The New Urbanism: Critiques and Rebuttals
Published Oct 1, 2002 · C. Ellis
Journal of Urban Design
251
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Abstract
Over the past two decades, the New Urbanism has emerged as a contro- versial alternative to conventional patterns of urban development. Although growing in popularity, it has received a sceptical reception in journals of planning, architecture and geography. This paper reviews criticisms of the New Urbanism and examines evidence and arguments on both sides of each issue. Critiques may be roughly divided into those involving empirical performance, ideological and cultural afe nities, and aesthetic qual- ity. While insufe cient evidence exists in some cases to make e nal judgments, it is argued that the critical attack on the New Urbanism remains unconvincing. Much of the critical literature is e awed by the use of caricature, inadequate sampling of projects, dee cient understanding of New Urbanist principles and practices, premature judgments, unreal- istic expectations and ideological bias. While New Urbanists can learn from the critiques of their work, and research gaps need to be e lled, the New Urbanism remains a resilient, practical and well-founded alternative to conventional land development practices.