The Fight Over OMB Folly Continues

Back in October we brought up an interesting tale of revenge at the municipal level, North York council overwhelmingly approved a motion (7-2) to name one of the new streets in a development that was approved contrary to the master plan ‘OMB Folly’.  We had a couple comments to that article and most all were in favour of the name change.

Well now time is coming to put shovel to ground and future residents of OMB folly are starting to weigh in on the debate. In The Star its reported that a future resident wrote to Mayor David Miller to request that the name be changed back to its original intended name ‘Connfield Lane.’

“We just felt it was very inappropriate for elected officials to be toying around with people’s investment and purchases in the city,” she said in an interview. “And we felt it was very derogatory to the Ontario Municipal Board.” S

They Mayor is quoted as saying that he didn’t agree with the new name either but that she needed to speak to John Filion the councilor who first came up with the motion. “Filion said he won’t support a switch. He considers the matter closed after the community council voted 7-2 to recommend OMB Folly, and city council approved it, 14-13.” S

Barring a judicial injunction I doubt that the new residents are going to see much help. I have to say that I wonder just how much of an impact to their investment the new home owners are going to see. Just how much does the name of the street actually play into a buyers mind when it comes to property purchases?

While some streets do carry a certain mark up price or prestige, Sherbrooke ave in Montreal, or Park Avenue in New York, does the name really matter all that much when dealing with the thousands of permutations in the suburbs? Connfeild lane vs Wilson lane? Whats the difference?

When my parents moved back in 1997 they ended up choosing a great house with a ‘bad’ address, and while my dad wasn’t too happy about the street name one ‘Puff Ball Lane,’ they were and are still very happy with the house. When it came down to it, it was about finding the best house for their needs and in the location that they wanted. The street name was ultimately irrelevant to the purchasing decision. While I certainly am not going to try to suggest that most people are as practical as my parents when it comes to home shopping, I would venture a guess that things like the roof and the foundation are going to be bigger concerns then the street name.

I wonder what people who live on other Follys would say?  Just by searching ‘Folly Lane’ I came up with 10 different lanes, 9 in the UK where it is evidently much more popular but one here in Canada as well. I wonder if the people on Folly Lane in Belleville have had any trouble with the resale value of their homes? Not to mention all the other permutations like ‘Watts folly’ in Australia, and the town of Folly Virginia. Ultimately I still hope the name sticks, ‘OMB Folly’ has a real history to it now.

Antwerp Central Station & The Sound of Music

A flash mob takes on the Sound of Music at Antwerp Central Station.

Recycled Buildings Portfolio

I have to mention it because it really is an excellent file on recycled buildings, and other things that have been recycled into buildings. From a trailer park treehouse, to a shipping container hotel and a refridgerator Stonehenge. This link is worth checking out.

The Street as a Nutcracker

We  urbanites are not the only ones present in the city. There is another urban environment that shares the neighbourhood with us and some of them have figured out how to get us to crack their nuts.

The Flash Mob

Just imagine that one day you are out doing errands, you have to pick up something from the store just need to get  home so that you have enough time before people arrive. Then all of a sudden almost everyone around you stops, how would you react?

I think it would make my day.

When children lead design, the tale of Coriandoline.

I came across an article today that had an interesting supposition about planning and neighbourhood design, for all our public consultations and all the research that is done on what the ideal family home or neighbourhood should be, we generally ignore the opinions of a significant group of inhabitants. The children, I mean what do they know after all? they ‘re just kids.

Back in 1990 a construction co-operative decided to listen to everyone of the inhabitants that would live in the neighbourhood they were building, including the children, and that is how the idea for Coriandoline came about.

The project won the Peggy Guggenheim Prize for the most innovative project in 2001 and then the World Habitat Awards in 2002. To look at the neighbourhood that children built you get the feeling that the design was not constrained by the ideas that adults would simply take for granted. The paint job is one of the most striking aspects as the buildings are covered with the work of Italian painter, illustrator and set designer, Emanuele Luzzati.

The first phase of the project was essentially research and consultation with about 700 children from 12 local nursery and infant schools. Teachers, psychologists, architects, engineers, surveyors, builders and carpenters all spent time with the children to both teach them about architecture and neighbourhoods and also to learn from them.

Ilaria Ligabue was a 5 year old when the project started but remembers the process quite well. “We drew loads and gave free reign to our imagination. We even painted on real small wooden houses which became our play area. It was a great adventure for us kids.” S

The children came up with a list of essentials, after much collating and data processing by the adults and the Manifesto of Children’s Living Needs was published. The essential features were; transparent, hard outside, soft inside, playful, decorated, magical and peaceful.

“When we started the planning phase, we realised we faced an enormous risk. On the one hand we could have fallen into the trap of creating something banal – houses that looked just like all new houses, with token ‘corrections’ providing superficial concessions. On the other hand we could have gone to the opposite extreme and end up creating a sort of fairytale playground which had no meaning as a part of the town. We wanted to create an area which could be exploited and enjoyed by the whole community, but which used children’s experiences and needs as a parameter for quality.” S

The neighbourhood has ‘built in playability,’  the designers realised through their work, that in Italy the most common sign you see is ‘No Football Allowed’ or no playing allowed. In Cariandoline the entire neighbourhood is designed for play, from the covered garage areas that double as sheltered play areas, to the slides next to the stairs and the fun house mirrors in the elevators.

The sucess of this neighbourhood makes me wonder how much more enjoyable our cities would be if we listened to the children who live in them a little more.

If you would like to learn more about Coriandoline please visit the community’s online portal. Not surprisingly it is pretty fun to navigate.

Liverpool Street Station Dance Party

A number of performers and citizens get together for a surprise dance party at the Liverpool Street Station. The event was set up by T-Mobile.

ZombieHarmony – One of the Best Free Dating Sites for Zombies

Urbanites tend to be creative and fun people, often coming up with ideas and creations a that are pretty unique. One of these creations is Zombie Harmony, the side is a take on the popular E Harmony Dating site only in this case it seeks to bring together the undead. The site is supported by the free dating site Mingle2 and offers the opportunity for those with a tendency to wander in a search for brains to find love too, because as ZombieHarmony puts it; “the apocalypse doesn’t have to be lonely.”

As a new registrant you can choose things like the type of zombie you are, either slow moving, fast moving, or immobile, and if you are looking the same mobility or different out of your undead mate.  Don’t believe in ZombieHarmony’s claims? You can even check out their testimonials;

“The first time I gazed into Nancy’s vacant, reddish brown eyes, I just KNEW she was the one for me”

“UNNNGGGG, HHRRRRNNNG!”

 

Oh and just so you are aware;

Disclaimer:ZombieHarmony is for zombies only. We advise signing up for ZombieHarmony only if you lack a pulse, have limited motor skills, or feel an intense desire to feast on human beings. We are not responsible for lost or ingested loved ones. If you go on a date with a zombie, we cannot be held liable for contributing to the apocalypse.

It appears that the site is just a title page, but its pretty fun…

ZombieHarmony – One of the Best Free Dating Sites for Zombies

NVS: My Playground

A teaser for an upcoming documentary, MY PLAYGROUND by Kaspar Astrup Schröder. The film is about movement, tricking, freerunning and parkour in the urban space. The film premieres in summer 2009.

The Peoples Mario

An animation by Celarent with music from the Russian Red Army Choir. The animation imagines Mario as a working class hero. I am not entirely sure how squishing mushrooms helps the people, but there must be some sort of symbolism there.

CLICK HERE, (Be warned it It will play on your browser loudly.)