![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
I'm currently reading Walkable City, which is great, and I'll hopefully recap it more at some point. But I'll discuss one thing I read tonight. There's an ecological idea that animals like places that give them prospect and refuge: ability to see food or predators, and a feeling of safety. For housecats, that might be the top of the fridge or other high but narrow places. For humans, it might be forest edges, and things that evoke the feeling of such... such as arcades/colonnades, where roof and pillars give a feeling of refuge while open views give prospect.
Or tree-lined streets themselves, of course.
Or, failing tress, the buildings on the streets, if not too short or far from the sidewalk. (Ecology aside, they can also give shade, absent any trees -- two story buildings in La Serena gave shade downtown even around noon, because you could hug their walls. One claim is that a width of street:height of building ratio of 6:1 is "way too open" while 1:1 is ideal.
Walking home from the cafe, I tried to observe and apply these new ideas. Unsurprisingly, streets with decent trees overhead felt better. Turning up a residential street, I estimated a 6:1 ratio: 6-8 meters of two story houses, 12 meters of yard + sidewalk, 12 meters of street (2 traffic lanes, 2 parking), more yard and sidewalk, so 36:6. Definitely felt at least a bit two open. Up at the corner, where 2-3 story buildings suddenly came up to the sidewalk, felt nicer, even (in a way) on the side where the wall was rather blank.
Japanese and other traditional residential streets are probably under 1:1, e.g. 4-5 meters of streets and 6-8 meters of building, or more if 3 story!
Or tree-lined streets themselves, of course.
Or, failing tress, the buildings on the streets, if not too short or far from the sidewalk. (Ecology aside, they can also give shade, absent any trees -- two story buildings in La Serena gave shade downtown even around noon, because you could hug their walls. One claim is that a width of street:height of building ratio of 6:1 is "way too open" while 1:1 is ideal.
Walking home from the cafe, I tried to observe and apply these new ideas. Unsurprisingly, streets with decent trees overhead felt better. Turning up a residential street, I estimated a 6:1 ratio: 6-8 meters of two story houses, 12 meters of yard + sidewalk, 12 meters of street (2 traffic lanes, 2 parking), more yard and sidewalk, so 36:6. Definitely felt at least a bit two open. Up at the corner, where 2-3 story buildings suddenly came up to the sidewalk, felt nicer, even (in a way) on the side where the wall was rather blank.
Japanese and other traditional residential streets are probably under 1:1, e.g. 4-5 meters of streets and 6-8 meters of building, or more if 3 story!
no subject
Date: 2020-03-07 08:14 (UTC)From:no subject
Date: 2020-03-07 08:31 (UTC)From: