Comment 122722

By kevlahan (registered) | Posted March 26, 2018 at 18:42:07 in reply to Comment 122721

But you don't need 40 storeys to have bustling walkable cities.

Hamilton was bustling and walkable downtown 60 years ago with no residential high rises and there are many, many cities that are bustling and walkable with primarily low and mid-rise (6 to 10 storey) buildings.

As the urban planners have told us, good urban density and lively cities do not require high rises.

There is nothing forcing us to build high-rises except that they have been popular with developers in cities like Toronto and Vancouver. In fact, one of the main reasons for high rises in places like Manhattan and Vancouver is the high price of land ... and that is not an issue in Hamilton (Santaguida bought the James St Baptist site, a quarter of a city block right downtown, for just $600k ... clearly the cost of land was not a factor in his plans to build a high rise).

I understand that individually one can prefer high rises aesthetically, or like the idea of living high up. But that doesn't mean any self-respecting city needs to have lots of high rises. Or that cities without high rises are boring and dead.

Comment edited by kevlahan on 2018-03-26 18:45:55

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