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in mixed-use neighborhoods (Taylor et al.
1995
). The research of Wansborough and
Mageean (
2000
) examines mixed use in slightly broader terms, focusing on its role
in cultural regeneration. Their conclusion differs from Taylor et al. (
1995
), finding
that “the encouragement of ground-floor uses in mixed-use schemes has helped to
improve surveillance and soften the boundary between public and private space”
(Wansborough and Mageean
2000
). Hirt (
2007
) explores the differences in zoning
between the US and German systems finding that, “under the German approach
each city block may end up in a different land use category, and this is conducive
to a much more fine-grained diversity of uses.” The research goes on to note that
US zoning techniques “reduce the idea of the mixed-use city, which Jane Jacobs
so eloquently advocated, to a small mixed-use part of the city” and “assume that
single-family residential areas are inevitable, quite unlike what we find in Germany.
This is precisely one of the reasons why Jane Jacobs criticized new urbanism” (Hirt
2007
). This is further evidence that while some New Urbanists find inspiration in
Jacobs' work, they have not strictly adhered to her philosophy.
There have also been studies that have focused on the density aspect of the
four generators of diversity in isolation from the others. Bramley and Power
(
2009
) explored the connection between density and social sustainability within
communities and note the trade-offs that occur with increased density. “ :::Compact
forms worsen neighborhood problems and dissatisfaction, while improving access
to services” and “policy must therefore think in terms of trade-offs between social
objectives” (Bramley and Power
2009
). Similarly, Nasar (
2003
) found that, “the
more condensed pattern of development and reduced use of auto did not yield
a higher sense of community: residents in [neo-traditional developments] and
[standard suburban developments] showed no difference in sense of community.”
With these two studies, it is not clear just how large of a role self-selection
has played in the results. How many of the residents have chosen to live in a
particular neighborhood for specific reasons, as opposed to those that live there as
a compromise, or through lack of alternative options? A resident that is present in a
neighborhood as part of a deliberate locational choice is likely to respond differently
than a resident that is there due to a lack of alternatives. This uncertainty strengthens
the argument that, as noted earlier, perception is only one aspect that should be
evaluated when considering the four generators of diversity.
In contrast to density and mixed use, there has been significantly less research
conducted regarding street length and mix of building age in the context of livability.
Cozens and Hillier (
2008
) conducted a review of literature regarding cul-de-sacs
and grid street networks (which can be considered a useful proxy for short street
segments) and concluded that “the evidence to support New Urbanism's advocacy
for permeable street networks is unfounded or largely inconclusive at best.” The
authors suggest that cul-de-sacs have fallen out of favor due to their association
with the Garden City movement; the planning idea against which New Urbanism
is sometimes considered a reaction. However, as noted later in this paper, it is not
strictly the connectedness of a street layout that is in question with Jacob's work; it
is actually the physical length of the network segments. For this reason, Cozen and
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