Modern Urbanism Is Destroying Our Cities

America is a global superpower. The wealthiest nation in history. What will it take for us to begin reconstructing our cities for people, not machines. Why can’t we have towns that look like the below image?

The human experience is not improved through a car window. We interact with our environment by touching it and walking through it, and our reliance on car transportation has turned enormous swaths of our cities into cultural “dead zones”.

Does this image of USPS inspire the same comfort and friendliness?

A building like this is made to drive by without a second glance. It’s filler for the transition zone between your home and your work. Unless you absolutely HAD to go, you would never voluntarily spend time around this building.

The next time you take a drive, look around. Do the buildings you see inspire you? Do they make you want to pull off to the side of the road and explore? Do they give you a sense of connection to your home city?

If not, maybe it’s time we make a change to our theories on modern urban development.

“If it is ten minutes anywhere you want to go you’ll walk all day. If it is ten minutes of beauty you will happily pay to walk all day. If you can’t walk anywhere you want to go, even a ten minute walk once a day becomes too much.” -Wrath of Gnon

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