mentioned that the idea of a development could be a recipe for real community, and I'm glad to hear that your upbringing reflected that - it really does sound cool. But I think the difference in why people live in development houses I'm more familiar with - as attempts to display prosperity - instead leads inhabitants to have the kind of individualist conformity that I described.Nicholashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03876710927302794606noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3739903651344104723.post-50092910916169472008-07-09T20:31:00.000-04:002008-07-09T20:31:00.000-04:00Nick,I'd like to offer a slightly different perspe...Nick,<BR/>I'd like to offer a slightly different perspective. I find it encouraging that our nation is prosperous enough that even a young familiy can be "successful". My previous house was built by Toll Brothers in the 60's, and I must say it served my young family very well. I was indeed in a neighborhood with many similar families, and I cherish my time spent playing with all the other kids on my block, romping through all of our yards. It was a quiet, safe area where everyone knew everyone, three blacks from school and maybe 15 minutes from work. The houses may have looked similar, and homogeneity is standard fare in the upper midwest, but what I grew up in was a community. All the families had their dreams, and many of us/them moved out as worldly success was realized, but I couldn't characterize our time there as individualistically conformist. <BR/><BR/>btw, zoning is necessary and I demand it. I'm not looking forward to living on a busy street 50 feet from a fine commercial establishment next year that will be noisy at all hours of the night. I'm willing to pay a premium to have a little breathing room. Everyone needs to live somewhere; why not let it be somewhere comfortable?Benhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04020530152981718685noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3739903651344104723.post-81586923230281833552008-07-06T18:04:00.000-04:002008-07-06T18:04:00.000-04:00Excellent analysis, but you are missing a key ingr...Excellent analysis, but you are missing a key ingredient - the government. Zoning prevents clustering houses, and definitely prevents the classic 1st floor retail, apartments above building. Most zoners see the seperation of uses (commercial, residential, industrial) as necessary and demanded by inhabitants. I would argue though that it forces us to drive everywhere, because it seperates things too much to walk or bike. All of this driving alone may also add to the seclusionary mindset of subrubia inhabitants.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com