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Originally Posted by reet
Duany does not advocate forcing people into something they don't want. From the article, he states:
"...there are still the 30% who are really happy with their cul-de-sacs and McMansions and long commutes. And because one-third of Americans explicitly like things the way they are, you cannot eliminate that option. Reform doesn’t work when you try to exterminate conventional suburbia. To be more effective, all you need to do is level the playing field and then let the market operate."
Leveling the playing field means offering livable urban density in Atlanta to those who want it. The market conditions will show how much is too much density.
The sad fact is that there is very little of the kind of smart-growth density that Duany advocates in Atlanta. We have density in the form of behemoth, gleaming condo towers, but so many of those buildings do not exist in a real, livable neighborhood with a full range of walkable, street-level amenities and diverse transit options for commuting. They're the condo-tower version of a cul-de-sac suburb in that they exist in an island that requires car dependency.
Atlanta needs to offer livable, dense neighborhoods in or near the urban core that are true examples of Duany's (and others') smart-growth ideals -- the kind of neighborhoods that can be found in most other large cities. Atlanta needs this for its own health as a diverse, vibrant city and also to remain competitive when attracting talent.
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Interesting observations. Another way of looking at a set of solutions to what is a global problem,ie increasing urban population density, is to consider that with the advent of the second decade of the 21st Century, there will be some dramatic demographic changes that will impact how and where people live in Atlanta.
Number one is the fact that the population is getting younger. Atlanta attracts within the urban core-downtown,Midtown and the adjacent neighborhoods- a younger population who are not as constrained in their choices as the previous genration. Whether it is by race, gender preference or education, these people will have the opportunity to choose from another set of varibles to live by,without infinging on the others to make different choices. In Atlanta in will no longer be a case of either/or as live in the city and deal with "crime" or live in the suburbs and be "secure". the newbies will demand security in the city and urbanity in the suburbs.
Another factor in this changing landscape is the effect that the economic conditions are having on the developers who have driven Atlanta's urban expansion in the past. Cousins,Portman and Post Properties are still significant players but no longer have exclusive domain over the direction of Atlanta's future growth and development, especially in the urban core. Who ever can successfully build to suit the new Zeitgeist, will have the opputunity to reshape not only Atlanta's future but as Atlanta has been a leader in the urban policy of sustainable communities, they will gain national and international exposure as well.
So, while things may not appear to be as bright on Atlanta's urban development agenda as some would prefere, the rotund soprano has not yet performed.
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the footprint for each of these sites is moderately large, but it's not unthinkable that something similar could be constructed in-town. 
well said reet.
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