Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Past, Future, and the Connections

Last week I attended a talk hosted by the Regional Planning Commission on Walkable Urbanism and it's effect on planning and development in the 21st century. What was most interesting from the presentation was the acknowledgement from a developer that the paradigm shift has already started and urbanism is back. Today's youth want to be connected in every way possible. We have already embraced the internet, social media, texting, IM, and other electronic connections but we really value our IRL (in real life) encounters very deeply despite what the Boomer-oriented media wants to portray about us. We like having experiences more than things and living in a dynamic urban space gives us those experiences regularly.
The speakers at the talk focused on how carefully crafted transportation options can enhance not only development but the social fabric as well. This confluence of transportation, development, and social experience was an integral part of city planning prior to WWII and it produced cities that were not only convenient, but bustling. The rise of industrialization ended up polluting many of the core cities which contributed to their decline but the combination of cheap energy, affordable automobiles, and government policy (like road subsidization) did far more damage. Now that many industries have either cleaned up or gone overseas core cities have a chance to reinvent (or most times rebrand) themselves as attractive options for living. The combination of convenience and energy-efficiency holds a lot of attraction for the Millennials.
Birmingham went through this same transition as many American cities did. The 'burbs expanded and the core emptied. But one of the chief advantages for the future of Birmingham is how the bones for a well-designed city are still here. Elements like the street grid, the commercial centers like 5 Points (S & W), Avondale, Woodlawn, etc, and many of the well-planned neighborhoods are still intact and waiting to be reconnected and re-energized. In concert with that we have many beautiful and solid historic structures within the city that make serious contributions to its identity and serve as a living connection to our past. Examining how we can repurpose these structures and transform them into facilitating structures for a 21st century Birmingham will be key to moving forward while holding on to what makes us Birmingham.
The emerging debate about Elyton School is a case in point. Here we have the second oldest school in the city (the oldest partially burned, if you remember, mainly due to neglect) potentially facing demolition simply because it's old and it might be a little more expensive to adapt it versus building a very boring, cheap suburban-style structure. The failure of city leadership to preserve our heritage is not a new tale unfortunately. We have lost many a structure to either neglect, misguidance, or outright deception. And when the dust settles the losers are the citizens now and in the future.
So in grand summation I submit to you that the connections between past and future are not only necessary for preserving its unique character it is critical to developing Birmingham's promise. Our past can give us the clues to unlocking our future if we can make the connections in our minds. The prosperous and developing areas of the city need to be bridged to give them the lifeblood they need to grow and thrive. Our historic structures can be the homes of our future successes. By connecting more of Birmingham together we can make serious strides in overcoming the inequities in our community and fostering the dialogues we need to move forward. By embracing the knowledge and experience of our past, bad and good alike, we can forge a new Birmingham, a better Birmingham, a Birmingham we can not only believe in but one that we can hold before the world in pride.

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