‘People are happier in a walkable neighborhood’: the US community that banned cars

www.theguardian.com ‘People are happier in a walkable neighborhood’: the US community that banned cars

A new housing development outside Phoenix is looking towards European cities for inspiration and shutting out the cars. So far residents love it

A new housing development outside Phoenix is looking towards European cities for inspiration and shutting out the cars. So far residents love it - The Guardian

Fuck Cars @lemmy.ml

Blaze @discuss.tchncs.de

1y ago

‘People are happier in a walkable neighborhood’: the US community that banned cars

www.theguardian.com /cities/2023/oct/11/culdesac-car-free-neighborhood-tempe-arizona

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I really like it, I got excited. But ...can we please build some for sale units in walkable areas and not just rental units? This live-by-subscription bullshit is out of hand
- Imo all daily/frequent use things should be max 15-20 minutes away on foot in an ideal design. I was extremely depressed when I was forced to live in a suburban nightmare with all paths being by busy roads (so unbreathable air) with the closest shop being 40 minutes away.
  
  Careful. You start talking about things being 15 minutes away and conservative whackos will claim you’re trying to put them in an open air prison.
  
  open air prison
  I bet they're pro Israel too at the same time
  
  2000% yes.
  
  to hell with them
  
  I wonder if this is a college thing. Most of us who have gone to college probably experienced a 15 minute walkable “city “ and are more likely to appreciate it
- What is it about ownership that you like?
  
  I'm not them, but generally, the appeal of ownership is that if you don't own it, then somebody else does, and that person or company is making profit from the relationship. So, ownership seems like it should be cheaper.
  
  To me it’s about having a real home that you can call yours and the stability that comes with that. In many rental properties you can be evicted on the whim of the owner—usually not immediately but after some warning period. With ownership as long as you pay your bills you know you’ll have a place to live and where it will be barring some exceptional catastrophe.
  
  Rent is a scam.
  
  Property is a scam
  
  Property is theft
  
  You can actually fix shit. For example, I have electric heating at the moment. Power bill in winter fucking sucks. If I owned the place I would have installed split air.
  
  Stability (your (fixed rate) mortgage payment doesn't change, control (within reasonable limitations, I can mount things to walls, pour concrete in the back yard, rip up the floors and put hardwood, etc), the ability to actually pay it off and no longer have to worry about the payment (even if its a long way out for a 30 year mortgage, you build equity instead of just losing all of the money), the ability to sell the house to recoup equity (not in an investment sense, just in a, this house didnt depreciate like a car would so i can make a significant portion of what i paid back when I do decide to move), among other smaller things.
  The critical downsides in my experience are maintenance (no repair guy to fix your water heater), and being locked in, especially during turbulent economic times and personal instability (for example, it's difficult to 'up and move' for a new job.)
  That being said, there are also legitimate reasons to rent, though I found as I get older, I wanted more stability, and less having to deal with a landlord dictating me (and being able to enter my house and decide how I behave) even if that means sacrificing some other aspects like better locations.
  We only live one time, and I like being able to have a home that is mine and my families, it's given us a lot of opportunities, like being able to immigrate family members and have a place for them to live with us, something that becomes challenging when a landlord tells you that you can't have additional tenants, for example.
  
  You have a missing closing parenthesis in the first sentence.
  
  predictability in future pricing
  
  Modification and paint the home the way i like.
  
  I want to drill into my balcony to hang planters and lights, upgrade appliances like a more spacious dishwasher, induction range, and heat pump water heater. I'd like to install ir reflecting window films but that's not allowed here. I also miss having my tv wall mounted and tidy but lag bolts aren't allowed. We also aren't allowed to swap light switches for smart switches or add dimmers (maintenance is required to see the apartment for routine stuff like hvac filter changes and they would notice). I also want to be able to pull additional cat6 through the walls but that's pretty risky and if anything went wrong we could lose our security deposit. Owning would also open up the possibility of doing my own electrical work, which while it was possible to get away with minor additions in my previous rental (get a work box and cover plate and mount it where it looks like it belongs and nobody bats an eye), I would still be prevented from being able to get approvals on stuff that requires inspection and owner sign-offs such as utility diaconnect switches for battery back up. I'm lucky enough that my previous landlord was willing to sign off on fiber internet installation work but at my new place you need approval to even put up a tv antenna on your balcony.
  
  (I asked this question to try and figure out a financial solution preventing people from having what they want. The hive mind determined this question to be of negative value to the conversation. I removed the offending and distracting question.)

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