Comments by "Kevin Street" (@Kevin_Street) on "Stewart Hicks" channel.

  1. ​ @Nuclearbones  "When you go so far into zoning laws you end up just stifling any possibility for a community to form organically." Exactly! You describe that atomization or isolation very well in your comment. I like the idea that a healthy city is a place where "happy accidents" or unexpected encounters can happen every day. Ideally, every healthy city should have two things: 1. A private zone where an individual or family can feel safe and truly be themselves. Most people want a larger and larger private zone as they get older. You can see this in the progression of a child who has their own room, to retired people who need a backyard full of nature to rest in. The city needs to be flexible enough to provide for different sizes of private zones, although this is traditionally the area that is sacrificed first when density increases. 2. A "public" zone that includes a mixture of public, private and semi-private zones. This is where the urban planners like to separate things into neatly zoned areas, but aside from practical constraints (like heavy industry not being located right next to residences), I think it's better to mix everything up. This should be the place where happy accidents happen, where you run into people you might not ordinarily meet and interact with them. Those unexpected interactions are what make big cities desirable places to live.
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  2. Hi there. YouTube randomly recommended your video to me, and I'm glad it did. Thank you for a really interesting and well written critique of the linear city.
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