THE TECHNOBURB'S A FIEND

     People move...whether by desire, requirement, gentrification, money, family, job opportunities. People move, and there's really no good way to predict what will happen next. I believe the technoburb is among one of the most popular ways of life, alongside urban city life and suburbia, but I do not think it is the future of human development - particularly as the older generations begin to fade out for the younger. More young people are moving to big cities again, at exponential rates (myself included). Fewer young people desire children and families, so they pursue career and financial success first and foremost - most of which still happens at urban cores, particularly for higher office jobs. Small, local towns are barely hanging on by their bootstraps to avoid extinction, yet cannot agree on whether to maintain the old ways of life or push forward into contemporary lifestyles. It is true that many large corporations are moving away from urban environments for cheaper real estate, and many jobs are created in the wake. As a result, people could potentially begin moving toward a technoburb environment, I do not dismiss the idea, but more so through necessity than desire. It brings in to question who actually holds power in this country...I've always maintained multi-national corporations (big pharma, tech, healthcare, shipping) run this country more than the government - they have much more concealed control over how and where the population lives, but that's another discussion. 

    Given this information of business migration, I'm left to draw my own conclusions on the future of development and communities in America. The wealthiest upper class, the ultra career driven, the idealists will reside in urban environments as that's where headquarters and the largest diversity of high end opportunities remain. The middle working class will move with the jobs to less urban locations and continue developing these technoburbs. The lower class and poorest of civilization will stay exactly where they are. As big businesses, factories, manufacturers move away from urban environments, so to will the people who work there - effectively enhancing and broadening the separation between the social classes. The upper have already found ways to push the impoverished away from view. Now it's the middle class' turn...  

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

THE MEMORY MISJUNCTION

Image
  For many of us, we believe memory works like that of a film or picture book - recalled to mind on demand, in vivid color, and uniquely total. I prefer to think of memory as the collection of lines, planes, forms, and colors that somehow influenced or were influenced by an emotion within us. Our memories are no more based in realism than the painting above, yet we recall the elements individually that compose the whole. In many ways, memory is idealized, as it never captures the entirety, but we still establish our own associations to places. It is the connection and progression of these associations that manifest our identity and morality. We are the sum of our manufactured and imperfect parts.   
Read more

SMALL TOWNS, BIG COMMUNITIES

Image
There are very few communities, particularly in small town America, with stronger community ties than Corinth, Mississippi. What began as part of a site visit for a design class ended with deep southern hospitality, great food, good company, and a pride for the hard work that built these towns - much of which was not designed, but rather developed through generations of families. When the mayor of a town will meet you at the local Coca-Cola museum for floats, I begin to question whether people aren't the key to planning communities. 
Read more

OVER THE EDGE

Image
 I had the privilege while living in New York to spend significant time at Hudson Yards exploring the development and experiencing some of what it had to offer, and it was quite surreal. My final paper focused on Hudson Yards more technically as a community and neighborhood, but this post is a bit more focused on my experience being there.  If you walk up James Corner's Highline Park from the Chelsea Meatpacking District, this is the first view you get of Hudson Yards. It is a truly magnificent open public space always full of people and events, exercising classes, outdoor concerts, immersive art experiences, and celebrations. The visit is never dull or boring, and looking directly up from this point you can see the Edge which is one of the most marvelous experiences you can encounter in the city.  The platform is the highest observation point in the Western Hemisphere, with one section of glass floor to look directly down to the street below.  It would be easy to sp...
Read more