public vs private space

Throughout the world, some of the most delightful urban spaces are also some of the smallest. It’s a counterintuitive observation that we ought to give more thought to.This is true of both private and public space. Think of the most charming, appealing backyards you’ve ever spent time in. Gardens. Patios. Courtyards. Alleyways or pedestrian streets.

The idea of this piece is about “delight per acre,” about high value experiences in small space, human-scaled and relatable.

But the part that jumps out at me is the private spaces that are walled off as private yards vs public spaces that are often far apart and too small for the number of people who could use them.

How many 6,000 square foot yards could be cut down to a quarter of that size — or even less per household in a multi-story development — with the balance going to public plazas, squares, wider sidewalks? The elevation of single family homes and car storage over a wider variety of housing for a wider variety of people is catching up to Seattle and other cities. We have all the land we will ever have and have ever had but we seem to have more people all the time.

Whenever a population converges around a certain location, the land, of which there is only a limited supply for each location, becomes more expensive to live on; people have to increasingly pay to live on land, and this in turn affects the entire economy.

This affects local businesses two-fold, in the rents they have to pay for their space and in the wages they pay to their workers. And the rentier/landlord charges as much as she can, taking their unearned increment every month, styling themselves as investors, rather than predatory speculators.