Jo Kim

I found this video, and it pretty much sums up exactly my observations of suburban neighborhoods, that is, everything looks exactly the goddamn same! I found the song to be humorous and catchy.

The place is San Ramon Valley, CA, operated by the town of Danville. The lyrics talk about how all the houses look exactly the same, except perhaps the occasional change of color in the exterior house paint job. It also talks about how practically all the residents are in the same boat and undergo the same life: "doctors, lawyers, business executives" and children who grow up to marry and raise families in the same suburbs, thus completing and continuing the perpetual cycle. The repetitive, boring monotony of their lives reflect the same monotony of the houses.

The houses are called "boxes made of ticky-tacky" in the chorus of the song, which is repeated many times to add an additional effect of monotony that reflects the repetitive nature of the suburban homes. The orchestration of the song also reflects the gaudy and tawdry nature of suburban homes (described as "ticky-tacky").

On a completely different matter, I was reading through Pat's post earlier on wanting to live in Virginia Highland. In relation to my previous post on the five-stage suburban growth model, Virginia Highland would have achieved the final mature growth stage because of its developed town center with parks and shops serving the entire community. The parks and shops would provide recreational, cultural, and social centers for the entire community.

So although I myself haven't visited Virginia Highland, I guess there are some suburban communities that even the authors of Suburban Nation would not frown upon. I'll definitely try to check out Virginia Highland and see for myself how great the neighborhood is. It is good to hear that there are communities out there (nearby) that contain desirable attributes outlined by the authors of Suburban Nation, which I've ultimately come to agree with.

A Suburban Growth Model - Jo Kim

I stumbled upon an article suggesting a five-stage model of suburban growth:

1. Bedroom community, which refers to the development of residential communities in the suburbs, motivated by the availability of cheap land and financing, as well as the location independence brought by the car and high-speed highways
2. The stage of independence, which refers to the development of suburban regional malls, as well as office and industrial parks, which brought jobs close to suburban communities, reducing or eliminating the dependence of suburban residents on central city employment
3. The stage of catalytic growth, during which housing and commercial development intensifies and becomes more diversified in terms of quality and price
4. The high-rise/high-technology stage, which was marked by the emergence of high-rise office towers housing the growing middle and upper-middle management functions and corporate headquarters, as well as the emergence of high-tech research and development activities, located in selected suburban corridors.
5. The mature town center stage, during which cultural, social, and recreational facilities are developed, completing the full spectrum of land uses found in mature urban areas

"Path of Suburban Growth." Property Investing. Web. 24 Nov. 2009. <http://www.property-investing.org/suburban-growth.html>.

This seems to be the ideal model for suburban growth the "way it should be". However, the authors of Suburban Nation argue that this ideal model is rarely carried out to its complete and mature stage. I can definitely agree that my home neighborhood, Olde Savannah Square, as well as the neighborhood I evaluated, Braxton Square, both did not (yet) complete all five steps of this ideal model.

Basically, the model is like this:

First, the availability of cheap land leads to the development of suburban residential communities. Because of the availability of cars and highways, these communities are often placed independent of a major city.

Second, businesses and commerce develop near the suburban communities, eliminating suburban residents to have to travel far (perhaps the city) to get to or find work.

The third stage is the continued diversification and growth in commerce around the suburban community.

The fourth stage is where the higher-value buildings come in. These include high-rise corporate buildings, high-technology research facilities, etc. This increases the community's value and appeal to the upper-middle class.

The last, final stage is the mature stage, in which a community "center" is established with "cultural, social, and recreational facilities are developed, completing the full spectrum of land uses found in mature urban areas".

That final stage is probably absent in most suburban communities. It seems to be the true hallmark of a successful suburban community. Unfortunately, my experience has shown me that most suburban communities I've visited lack a town center, and thus fail to mature into final stage.

If every suburban community matured into the final stage, with a town center that provides cultural, social, and recreational life for the community, suburban sprawl probably wouldn't get such a bad reputation. But it is the consistent lack of a town center that gives sprawl its bad name (so the authors of Suburban Nation claim).

But on a brighter side, perhaps those suburban communities that lack a center are slowly advancing toward that goal. Perhaps their plans are still yet to be completed. If so, I wait eagerly...

Ruhou -- A visit to social security office

I visited the Downtown Atlanta Social Security Office yesterday to apply for a SSN.
To be honest, it is the first time I walked in the Midtown area. Departing from my dorm, I walked down the North Avenue to the Midtown MARTA station. Then, I took a right and walked for another ten minutes before I reached my destination. Compared to the busy streets in New York City and Chicago, there were few pedestrians on the streets. It was early afternoon, and the traffic was not bad. Cars were rushing down the streets with their roaring engines.
The scene made me relate to the Suburban Nation. I've heard people talking about the deterioation of the American cities before, but I've never experienced it myself. It was a shock to me because I am used to seeing the streets packed with people and cars. I don't feel safe at all walking down the street myself.

Suburban Sprawl & Your Health (Jo Kim)

The 2006 CDC (Centers for Disease Control) statistics on American obesity are as follows:

• 65% adults in the United States are overweight
• 33% adults in the United States are obese (over 70 million people)
• Obesity increased in 18 - 29 year olds from 8% (1971) to 24% (2006)

Clearly, obesity has increased dramatically over the past forty years. People of ages 18 to 29 experienced a tripling in obesity rates in 35 years!

Why are Americans--especially the younger generations--getting fatter?

To answer this question, one must first consider the lifestyle changes that occurred during the latter half of the twentieth century.

Since the revolution of the automobile and the proliferation of road networks, residential communities began to pop up outside of the crowded cities. This is what has been labeled "suburban sprawl". It has been growing since the 1950s, known as the Postwar Bloom, when America experienced an unprecedented era of wealth, optimism, and babies.

So the WWII survivors, coming back home, were ready to build their families, which meant getting housing and kids. This prosperous period, also known as the Baby Boom, marked the beginning of the suburban neighborhoods. Because of the victorious war efforts, America had deep, full pockets. As a result, new communities outside of cities were constructed on a massive scale to house the returning soldiers and their to-be families. The easy accessibility of cars made all this possible, since these families would need to drive from work to home to just about anywhere else.

It all sounded good--like utopia--the American Dream.

And for the most part, life was good!

To this day, suburban living is quiet, peaceful, and ridiculously isolated from every other place. Therefore, driving has always been a necessity to get around in suburban life. But because of this necessity, a completely sedentary lifestyle emerged. Rarely do people walk anywhere, like they may in the cities, because walking simply does not get you anywhere in suburbia. Instead, everyone drives from home to anywhere and back home.

Even though it may not seem like much, simple everyday walking (~30 cumulative minutes) is considered basic, minimal exercise that keeps the body in shape and healthy. But because of the sedentary suburban lifestyle, cars have replaced this basic walking. Therefore, suburbanites lose this small, but important bit of daily exercise to sitting behind a wheel. Unless they compensate by setting aside a specific time for working out later in the day, which can prove quite difficult because of all the time lost driving long commutes, suburban residents practically get minimal to no exercise.

This seemingly unintrusive lifestyle change has led to dire unexpected consequences. It is this sedentary lifestyle that most suburban residents live that is a major contributing factor to the increasing obesity rates.

Suburbanites don't walk, they drive. When they drive, they sit. When they work, they sit (for most office employees). When they come home exhausted from work, they sit and watch television. All this sitting with little energy expenditure through physical exercise, coupled with the growing prevalence of high-fat, high-calorie fast-food meals in diets, is a sure formula for obesity.

To sum things up, a correlation is clearly evident in the rise of sedentary suburban lifestyle with the rise of obesity rates since the beginning of suburbia 60 years ago. Not only is suburban sprawl unappealing to the eye, it is also making America fatter and unhealthier* (the way life goes on in suburbia right now).

*Obesity is a major risk factor for the development of heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and a host of other life-threatening diseases.

Patrick Barron - Where I would want to live

Well, this kinda goes back to what we did yesterday in class about what neighborhood in Atlanta we would prefer to live in and why.

I said I would want to live in Virginia Highland. After running around Atlanta this semester I have found that Virginia Highland would be the best to grow a family. Of course I would have to be able to afford it but I will leave price out of the discussion this time.

Virginia Highland attracts me because of its easy access to the city, parks, and everyday life. Having the city within walking distance is a nice aspect because if you work inside the city you could walk there or catch the Marta. I also like how parks are within reach. There are smaller parks in the neighborhood and Piedmont Park not far away. These are a big deal for me because I need places to run. The large sidewalks in Virginia Highland works well with my running because I don't have to run on the road all the time. I spent all of last school year in Princeton, New Jersey, where there were not many sidewalks. Running on the road was not only dangerous, but also not too good for my body because of the slant of the road.

Being a traditional neighborhood there are shops and restaurants right on the road of Virginia Highland. This is a nice aspect because there are no large convenience stores that take up space with their parking lots. The traditional aspect brings together the community which is nice.

So, if I was to graduate sometime soon and was planning on raising a family, I would probably look at Virginia Highland first, if my job was here in Atlanta.

Ruhou - Andy Irwin meets George Burdell

Last Sunday, GT Glee Club had another concert called "Andy Irwin meets George Burdell" at the Academy of Medicine. The concert was another successes among many gigs that the Glee Club has done this semester.

In 1854, thirteen Atlanta physicians organized the Brotherhood of Physicians. After many location and name changes, the Brotherhood evolved into the Fulton County Medical Society, which dedicated the Academy of Medicine as its headquarters on December 15, 1941. Medical Society members played a major role in health care for all Georgians, including advances in the treatment of pellagra, hookworm, tuberculosis, and venereal disease. Designed by Philip T. Shutze and R. Kennon Perry, the Academy of Medicine is an outstanding example of Neoclassical architecture. The Medical Association of Atlanta directed restoration in 1983 and deeded the Academy to the Atlanta Medical Heritage to preserve it as a historic building.

Ten minutes away by walking from my dorm, the Academy of Medicine is located at the West Peachtree street. Among many skyscrapers in Mid-town Atlanta, this building gives me a sense of history of the city.

Patrick Barron

sorry, the last post was from me

So this past weekend I was able to get out of Atlanta and visit a friend at their small college in southern Virginia. If you have never visited southern Virginia, its nothing like northern Virgina which is a large suburban sprawl area with neighborhoods separate from everything else. Southern Virginia is mainly an agriculture oriented area, which exceptions being on the coast such as Virginia Beach.

To get to the school, we had to drive at least 45 minutes once we got off the highway. Those 45 minutes were all on smaller, two lane roads where the scenery was very boring. All you could see was fields upon fields with old barns sprinkled here and there. This was the type of area that a school was located in.

The authors of Suburban Nation would probably not like the idea of a school in this kind of area because to go anywhere or to do anything you would have to get into the car. The only real walkability was on the campus. This poor walkability or variety would probably not go too well with the authors.

I was surprised at the type of area the school was located. It was a shock to me because I have gotten used to living in the city so being on a school campus with very little options was weird to me. But the visit did give me a wider view point of different areas and where schools are located.

Ruhou - Luckey House, where I lived last year

Like Patrick, I haven't been able to go to new places lately. So, I decided to write something about the place where I lived last year.

Instead of introducing this place like what I did before, I'm going to tell a love story.

Thirty-seven years ago, Nancy, a girl from Brockville, ON, Canada, came to Houghton, NY for college. In this small town, she met Peter Luckey, whose father was a math professor at the College. Being friends for a while, they started dating in their junior year. After dating for two years, they decided to get married right after their college graduation.

Soon after their marriage, they moved together to Porto Rico, where they stayed for three years. Followed by the days in Porto Rico, Peter pursued his master degree in Computer Science at Purdue University. He then became a software engineer at IBM. As one of the pioneers in the field, he prospered at his job.

Years passed, and the footprint of the Luckeys had been all over the world. They brought up four children. Time flied. As their children went off to college, Peter and Nancy felt more and more obligated to take care of their aging parents. Eight years ago, they decided to move from Ottawa, the capital of Canada to Houghton, where they designed and built a new house. Peter's parents came to live with them after the house was built. The family has a long history in the small town, and is well respected by their neighbors. Peter, serving as a senior technologist for IBM, does most of his business through the Internet in his home office.

Five years ago, a Korean girl named Stephanie first proposed to stay with the Luckeys for a home-stay program. Since then, six students from Houghton Academy have lived in the Lucky House.

Two years ago, I met the Luckeys for the first time.

Last fall, I moved into the Luckey House.

As I mentioned before, Houghton is a small college town in middle of nowhere in western NY. On one hand, it provides a peaceful studying environment. On the other hand, it is absolutely impossible to get anywhere without a car. But, somehow I loved the place. Because of the size of the community, everyone knows everyone else. The nature, as indicated by the picture, is not destroyed by the houses. While collge faculty and staff can walk to work, new technologies such as the Internet are enabling people to work in a virtue enviornment. In spite of the isolated geographically, people are still connected to the world.

Patrick Barron - Maybe Bikes?

Hey, so I haven't been to anywhere new recently. We have been traveling back to the same areas and same courses so I can't give you an account of a different place today. After reading the last post about how there has really been no change in 60 years in needing a car to do anything in a suburb the idea of biking came to me.

If you need a car to get somewhere then it must be safe to assume that walking is out of the question because it would be too far to walk. But biking is faster than walking. I feel like cities and suburbs should try to get more residents to start biking instead of driving. I believe that making bike lanes on some roads would cost less than paying for more public transportation where the buses/trains, drivers, etc. need to be paid for. If people started biking then it would take the automobile traffic down. More people would also get more exercise which could help reduce the obesity issue we have in this country.

I'm not saying to put some bike lanes on huge major highways. Usually there are other routes to get to a destination besides the major highways. Sure they might be a little longer, but that just means the more exercise residents will get.

Jo Kim

This is an old Ford commercial from the 50's. It shows how automobile-dependent suburban life was. This woman describes living in the suburbs with no car as being "practically a prisoner in my own home".

Even 60 years ago, when suburban development first began, the absolute requirement for a vehicle to do anything was obvious. Fast forward half a century to today's suburbia and there really isn't much improvement. This woman's valid reasoning that nothing can be done without a car in a suburban home is quite prevalent today--even more so, in fact, due to increased suburban population.

The truth is, a common aspect of suburban life is the fact there is no alternative other than owning a car (lots of money) and driving it everywhere you go. A few, lucky neighborhoods may offer public transportation, but it is obviously not near the efficiency of public transit in urban settings.

The main point to note here is how suburban residents must have a car to function in their communities--a fact that has been uniquely suburban ever since its birth.

Ruhou - A Place Where Millionaires Live

Glee Club was in action again.

Last Sunday, we sang at a wedding. It was actually the second wedding we did in this semester (the first one was in the Four Seasons Hotel in Midtown Atlanta). The neighborhood, filled with extravagance mansions, is probably one of the best suburbia around the city of Atlanta. We carpooled in different groups to reach the neighborhood. Our destination was fifteen minutes north of Georgia Tech. We enjoyed the complimentary valet parking provided at the wedding. The cars that we saw, parked in an endless line, were mostly luxury cars such as Mercedes and BMWs. The performance was supposed to be a surprise for the bride and groom. Dressed in black and white, we pretended to be the caterers when we secretly entered the garage of the mansion, where we put on our GT ties.

There was absolutely no public transportation what so ever around the neighborhood. But when you are a millionaire, you don’t need a bus route to go in front of your house. The beauty of the houses in the neighborhood lies in the fact that each house is drastically different from any other one. There are plenty of spaces between houses, and the houses integrate perfectly with the surrounding environment.

The house we went to resides on a top of a hill, lofting over a gigantic lawn, where the wedding took place. The performance was a success. We sang “All You Need Is Love” by the Beatles right after the announcement of husband and wife. We performed several other loves songs before we set on our way home.

Driving down the I-75 on our way back, we saw the full moon shining beautifully in the early evening sky. Accompanied by the landscape of Atlanta, the moon announced the ending of another warm autumn day.