We hear a lot these days about building more compact and mixed use developments in the suburbs. Commonly known as New Urbanism, several projects have been built under this premise, such as McKenzie Towne in Calgary. These communities typically have a town centre much like that of a small town within walking distance of the entire neighbourhood. The overall design of the houses and commercial structures is generally "nostalgic" with everything made to look like an idyllic small town. I like to call it Disneyfication, but I must admit these neighbourhoods do end up looking and feeling very warm and friendly.
Behind the warm, fuzzy feeling, however, New Urbanism communities are far from sustainable and it's hard to even call them "green". Yes, they have managed to fit more homes per acre and a wider variety of housing along with commercial space, but the fact remains that it is still a completely car-oriented development. Very few of those living in the community can actually work there, so most still have long commutes into the city. The majority of the homes are still single family residences. The ideal of the house with a garage and a backyard doesn't go away in a New Urbanism community - the house may be smaller with a smaller yard, but it remains a single family home. The homes themselves are built to the same standard as any other suburban home - which is typically to the minimum code required. Fortunately there are new standards being developed by the US Green Building Council (USGBC) to certify how green a development really is.
So why will our suburbs become ghettos? Well, here are two key reasons:
1. Single family homes are about as inefficient a way to live as we can get. Four exterior walls, a roof and a basement floor all exposed to the outside - that's 6 surfaces transmitting cold or heat from outside. (OK, granted, in summer basements help with cooling - but they are not healthy spaces due to their year long coolness, darkness and generally poor air quality). Reduce the number of walls and you save energy. For those still wanting a yard of their own, a semi-detached house has 5 surfaces, and a rowhouse 4. Stack a few rowhouses or semis one atop another and you get down to 2 or 3 surfaces. Then there's the ultimate energy saver, the highrise condo. Whether the building is 4 or 40 stories tall, residents only have to heat a space with 2 or even 1 exterior wall.
2. No matter how small the single family home, it is never going to be of adequate density to truly support a transit system, so the car remains king.
And why are these two items a problem? Energy use. We all saw and suffered from it last year - a huge spike in energy prices. Despite the retreat since then, there is no question at all that those prices will be back. The oil is running out, no one disputes that. The only debate is over when. Heating our homes, driving our cars and generating most of our electricity comes from oil and related resources. When those costs rise, so do our utility costs.
Eventually there will be a breaking point where people quite simply can't afford to live in a big house of their own. Prices for homes will drop dramatically as the cost of oil goes up and up and people flock to more efficient residences. Those who can afford to will move closer to the city centre. Those that can't will be forced to stay in the suburbs and make do. You can see where this is going - the opposite happened after WWII when everyone fled to idyllic suburban communities and only the lower income segment of the population remained downtown with tragic consequences that we are still trying to rectify today. The opposite is going to happen unless we change our habits. Some will be able to go solar, better insulate their homes, drive hybrids or electric cars, but the fact is that no matter what, those all cost money.
The smart people are already realizing we have to change. I'm not suggesting that everyone live in a high rise condo or even give up their home (though I think it's a good suggestion) but be ready for what's coming. Start greening your home now before it's too late. It's easy to do and will pay for itself before you know it. And I haven't even touched on the health and lifestyle benefits of living in more green and compact communities - that's for another time.
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