Neighborhood design

A century-old idea is being reborn, and it offers smart answers to the demands of today’s market

Urbanismo

MVRDV has presented plans to redevelop a former US army barracks in the german city of mannheim.

As single-family houses become increasingly self-contained units connected to their neighbors solely by well-driven, and rarely walked, streets, Ross Chapin, FAIA author of Pocket Neighborhoods: Creating Small-Scale Community in a Large-Scale World, looks at the ways in which emerging trends in neighborhood design can help rebuild the bonds of community.

Week 2: Walkability: Good density and mixed use blocks with retail at the sidewalk and streets designed to accommodate more than just automobiles helps to create a healthy urban environment in which the pedestrian is comfortable. These elements were once common in cities but, like streetcars, have been abandoned in the name of car-centric "progress." It's past time to rethink these errors.

The plans submitted Wednesday by the center's owner represent four years of back-and-forth discussion between it and the city of San Jose.

cottage plans, small house plans, cabin plans, small homes designed by Ross Chapin