A number of recent conversations with
Stefanos Polyzoides,
Howard Blackson, and
Matt Lambert regarding density and residential types has me thinking about building typology as one solution to visualizing and embracing density. The Lincoln Institute has done a good job of making the touchy subject more approachable on their
website and the wonderful aerial photography of
Alex S. MacLean goes a long way to clarifying the difference between similar densities that ultimately prove more or less desirable in their final built form. For example, compare the similar densities from San Francisco and Boston below. The narrow buildings around Louisburg Square are human scaled and very approachable from the view of the pedestrian. In contrast, the monolithic buildings in San Francisco create a canyon at the street level and contribute very little to the effort to promote sustainable densities.
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