A “livable city” means vastly different things for many people. In Hong Kong it might mean that your family is in a comfortable apartment while you play in the exciting mercantile world in a glass tower overlooking the harbor. In Dallas livability might mean that you live near an expressway that isn’t jammed up, at least not all the time, and your car runs most days. For some it might mean super fast Wi-Fi, the possibility of lucky and lucrative business opportunities and plenty of strip clubs. If that’s what rocks your boat then try Houston, though to me that city, oil money made physically manifest, is my worst nightmare.
via David Byrne’s Perfect City – WSJ.com.
In this article, David Byrne explores concepts of livability and what it means to him.
Here in Portland, we are fond of our city planning, bikes, parks, greenspaces and wonderful transit system. And it does make us complacent at times. We have a tendency to think no other city is as perfect as Portland. But he offers some great insights.
Eager to learn more? He’s speaking here in Portland tomorrow night at the Bagdad. If you’re going, ride a bike – parking on Hawthorne is horrid.