Urban Renaissance in Vitinia, Rome
CIVICARCH, AVOE,
AGENZIA PER LA CITTA'2003

View from Waterloo Bridge showing current proposals. Image: English Heritage - www.intbau.org

Seaside New Town, Walton Country, Florida (courtesy by www.dpz.com)






www.celentano.it

Casteldebole, Bologna, Italy, 1986

Casteldebole, Bologna, Italy, 2007

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HOUSING CRISIS HAS A SILVER LINING
October 30, 2008 by David Brussat - projo.com

JITTERY developers in Florida recently dumped the modern architecture of a proposed upscale residential project and chose Spanish Colonial-style bungalows instead. "MODERN NO MORE ! As the real-estate market founders, the Houses of Indian Beach’s modernist concept has been abandoned in favor of something ‘more marketable.’ ”(Harold Bubil) Learn more.
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THE WORK OF NEIGHBORHOOD STABILIZATION
30 October 2008, Charles Buki - planetizen.com
"...Foreclosures are blighting neighborhoods across the country. There's no question that something needs to be done. But to react effectively, the field of community development needs to carefully consider which areas should be targeted and how much can be saved, argues Charles Buki. (...)" READ the article.
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HIGH SPEED RAIL AROUND THE WORLD


A six-minute video about high-speed rail projects around the world. Look at the VIDEO (wait few minutes...)

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NEWS SUMMARY: CITIES AND THE FINANCIAL CRISIS
October, 2008 by Tim Halbur - planetizen.com
How is the financial crisis impacting urban planning and land use policy? Managing Editor Tim Halbur takes a look at some early indicators drawn from recent news headlines and conversations with planning professionals.
On a daily basis, we’re hit with major news headlines about impending economic disaster, reeling markets, and aggressive fiscal policy designed to slow the bleeding. It’s difficult to summarize what all of this means for our public and private lives – the facts aren’t all in yet. But we can start to examine what is going on at the local level and how land use and development are likely to be impacted in the near-term. In the coming weeks, we will continue to bring you an occasional summary of headlines related to the economy and its impact on our cities, and we’ll talk to planners around the country to get their perspective. READ the full article
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Learning from USA - Special Report: Energy Efficiency
AMERICA'S MOST FUEL-EFFICIENT NEIGHBORHOODS
Matthew Swibel (www.forbes.com)
"As some politicians see it, where you live is now a matter of national energy policy. Places with plenty of mass transit and high rates of bicycle usage have received applause from presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama on the campaign trail lately. And some on Capitol Hill want to legislate shorter commutes that require less fuel
(...) Owning a home in walkable neighborhoods saves residents $300 to $400 a month, up to 4,800 a year, on gas expenses alone, according to research by the Congress for the New Urbanism. Kicking the car habit yields larger consequences: Traffic congestion sucked $78 billion from the economy in 2005, added 4.2 billion hours in commuter time, and wasted almost 3 billion gallons of gasoline, according to a 2007 Urban Mobility Report by the Texas Transportation Institute." (Read the full article)
America's Most Fuel-Efficient Neighborhoods:
Brooklyn Heights (New York, N.Y.) - Cost: $643 per month
Koreatown (Los Angeles, Calif.) - Cost: $658 per month
Logan Square (Chicago, Ill.) - Cost: $742 per month
Arlington, Va. (Washington, D.C.) - Cost: $747 per month
The Mission (San Francisco, Calif.) - Cost: $746 per month
Fishtown (Philadelphia, Pa.) - Cost: $674 per month
Jamaica Plain (Boston, Mass) - Cost: $728 per month
Woodward Corridor (Detroit, Mich.) - Cost: $728 per month
Greenville (Dallas, Texas) - Cost: $745 per month
Montrose (Houston, Texas) - Cost: $760 per month
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Bologna, Il Resto del Carlino, May 7, 2008:
Gabriele Tagliaventi interviewed on the new black eco-monster of the Municipality

Read the article
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A Vision of Europe and Fondation pour l'Architecture present
ROME 2008: DEMOLISHING TO REGENERATE


Corviale, Rome

A campaign to demolish Corviale Sub-Urban Slab
and build a New Eco-Compact-Neighbourhood
Designing and building new Eco-Compact Neighbouhoods represents the most important challenge for architects, engineers, developers and public administrators in an age as ours when people take conscience of the fundamental need of an ecological balance. Those who will keep on building sub-urban periheries will inevitably face a rising level of poverty in the social structure, insecurity in streets and public realm, higher taxation for citizens.

(Download the Corviale Press-Release Italian language / See also next CIVICARCH Workshop)
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The Missing Links
Public transit ridership is up, but no one's talking about a better system
by Ryan Avent, www.grist.org

" One year ago, as America prepared for the traditional summer-driving crush, op-ed pages nationwide fretted over a disturbing trend. Only a decade earlier, oil had plumbed depths near $10 per barrel, and dirt-cheap gas had allowed us to roll over the nation's blacktop in vehicles of monster-truck proportions.

But now something odd was happening: In just nine short years, real oil prices had quadrupled.
The steady upward march threatened all that we held dear, like Chevy Tahoes, the open road, and driving alone. How, the nation's pundits wondered in 2007, could America cope with oil at $60 per barrel "
(READ the article)http://governing.typepad.com/
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A new approach for the age of $4 gasoline
By Armando Carbonell , bostom.com

"The summer of 2008 already has the feel of a real turning point - a time Americans will remember when gasoline first sold for over $4 a gallon. Political calls for a gas tax holiday have been greeted with universal scorn. The search for longer term, sustainable solutions is on.
[...] More attention to land use. Improving vehicle efficiency is an important means to reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. But the long-term upward trend in vehicle miles traveled, driven by income and demographics, is projected to cancel all such savings. Although vehicle miles traveled is down this year, it can only drop so far without a change in development patterns to provide for more use of transit, pedestrian, and bicycle modes, and fewer and shorter automobile trips. Compact, mixed-use, transit-oriented development needs to be encouraged by recalibrating zoning and building codes from the suburban era. " (READ the full article)
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Is America's suburban dream collapsing into a nightmare?
By Lara Farrar For CNN
"Devastated by the subprime mortgage crisis, hundreds of homes have been foreclosed and thousands of residents have been forced to move, leaving in their wake a not-so-pleasant path of empty houses, unkempt lawns, vacant strip malls, graffiti-sprayed desolate sidewalks and even increased crime."
READ the article!
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Life in the 'Burbs: Heavy Costs for Families, Climate by Elizabeth Shogren
Millions of Americans have moved to the suburbs in the past 60 years, drawn by the lure of larger houses and cheaper prices. But until recently, few were aware of the impact those choices had on the environment (read)
Today EU-suburbs have the same problem.
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A CNU Review of Urban Structure to optimise public transport, movement networks and retail (read)
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Twentieth Century Architecture as a Cult
Nikos A. Salingaros (INTBAU.ORG)
"..To repair the catastrophic destruction of the European urban and cultural landscape in the 20th century, by war and modernism, and build all the new sustainable urban settlements needed, we will have to expose the responsibility of modernist ideology, especially in urban planning, reintroduce education in well proven design skills, and empower local communities and the end users of architecture. Modernism should be reduced to the position it deserves: A failed ideology, but also an architectural style that should compete on equal terms with other styles on the market place." (thanksAudun Engh)
Read the Essay !
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Gas Prices May Revive Cities:
Urban planners finally see a way to curb sprawl
www.usnews.com
Andres Duany is thrilled by the prices he's seeing at the gas pump. The urban planner and high priest of the New Urbanism movement sees today's (and likely tomorrow's) gas prices accomplishing what he and others in his field have long sought: a wholesale re-creation of the American lifestyle. "The urbanism of the United States has been premised on two things," Duany says. "One is inexpensive land. And the other is inexpensive fuel. Both have led to sprawl." (Read)
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The new list of the 10 least walkable cities in the US
1. Jacksonville, 2. Nashville, 3. Charlotte, 4. Indianapolis, 5. Oklahoma City, 6. Memphis, 7. Kansas City, 8. Fort Worth, 9. El Paso, 10. Mesa
read the article ! (The Huffington Post)
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SOMETHING IS CHANGING

From the left: Jack Nicholson (Something Has Changed, 1997), Boris Johnson (The New Mayor of London, 2008), Gianni Alemanno (The New Mayor of Rome, 2008)

LONDON - Boris Johnson was crowned Mayor of London after a stunning election victory over Ken Livingstone. He promised to protect London's traditional and historic buildings and streets from bulldozers and skyscrapers.
Mr Johnson said he would assure Londoners that their gardens, their views, their neighbourhoods are not going to be dwarfed by high rise blocks or engulfed in a sea of identikit homes.
ROME - The mayor aims to tear down Richard Meier ARA PACIS museum
Alemanno, the new mayor, said: "It is an issue of compatibility: the building is in a baroque part of the city". In 1996 AVOE promoted a campaign to save Rome from wrong modernist projects.
The A&C INTERNATIONAL magazine invited, on the initiative by Gabriele Tagliaventi, a series of architects to propose an organic solution for the Ara Pacis area as an alternative to the official proposal by the Municipality of Rome. Selected architects included: Maurice Culot, Andres Duany & Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk, Leon Krier, Michael Lykoudis, Liam O'Connor. All the counter-projects were published on A&C INTERNATIONAL N. 5, 1996 and displayed at the Campidoglio in Rome."
The critic V. Sgarbi compared Meier building to a giant Texas petrol station, while another called it "an indecent cesspit" when it was unveiled in 2006.
See also UrbanLovers 2006/III-Monster of the Month( READ )
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THE END OF THE MALL ERA Civicarch International Workshop
AVOE is invited in Faenza (Ravenna, Italy) on 2008 June 23 with the support of local ASCOM and CONFESERCENTI Associations to explain the result of CIVICARCH International Workshop-I (learn more).
After an introduction by Gabriele Tagliaventi, where the new alternatives to mall-machine will be presented as a real challenge to the entire EU, Alessandro Bucci will report on the resources of the compact-urban-neighborhoods and towns actually being constructed in EU. He will also speake about oil vulnerability in the italian cities, focusing on case-studies developed by Civicarch-University of Ferrara and A Vision of Europe. Donatella Diolaiti will show several examples of Mall-Retrofit and Urban -infill in USA and EU suburbs, including new social-housing examples. An animated panel will conclud the conference.
The conference will be in Faenza at Sala del Consiglio Comunale Enrico De Giovanni - Piazza del Popolo 31 Faenza. (download the PDF file)
Secretary Organization:
ASCOM - ASSOCIAZIONE COMMERCIANTI FAENZA
www.ascomfaenza.it
Viale delle Ceramiche 35 - Phone 0546 21355
CONFESERCENTI FAENZA - Via Bettisi 6 - 0546 67161
www.confesercentiravenna.it
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The rising number of Unoccupied Homes in the Suburbs
creates myriad Problems for City Governments
As Houses Empty, Cities Seek Ways To Fill the Void
by Michael Corkery and Ruth Simon From The Wall Street Journal Online
CLICK HERE
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HOW GREEN IS YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD: the convenient remedy in time magazine
Technology has gotten us into the climate change mess, and we assume that technology will get us out of it. Hybrid cars, wind turbines, algae biofuel — businesses and policymakers alike are searching for the technological fixes that will decarbonize our lives. But the deeper problem may be how — and where — we live our lives. The dominant pattern of development in America — large houses and sprawling, auto-dependent suburbs — requires a heavy input of fossil fuels and an output of carbon emissions. The adoption of cleaner technologies will take us part of the way, but what we really need to do is change our habitat, not just for the environmental benefits, but for our health, lifestyle and happiness. Andrés Duany is writing ... (continue)
[TIME in partnership with CNN]
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PRINCE CHARLES CRITICISES LONDON TOWER BLOCKS
The Prince of Wales has called for Britain's historic landscapes to be protected during a speech at the "New Buildings in Old Places" conference at St James's Palace, London, on 31 January.The event, sponsored by The Prince's Regeneration Trust, The Prince's Foundation for the Built Environment, The National Trust and Historic Royal Palaces, was aimed to discuss the issues around new developments in historic places. In the speech, the Prince said that the UNESCO World Heritage status of historic places like Edinburgh's Old Town, the Tower of London and Westminster is being been threatened by construction of new buildings nearby. (www.intbau.org)
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AN ASSOCIATION OF CITIZENS RUNS FOR MUNICIPAL ELECTIONS IN PARIS
Vote for Monts14 !
Monts14 is an association of citizens of the 14 Arrondissement in Paris. Its rich background in civil fights for the protection of the traditional architectural patrimony and the development of an ecological and accessible urban environment includes the succesful fight to save the Necker Hospital.
Now, Monts14 runs for the Municipal Elections on March 9, 2008.
The program focuses on:
- THE DEMOLITION OF THE OBSOLETE MONTPARNASSE TOWER and construction of a
true mixed-use traditional neighborhood including shops, apartments for both the elders and the young, offices, a wellness center, sport facilities, etc.
- THE MIXED-USE RE-GENERATION OF THE BOULEVARDS, with the elimination of the
concrete barriers that prevent citizens from pedestrian crossing, new trees , bus-stops close to the pedestrian sidewalks and more parking spaces to facilitate the accessibility to the many shops and cafes that make Montparnasse a unique place in Paris.
- THE REINFORCEMENT OF THE MIXED-USE CHARACTER OF MONTPARNASSE, based upon the enrichment of green spaces, plazas, monuments, and a friendly urban forniture.
- THE CONSTRUCTION OF NEW MIXED-USE TRADITIONA BUILDINGS THAT COMPLETE THE URBAN ENVIRONMENT AND ALLOW MORE CITIZENS TO LIVE MONTPARNASSE
Monts14 front-runner is the dynamic Patrice Maire, leading a true Urban Task Force including Maurice Culot, Laurence Senechal, William Pesson, Michele Perez, Ariane Boviatsis, Sabine Bois, Bernard Poullain, Myriam Mignot, Karine Hanselman...and many others. (brochure download)
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METROPOLITAN AREAS RANKED FOR WALKABILITY
WALKABILITY RANKINGS in USA
1. Washington
2. Boston, Massachusetts
3. San Francisco, California
4. Denver, Colorado
5. Portland, Oregon
6. Seattle, Washington
7. Chicago, Illinois
8. Miami, Florida
9. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
10. New York
(source: Brookings Institution)
Read the article (CNN.com/US)
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DRIEHAUS PRIZE
goes to Andres Duany and Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk
Andres Duany and Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk, who lead the traditional town planning movement called the New Urbanism, were named the winners of next year's Richard H. Driehaus Prize, which goes annually to a tradition-minded designer and now comes with $200,000 in prize money.
DPZ has designed scores of towns, neighborhoods and regional plans, including Seaside, the Florida panhandle resort community that formed the backdrop for the movie "The Truman Show." In 2005, Duany led a weeklong state-sponsored brainstorming session, or "charrette," to redesign 11 cities and towns in Mississippi that had been devastated by Hurricane Katrina.
"The Richard H. Driehaus Prize was created to celebrate classicism in the contemporary world. As champions of the New Urbanism movement, Andrés Duany and Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk have promoted the value system that defines classical architecture. Their body of work emphasizes community and context, which are the underpinnings of classical design," said Driehaus, founder and chairman of Driehaus Capital Managemen.
They are also among the nation's leading critics of suburban sprawl, arguing that car-dominated settlement patterns have victimized everyone from commuters stuck in traffic jams to inner-city residents who lack access to jobs and services that have spread to the suburban fringe.
Previous winners of the Driehaus Prize include architect Allan Greenberg and urban planner Jaquelin Robertson. Duany and Plater- Zyberk were selected by a jury that included Driehaus and Paul Goldberger, the architecture critic of The New Yorker. (source: Chicago Tribune) (Press Release - Italian Language)
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ADRIANO CELENTANO AGAINST STUPID ARCHITECTURE
On November 26, RAI 1 TV prime time has been dedicated to Adriano Celentano's speach on environment and architecture. With an audience of 9 millions Celentano attacks the skyscreaper vandalism and the Municipal Authorities which promote them.
"Vorrebbero più grattacieli perché qualche deficiente identifica il benessere dall'altezza dei grattacieli, a paritre dai Comuni che sono i mandanti di architetti kamikaze, che distruggono ogni cosa". A.Celentano, 26-11-2007







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SAVE PARIS FROM JURASSIC-TOWERS
Another A vsion of Europe campaign (click on the images to see larger)

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THE COMPACT CITY PROMOTED BY AVOE BREAKS GROUND
While EU cities are still confronted with the sprawl tragedy, the world is moving forward towards the ecological alternative to sub-urbanization presented at Triennale IV (Bologna, 2004). When will EU politicians respond to the big environmental challenge?
Look at the new city proposed by Abu Dhabi government and promoted by Abu Dhabi Future Energy Comp.: click !

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BOLOGNA ADOPTS AVOE PRINCIPLES OF NEW URBANISM
The new Masterplan embraces the schemes of AVOE for a Polycentric City proposed in 2001. Also the main italian newspaper welcomes AVOE's position on the necessity to reform italian sub-urban peripheries.
AVOE European Campaign started in 2006 is focusing on the Urban Renaissance of the Mall-Highway-Suburbs/Slab-urbs system, which is in crisis.





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THE TREE AND THE CITY
THE TREE AND THE CITY
The Best Drawing on a Balanced Relationshipbetween the City and Nature.
THE FIRST EDITION OF THE ROTARY PRIZE ( read )

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