The Soul-Sucking Canada Thread

[stevanford1]

Originally Posted by HomeInMyShoes

We can build cheaply in a more urban way though. Sure suburbia is for the masses, but Big Box land could at least have facades up the street and invite people to walk between Children's Place and Bulk Barn, but they don't. They put acres of parking between a group of four stores. So you drive to Walmart and drive to Children's Place and then drive to Tims to go through the drivethru.

We build cul de sac after cul de sac after cul de sac and winding roads so the distance one needs to walk in most cases is three or four times what it would be with a grid pattern of streets.

There are simple things we can do. But we let the developers drive this with asinine choices. I can remember the Harbour Landing brochures and development plans for the smart center, but it is in practice nothing like the glossy pictures, it is this thread.

This

[MonkeyRonin]

Originally Posted by wave46

While I get this thread is in jest, I'm not exactly sure what you want.

A lot of these things have made life more affordable for the masses. I know it's not an urbanist's dream, but the urban utopia espoused by many is simply an unaffordable dream for those of us who aren't six-figure earners.

While we may dream of beautiful Cabbagetown houses in the heart of the city near bustling urban cores, it's a dream whose cost is out of sight. So, yes, the 1960s/70s-era bungalow subdivision is about the best we can do. And yes, there's blocks of those side-splits in all their blandness. Sometimes, I just want to get some groceries and something I need and not have to trek to 3 different stores to do that, so Superstore or Wal-Mart it is. Sometimes, I just want a hit of caffeine at 6 a.m. as I head in for my shift, so Rim Whortons it is.

When those beautiful Cabbagetown houses were built in the 19th century, they were common worker's homes. The cost of urbanity today has nothing to do with how it's arranged and everything to do with how precious little of it there is thanks to awful post-war planning policies and a public content with the status quo (and as noted, most Canadian suburbs are not low income anyway).

Affordable housing & infrastructure does not need to be ugly and soul-crushing.

[MolsonExport]

Originally Posted by stevanford1

. I don’t know why people read Enquirer! Same with Archie Comics. Tend to not buy books at the checkout . However I do buy chocolate bars!

Same here. I never understood "Archie" Digest (Hashtag-haircut Archie who inexplicably has two chicks competing for his attention, and that dude with the stupid looking crown...Jughead?).

National Enquirer has always been scraping the bottom of the barrel, but they may have reached or even surpassed the depth of World Weekly News.

I loathe celebrity magazines. Same people on the cover, always. Jennifer Anniston, Brad Pitt, Meghan Markle and Prince Harry, those extra-terrestrial looking Kardashians and Jenners...

[MolsonExport]

Originally Posted by HomeInMyShoes

We can build cheaply in a more urban way though. Sure suburbia is for the masses, but Big Box land could at least have facades up the street and invite people to walk between Children's Place and Bulk Barn, but they don't. They put acres of parking between a group of four stores. So you drive to Walmart and drive to Children's Place and then drive to Tims to go through the drivethru.

We build cul de sac after cul de sac after cul de sac and winding roads so the distance one needs to walk in most cases is three or four times what it would be with a grid pattern of streets.

There are simple things we can do. But we let the developers drive this with asinine choices. I can remember the Harbour Landing brochures and development plans for the smart center, but it is in practice nothing like the glossy pictures, it is this thread.

Well said. I agree completely.

[stevanford1]

Originally Posted by MolsonExport

Same here. I never understood "Archie" Digest (Hashtag-haircut Archie who inexplicably has two chicks competing for his attention, and that dude with the stupid looking crown...Jughead?).

Plus those things cost an arm and a leg! I remember I decided to buy one as a stocking stuffer and it set me back 14$. It wasn’t even a good comic!

[rousseau]

Originally Posted by HomeInMyShoes

We build cul de sac after cul de sac after cul de sac...

I suppose it's not surprising that the cul de sac is arguably the most prominent expression of the American Dream (probably somewhat true in Canada as well). The obvious selling points are the higher security, the greater safety for kids to play in front of the house, the sense of community and the economic exclusivity.

Some of us can prattle on all we want about mixed uses, obesity rates and pedestrian scores, but my impression is that the post-millennial "urban renaissance" hasn't really put a dent into your average American/Canadian's idealization of the cul de sac as a great place to have a home.

[MolsonExport]

Unless one is enjoying the benefits that accompany living on a cul de sac, it might seem that they are primarily populated by the trou de cul.

[MolsonExport]

Full disclosure: while I don't live on a cul de sac, my house is on a circle. It does have two footpaths connecting to adjacent neighborhoods (one through a forested area, the other a paved path between houses), and even though my circle is quite quiet, I am close to shops (country market with restaurant 10 minute walk away plus a collection of independent shops, and 10 minutes walking the other way, a growing number of chain stores) and there is some high density residential nearby.

[HomeInMyShoes]

Originally Posted by rousseau

I suppose it's not surprising that the cul de sac is arguably the most prominent expression of the American Dream (probably somewhat true in Canada as well). The obvious selling points are the higher security, the greater safety for kids to play in front of the house, the sense of community and the economic exclusivity.

Some of us can prattle on all we want about mixed uses, obesity rates and pedestrian scores, but my impression is that the post-millennial "urban renaissance" hasn't really put a dent into your average American/Canadian's idealization of the cul de sac as a great place to have a home.

We've been sold that idyllic dream for the better part of a century of suburban design. It is going to take longer than a couple of generations to remove that from most of the population.

[Proof Sheet]

Originally Posted by MolsonExport

Unless one is enjoying the benefits that accompany living on a cul de sac, it might seem that they are primarily populated by the trou de cul.

Good one..I had to look up that term...it wasn't taught in high school french for me.

Cul de sacs are only of benefit for those living on them and even then assuming that the end of the cul de sac is a free for all to play on etc for little kids isn't the best idea. I have family on my wife's side who lived on one for years and they loved it and it was perfect for them as they hate transit, density, walkability etc. Other than a place to play road hockey I don't see the appeal.

[MonctonRad]

Originally Posted by MolsonExport

Full disclosure: while I don't live on a cul de sac, my house is on a circle. It does have two footpaths connecting to adjacent neighborhoods (one through a forested area, the other a paved path between houses), and even though my circle is quite quiet, I am close to shops (country market with restaurant 10 minute walk away plus a collection of independent shops, and 10 minutes walking the other way, a growing number of chain stores) and there is some high density residential nearby.

Full disclosure from me too - I also live on a cul de sac, but in my own personal defence, it is a short cul de sac with only five houses on it, and the series of cul de sacs off of the parent street that they arise from does not significantly disrupt the surrounding street grid.

My main beef with the neighbourhood I live in in northwest Moncton is that it is a suburban monoculture of single family homes. The nearest convenience store to my house is a km away. The neighbourhood should be more mixed in character, and more small businesses should be allowed. In particular, every new subdivision should have a small commercial node of some kind to reduce the need to hop into your car every time you need to get a litre of milk.

Things may be changing. There is a new street that opened near my house, which provides access to a recently built French language K-8 school, and a new suburban YMCA, which is in the final stages of construction. City council has just approved this large development across from the school which will include six new apartment buildings ranging from six to nine storeys in height.





The new apartment complex will include ground floor retail and commercial units, so my neighbourhood will finally be developing a bit of a suburban downtown core (rather than the strip development that already exists on Mountain Road). This development will be about a 10-12 minute walk from my house.

I foresee more higher density development occurring around this node over the next 20 years. I view this as a very positive development overall.......

[MolsonExport]

I see NB is getting those traffic circles. We have them everywhere in my neighborhood. They keep vehicular traffic flowing, but that is all they are good for. Treacherous for pedestrians (we have a school very close by, and I need two navigate two roundabouts with my kids...you hope and pray the cars [and pickup trucks, which comprise half the fucking fleet here in London] will slow down while you are crossing). As a driver, I hate navigating these things when there is snow (the signs are always getting knocked over by skidding drivers).

My neighborhood is quite dense residential, even if my circle is not (a bubble of large houses/lots, surrounded by more modestly sized homes/lots, with some medium and high density thrown in for good measure).

[stevanford1]

How's this for a soulsucking cul-de-sac? Go through the neighborhood for more ugliness!
https://www.google.com/maps/@49.8289...7i13312!8i6656

[stevanford1]

Originally Posted by MolsonExport

I see NB is getting those traffic circles. We have them everywhere in my neighborhood. They keep vehicular traffic flowing, but that is all they are good for. Treacherous for pedestrians (we have a school very close by, and I need two navigate two roundabouts with my kids...you hope and pray the cars [and pickup trucks, which comprise half the fucking fleet here in London] will slow down while you are crossing). As a driver, I hate navigating these things when there is snow (the signs are always getting knocked over by skidding drivers).

My neighborhood is quite dense residential, even if my circle is not (a bubble of large houses/lots, surrounded by more modestly sized homes/lots, with some medium and high density thrown in for good measure).

I always have associated them with Britain to be honest. There's also a rather large one near Collingwood near a cabin I rent.

[Spocket]

Originally Posted by esquire

I thought all the old folks moved on to Facebook for their made up news and celebrity gossip? What is the median age of the remaining Enquirer readers these days... 85?

I would have thought that that was closer to the number of people who still actually buy those rags.

[wave46]

Originally Posted by Spocket

I would have thought that that was closer to the number of people who still actually buy those rags.

I never actually knew anybody who bought the things. But there they were, always at the supermarket checkout, so they must have an audience.

Good riddance to them - a waste of a perfectly good tree.

[Proof Sheet]

Originally Posted by stevanford1

I always have associated them with Britain to be honest. There's also a rather large one near Collingwood near a cabin I rent.

https://goo.gl/maps/8Kehn8YCe9UuErJT6 There are thousands of these in Britain...this one is close to the school I first attended.

[Harrison]

Originally Posted by stevanford1

How's this for a soulsucking cul-de-sac? Go through the neighborhood for more ugliness!
https://www.google.com/maps/@49.8289...7i13312!8i6656

Who needs sidewalks when you can DRIVE everywhere? Walking is for the proles!

[Franco401]

The roundabouts being built in NB are primarily at major junctions, not residential streets.

[MolsonExport]

Originally Posted by stevanford1

How's this for a soulsucking cul-de-sac? Go through the neighborhood for more ugliness!
https://www.google.com/maps/@49.8289...7i13312!8i6656

There are lots of these in London. However, many of them might just be a standard round blob of level pavement at the end. And when this happens, you very often get people parking their Prickup Trucks in the middle.