Amanda Burden, chair of the New York City Planning Commission during the Bloomberg administration, believes that design is an important element to consider in urban development. Burden shares many views with Jane Jacobs such as encouraging social interaction and the vibrancy of public spaces (Larson 134). In Burden’s TED talk, she connected how her background as an animal behaviorist helped her observe and understand how people use spaces. Through these studies, she discovered what makes certain environments more inviting than others: comfort (created by the company of other people and seats) and greenery. Burden contrasts her beloved Paley Park with the familiar bare plazas favored by architects for their low-maintenance and generally avoided by the public. Consequently, she used information from her observations to develop design guidelines, such as at least two types of seating and at least four trees, for the city’s public plazas (Larson 139).
If the core of design is people as Burden suggests, it makes sense for urban planners to consider it. A space that appeals to and attracts visitors potentially brings revenue for surrounding businesses. Burden’s perspective that the High Line would encourage development and increase real estate values demonstrates William “Holly” Whyte’s belief that business is integral to the city’s success (Larson 135).
This leads to a different perspective to why design was important to Burden: to make the city appealing to investors and real estate (Larson 144). Burden refers to the “common good” in her talk several times but her idea of the “common good” is not inclusive of all city residents. The High Line’s impact in raising rent forced many people out of their homes and led to the construction of luxury apartments and condominiums (Larson 135). Her insistence to involve famous architects in the design of structures that demonstrate the city’s cultural and economic appeal may increase the number of tourism sites but these buildings might only be accessible to those who can afford to use them. Thus, the same spaces that were supposedly designed with people in mind may not be reachable by people who don’t have the time or money to visit.
Amanda Burden’s TED talk: http://www.ted.com/talks/amanda_burden_how_public_spaces_make_cities_work/transcript?language=en
The perspective that design was important to Burden to make the city appealing to investors and real estate can be seen in the Bloomberg Administration’s Park Agenda. The Bloomberg Administration’s agenda was focused on investing money in large parks, mainly in Manhattan for the purpose of boosting and improving the economy. However, I think that the two different perspectives you mentioned above are not mutually exclusive. Building in a way that encourages social interaction and the vibrancy of public spaces will both benefit individuals living in the city and bring in investors. The Bloomberg Administration added over 850 acres of park land, 400 acres of waterfront, 277 playgrounds, numerous athletic fields, and by 2013, 76% of all New Yorkers lived within a 10 minute walk of a park. All these developments added to the value of the city while at the same time benefitted the public.
Design can be an important tool used to accomplish several goals. Like you said, a space that appeals to and attracts visitors potentially brings revenue for surrounding businesses. It does also however, benefit those people living in the area. It is possible to appeal to tourists and appeal to city citizens through similar means.
I remember a conversation we had in class about what constitutes the “common good”. It is hard to say exactly at what point something starts to benefit more people than it hurts and when something hurts more people than it benefits. Yes, building the High Line (and other parks) did raise rent and did force many people out of their homes, but the administrations intent was to make sure “New York had the means to compete in a set, immutable future”. While it may not have benefitted every individual outright, in the long run it would by raising the value of the city and fostering economic development.