New Urbanism

I attended a lecture on new urbanism three days ago at DBKL. New Urbanism is looking at "Giving people many choices for living an urban lifestyle in sustainable, convenient and enjoyable places, while providing the solutions to peak oil, global warming, and climate change".

Put simply, it is about creating a sustainable and liveable community. The question is have we not talking about this concept since the early day of planning? For years, we have been talking about walkability or walking distance between various land uses and the amenities, neighbourhood with mixture of uses and demographics features to encourage the creation of community spirit and neighbourliness, the creation of public discernible centre with the construction of town square and prominent monuments at strategic location, transit-oriented development with many of the township developed along major roads or rivers such as Petaling Jaya along the rail line and Kuala Lumpur developed along Klang River. These are features that were considered even long ago prior to the new township planning concept evolved. After years, we have to remind ourselves on the characteristics of new urbanism which is almost identical with the neighbourhood and new township concept.

To me, if we need to revisit the fundamental and early concept of planning for solutions towards the emerging problems at the present day, something is terribly missing, perhaps it is the answer of having over done for development. Some quarters in searching for sustainability have called for going back to the basic. The basic on live, shop, play, eat and work. The ways we have a decent life, we consume resources, we work ethically, we shop moderately and for necessity and more importantly within the carrying capacity of our Mother Earth.

New urbanism as a concept to remind us the past best practices and an urge for restrain on overdoing in development is fine with me, but if new concept after another concept is evolving to counter problems due to the forgotten of "old" is simply unattainable. Correcting the repeated same mistakes again and again is not a sustainable planning solution.