terra non firma

LA vs London

when I moved here from london, I was actually struck by the similarities between the two cities - similarities I didn't expect. the most striking one is the lack of density in both cities (although I lived mostly in shoreditch, which is arguably one of the denser boroughs in london). both cities are an amalgam of separate neighborhoods, towns, villages. I thought there were other similarities - but those are a little off topic.

anyway, there were two articles this weekend that also recognized the similarities:

• Joel Kotkin's article in the latimes calling for mayoral candidates to focus less on grand visions and more on preserving the middle class.
• and the financial times' article on preserving and revitalizing london's public spaces, lest it face the fate of too many american places: "mall, fast-food drive-ins, out-of-town shopping and, ultimately, the idea of exurbia, placeless suburbs no longer even linked to cities." the article doesn't explicitly link LA and london but the subtext is pretty clear: london is looking at its LA-ization if it doesn't provide more public space for socialization and more space for pedestrians.

posted by marissa @ 8:15 AM