John King argues that the city's new guidelines may leave too many loopholes open, potentially defeating their purpose: well-integrated new buildings.
Design critic John King praises San Francisco's intent, but raises doubts about the effectiveness of a new set of urban design guidelines. "The inherent subjectivity of such standards could muddy the waters rather than lead to better buildings, which is what we really need."
The issues King raises are architectural; the guidelines don't impact density. The document "wouldn't affect the low-slung residential districts of the city, which have their own guidelines, and it wouldn't alter the height or bulk of what's allowed in the neighborhoods and commercial districts covered by the new guidelines."
Loopholes and vague language are the main worry. By trying to be all things to all people, the guidelines could backfire and become meaningless. "Part of the problem is that no document can defuse the perennial tension between San Franciscans who want new buildings to look as if they've been here all along, and those who want the city to be a contemporary showcase on par with Barcelona or Rotterdam."
On a deeper level, King worries that "standards that upgrade the sorriest proposed buildings also can be applied so joylessly and dutifully that imaginative architecture gets pressed into a predictable mold."
FULL STORY: Do urban design guidelines help or hinder growing cities?
Duany on the Imperatives of Urban Design Codes
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Architectural Renderings Depict Only the 'Wired and Young'
John King shares his thoughts on modern renderings. In too many drawings a hipster cult of youth is normalized, and it threatens to paint regular folks and true nonconformists out of the picture.
Waymo Gets Permission to Map SF’s Market Street
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Trump deemed the landmark civil rights agreement “illegal DEI and environmental justice policy.”
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
The 120 Year Old Tiny Home Villages That Sheltered San Francisco’s Earthquake Refugees
More than a century ago, San Francisco mobilized to house thousands of residents displaced by the 1906 earthquake. Could their strategy offer a model for the present?
In Both Crashes and Crime, Public Transportation is Far Safer than Driving
Contrary to popular assumptions, public transportation has far lower crash and crime rates than automobile travel. For safer communities, improve and encourage transit travel.
Report: Zoning Reforms Should Complement Nashville’s Ambitious Transit Plan
Without reform, restrictive zoning codes will limit the impact of the city’s planned transit expansion and could exclude some of the residents who depend on transit the most.
Judge Orders Release of Frozen IRA, IIJA Funding
The decision is a victory for environmental groups who charged that freezing funds for critical infrastructure and disaster response programs caused “real and irreparable harm” to communities.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
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