By Christine Moore, Orange County District 2 Commissioner

Author Chris Arnade walks all over the world writing about the health of cities. He has a Ph.D. in physics from Johns Hopkins University and worked on Wall Street for 20 years.  

Chris believes if you want to “understand a place, you need to walk it.” I’m reviewing his recent article entitled, “How to Build the Perfect City.” Chris was the keynote speaker at this summer’s Strong Towns Conference in Rhode Island. 

Arnade believes building healthy cities is generally more important than building a stronger economy. “A corollary is …. happiness, fulfillment, and human flourishing are inseparable from the social…human despair is no longer primarily a result of economic destitution; rather, it is due to a lack of functional and healthy communities.” The functional and healthy part is what leaders must focus on if we want successful cities. 

Arnade posits, “People need community like fish need water.” They need to feel they belong to something greater than themselves. If they don’t have access to healthy communities, they will find unhealthy ones like drug traps, bars, and gangs. He describes societal dysfunction as water running to the lowest point. Additionally, Arnade describes city planning like a real-life game of SimCity. While he respects experts who design cities, he believes they should live in the town for better functionality and purpose. 

Chris’ definition of walkability is this: “Can a randomly chosen citizen live happily in the city without owning a car, and without a high usage of cabs, ride shares, delivery services, and other private transportation?” He examines factors such as appropriate density and localized geographic distribution of resources such as retail, parks, markets, bars, restaurants, museums, etc. He says we need functional sidewalks, bridges with pedestrian paths, nice crosswalks, proper lighting, etc. He mentions the importance of public transportation.  

In the county’s Vision 2050 plan the suburban and rural areas are protected. No one wants to change the suburban or rural areas and make them dense cities. I’m reading Arnade’s work to explore best practices for revitalizing downtown areas. Most of you have expressed an interest in bikeable and walkable downtowns, disgust for roads dividing a city, and anguish over too much new suburban sprawl. 

The author also believes a good climate, low crime, and low pollution are a must for any walkable city. Connectedness is an additional factor for a city’s success. Social connectedness has been a key benefit in Apopka through sports, schools, and civic organizations. I believe the other worry by long-time residents is losing the small-town culture with so many new subdivisions.  

There is much food for thought in this review of an article by Chris Arnade. I hope you found it as beneficial as I have.