Englewood Goes to Cantal

We have all experienced the rush of new development in Englewood.  According to the latest Suburbanite, we are in for some more. But once burned, twice shy.  This time, I hope that a more skeptical citizenry will be examining the motives and operations of those political and corporate interests who oversell the cost/benefit ratio of their pet projects.  

But what principles might guide development that supports the health and happiness of our citizens?

A Conference on Urban Planning

I was privileged to attend and present at an international symposium on “Urban Governance and Public Health” hosted by Michel Cantal-Dupart, Professor of Urban Architecture at the French National Conservatory of Arts and Trades in Paris. Readers may remember Professor Cantal from our short video of his tour through Englewood. Englewood residents and leading American public health experts, Drs. Mindy and Robert Fullilove of Columbia University, co-chaired the meeting.

I had the opportunity to conduct a short interview with Robert Fullilove and get his take on the purpose of the conference:

Principles of Urban Planning

During the conference, I learned about Professor Cantal's central principles of urban design, which are well demonstrated in the beautiful and functional capital city, Paris.  Englewood would do well to consider them.  Dr. Mindy Fullilove was kind enough to explain these principles in the following interview:



So how can these principles be applied to Englewood? Here are some examples:

Principle #1. "Open The Perspective"

In other words, extend sight lines and create a sense of spaciousness in the urban environment.

For instance, widening the sidewalks on Dean Street and providing a sense of spaciousness would encourage people to use Englewood as a destination, not just another North/South car route.  Let 9W,  Washington Ave and the Palisade Parkway fill that job. 

Principle #2. "Make Connections"
Simply put, we should create pathways that invite visits to our parks, shops and neighborhoods.

For instance, the alleyways on Dean Street are now dead zones.  They could be made more inviting, encourages people to explore the area of City Hall and bergenPAC.


Principle #3. "Make Investments"
The healthy development of an urban environment calls for cost-effective investment in our parks, public spaces and interconnections. 

For instance, if we are to encourage people to visit bergenPAC and the area around City Hall, it must be an inviting place to be.  Currently, it is simply an ugly, sad parking lot facing the back end of Dean Street buildings.  This is hardly the view City Hall and bergenPAC should be providing.

Likewise, our city should provide maps and graphics that reveal the connections to the great attractions of our city. Such mapping and signage would also help create zones of attraction, such as our restaurant, shopping and theatre districts.

Successful Planning in Other Cities

Cities like Pittsburgh, Pa. are using these principles to change their way of development. For instance, the city's NHL Hockey team, the Pittsburgh Penguins, is working with people in the immediate neighborhood to design, provide and fund development that both remediates past damage and provides benefit to the people who live in the area. One presenter at the conference, Denys Candy, is a organizational community development consultant in Pittsburgh. He discusses this new kind of development in the following interview:

Conclusion

I urge our city's leaders to avail themselves of the connections Englewood now has with local and international expertise.  We needn't reinvent the wheel.  And we needn't leave the future of our city to the economic ambitions of developers and their cozy political advocates.