New Urban Communities

New Urbanism is an approach to land planning that reduces traffic and eliminates sprawl. A New Urbanist neighborhood resembles an old European village or pre-war U.S. small town with homes and businesses clustered together. The goal is to create environments in which people can live, work, eat and shop within a walkable distance. Hundreds of these new urban communities are being developed all over the country, many in older depressed areas of established towns or cities. Builders like these communities because they are typically allowed to build more dense residential and commercial developments, politicians like them because the tax base is increased and residents like them because they get dynamic interesting places to live. Some examples include:

The Triangle in Austin The Triangle is only 33 acres in size but it has many upscale restaurants, shops and condos. When I visited it Sunday afternoon there were dozens of people shopping and walking around the attractively landscaped streets and small parks. Actually I visited the Triangle, visited Mueller and then returned to the Triangle for a late lunch around 2:00 PM. I wanted to have lunch at Galaxy Cafe but there was a 15 minute wait so I went to the Fish City Grill. The Fish City Grill had several Maryland Blue Crab dishes but although I love blue crab I just couldn't see myself having them in Texas. So I had grilled catfish with Tex-Mex sides.

Mueller in Austin, TX I was disappointed in Mueller until I learned more about the development cycle of the community. It already has several attractive new housing developments and a number of big box stores such as Home Depot, Best Buy, Bed Bath & Beyond, Marshalls and others. Apparently the new urban component will come later. Comment from a knowledgeable Austonite "Mueller is a 711 acre site, of which only a small percent has been developed. The "new urban" feel won't be there until the town center is completed in the coming years. The big box retail was completed first so that there would be some income coming into the development. The town center will be a mix of smaller scale retail like that found in the Triangle. Mueller is a much larger scale and still in its early stages. But unlike the Triangle, the retail/restaurant component will be more local. Developments like the Triangle and the Domain rely on chain establishments, thereby giving the developments a "theme park" quality. In addition, neither the Triangle nor the Domain have any home ownership components (either houses or condos)."

The Domain The 304-acre Domain located in the high-tech corridor of northwest Austin is calling itself Austin's second downtown. It's an ambitious effort. The Domain is already an impressive community with every type of upscale shop you can imagine. For example, it already includes or will soon include Neiman Marcus, Macy's, Nordstrom, Saks Fifth Avenue, Whole Foods Market, Burberry, Victoria's Secret, Tiffany & Co., Lacoste, an Apple Store and a Borders bookstore as well as restaurants, office spaces and apartments. Eventually it will have a 9-acre community park and pavilion and commuter rail connections to downtown and communities to the north.

North Central Texas The stars on the map represent new urban communities in the Dallas – Ft Worth area. Click on each for information. I particularly like Addison Circle north of Dallas. They have their own theatre company and a huge park where they have frequent free entertainment and events.

The Village at Shirlington in Arlington, VA I watched Shirlington go from a dingy little WWII era village into a chic new urban community.

The South Side Works in Pittsburgh, PA The South Side Works was developed on about 120 acres of former steel-making property along the Monongahela River.