In a new op-ed published in collaboration with Island Press, Travis Beck (author of Principles of Ecological Landscape Design) says there are better ways to add density to our cities without relegating our neighbors to the shadows via Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs), also known as "granny flats."
Beck writes:
Living in a neighborhood full of ADUs, as I have done in Santa Cruz, California, is an unsettling experience. This is due to the very nature of their design: ADUs are the secondary unit on a property and are usually located in the back of the lot, often accessed through a gate. This arrangement creates two parallel neighborhoods. One is a front-facing neighborhood of homes with front yards and front porches where residents might spend time and say hello to passersby, front doors you can knock on if you need the proverbial cup of sugar or are taking the kids trick-or-treating, and opportunities for all the casual neighborly interactions that build community. The other is a secondary neighborhood with no obvious street frontage, limited opportunities for neighborly relationship building, and design-enforced isolation.
Read the full piece published in Next City HERE.
