|
Residential Densities - Single Family Detached
What Does This Mean?
Why
Is This Important?
How Are We Doing?
Taking Responsibility - What You
Can Do
We Must All Be
Accountable - Improving Urban Planning & Smart
Growth - Find Out More
What Does This Mean?
One way to
look at urban development is to examine how new
subdivisions, and in particular single family
dwellings, are consuming land. As housing
density decreases, more land is consumed and
infrastructure (sewer, water, roads etc.) per
unit is more expensive. Providing public transit
services becomes extremely expensive and
therefore less frequent. A more compact urban
form (increased density) can help to conserve
energy and make transit usage more practical.
Why Is This Important?
Public concern
has been voiced about the nature of subdivision
developments around London. Land is consumed and
infrastructure to service these subdivisions is
expensive. Subdivision growth is necessary to
meet London’s expanding population, however, how
these subdivisions are growing is important. The
market demands single family detached dwellings
– but how are we growing these types of
subdivisions?
How Are We Doing?
æ
Getting Better
(data table available in Smart Growth &
Placemaking in London, Proposed Demonstration
Project, May 2004)
The evidence is clear that new subdivisions are,
on average, being constructed at much higher
densities than those of previous eras. In fact,
some new low density subdivisions are being
constructed at densities which are more than 50%
higher than their low density counterparts in
older developments in Old South and Old North.
London is achieving some very high densities in
single family subdivisions – 25 to 30 uph which
stand in stark contrast to the 10 uph of
Oakridge built in the 1960s or Warbler Woods
built in the 1980s.
Back
to Top of Page
Taking
Responsibility – What You Can Do
- Read the
Citizen's Guide to the Land Use Planning
System in Ontario, produced by the Ministry of
Municipal Affairs and Housing.
- Get
involved in the planning process. See the
Saturday edition of the London Free Press
“Living in the City” notices of public
meetings or link to the City of London Web
site “Living
in the City” page
- Advocate
for greater density developments overall:
- Narrow
front yards
- Smaller
lot sizes
- Narrower
streets
We Must All Be
Accountable - Improving Urban Planning & Smart
Growth -
Find Out
More
Back
to Top of Page
|
