On The Stands: Dwell on Suburbs with Attitude
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 11.30.07
The December/January Dwell notes that "in certain circles, "suburbia" truly is a dirty word." However they manage to find a number of homes that "turn the suburban paradigm on its head- from unlikely renovations to prefabricated additions.
They do not entirely succeed in making one believe that living in the suburbs can be sustainable, but they are convincing in making it look very pretty and modern.
In Vancouver, many of the bungalows and big trees that defined the inner suburbs are under threat from monster houses and clearcutting; the LeBlanc Residence by Peter Cardew shows that one can update a sixties sideplit into a modern, efficient home. The architect notes:
“When people talk about sustainability, they are usually referring to new architecture,” says Cardew. “But when you figure that most of the energy that goes into a building comes from the one-time act of construction, you are already ahead when you can keep a building rather than demolish it.” ::Dwell
Also online is an energy-efficient courtyard house in LA.
Still offline is a lovely converted church and some stunning Swedish prefabs by Smedshammar and Homberg. Buy it or watch for more online at ::Dwell
Why all the suburban sustainability bashing? Environmentalists lose credibility when they ask people to make small changes while simultaneously suggesting the culmination of making caring changes is to abandon a life and home they love to live in a city they presumably dont. Just a thought.
I think suburban sustainability is very achievable, albeit very difficult and rather expensive (set-up). But I find that to be the case everywhere. Living in the woods isn't easy, believe me. And living in the city has its own issues, many of which are beyond our control. If you remove petroleum, for instance, from urban, suburban, and rural areas, the most dramatic impact is in the urban environment. Granted we use a lot of "collective" energy in the city, but overall, we simply use more (post construction) energy in the city and have fewer alternative options due to municipal codes and existing infrastructure. The way we build suburan 'hoods is more a problem than the distance to work and stores. The latter can be addressed, but a 4000 s.f. inefficient McMansion is always just that, as Dwell points out.
No one is saying that everyone needs to move out of the suburbs this second, or that they will harm anyone that doesn't. What people mean when they say that the suburbs aren't sustainable is that the excess associated with the suburbs isn't sustainable - larger houses, larger cars, farther drives, more amenities, more habitat destruction, etc.
And I don't see how "suburb bashing" undermines the smaller changes that are encouraged. Of course it would generally be better to live in a crowded city than a suburb (for the environment), but that doesn't make small changes in the suburban lifestyle useless.