Doing it Right

Duanny has jump started conversations that we should have completed months ago, namely what part of the county should become green space and how to get new houses built. Our Team Lead has been too afraid to try (and honestly is not a planner or architect so he does not even know how). Along the same line, our team lead has avoided talking with the County Council or the largest land owner, a nonprofit foundation. He thought it was up to the Citizens Recovery Committee to take the lead on initiating conversations. The problem is that we are the experts and the CRC looks to us for guidance about when to talk to the government.

The other thing that Duanny is doing very well is giving people a reason to move to safer ground in the County. Duanny correctly pointed out that if you tell people they can not rebuild their house and do not show them an alternative, they will be pissed off. They will feel that they are being kicked out. (This is what we were on the road to do).

His idea is show them a place to move in the county that is so nice that they will want to move. The options would be to stay in their dangerous ugly subdivision surrounded by vacant lots and ghosts of neighbors, or move to higher, safer ground, new houses and a much better urban form. Everyone will want to move. That way, you avoid the New Orleans break down where people are saying, “I’ll shoot you if you try to take my land.”