The urgency of climate change makes the rebirth of our cities crucial to
the planet, and its people
Richard Rogers
Saturday December 2, 2006
The Guardian
After a century in which cities were treated as problems - dirty,
crowded, dangerous - the 1997 general election marked a turning point
with a new government that saw cities as the only sustainable solution
to the growing demand for housing.
There has been a measurable cultural shift - to an understanding that we
need to use land better, and plan better, to sustain our cities. If you
visit Manchester today, you can see tangible evidence of that change in
the centre. Over 15 years the population has soared from 90 to 25,000,
bringing life and pride back to one of our great urban centres.
But if you travel just a few blocks from revitalised city centres you
can see shoddy housing and wasted land, which shows how many problems
remain. Most worrying are the signs that the government is losing its
nerve: that it is beginning to focus on quantity at the expense of quality.
The greatest danger is that the government might weaken its policy of
giving priority to development on derelict brownfield sites. This
sequential approach to land use is crucial to strengthening the social
and economic vitality of the city and protecting the beauty of the
countryside.
cont'd....
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/story/0,,1962170,00.html