August 3, 2006
In Praise of Zealous Nuts
New York-based Project for Public Spaces e-mailed a bulletin to its subscribers today singing praise for, among other places, Toronto's suburbs.
The theme of this month's e-mail is recognition of a new breed of civic activists, noting that the way communities improve themselves throughout North America has changed. PPS emphasizes the importance of they people they dub, "zealous nuts" to the planning process, asserting that concerned citizens are leading the way to positive, radical, local change.
In their newsletter, which is headlined by a photo of a (reversed) Queen streetcar, they write:
Look at Mississauga, Ontario, a city of 700,000 adjacent to Toronto, where a vital civic center is being created where previously a shopping mall had been the main attraction. The transformation of Mississauga's City Hall and Central Library into a bustling "outdoor community center" was spearheaded ... by advocates for community-based planning. In less than a year, 1000 city staff and local citizens have been trained in Placemaking.
| 
Advertisement: Torontoist Continues Below!
Post a comment (Comment Policy)
It makes me think of this Globe article from a few days ago. It's interesting to see natural cities emerge in even these carefully developed subdivisions.
Regarding Mississauga, I think that building some architecturally interesting gathering spots like city halls and libraries is fine. But they don't do anything to solve the essential problem of suburbs: that to use these public spaces, most people will get into their cars, drive there, and park beside it.
It's not monstrous civic projects that make a neighbourhood livable and sustainable; it's the mixed use zoning that alternates menial things like stores, restaurants, schools, houses, and condos in such a way that most people can walk or bike to go to work or take care of their daily activities without *always* needing a car. I've yet to see this sort of thing on a large scale in any of Toronto's suburbs.