Land + Living offers a critique of mixed use districts and/or "lifestyle centers"

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Written By H. Pike Oliver

Several years ago (November 2004) James Lippincot posted at the land + living network website -- www.landliving.com --a review of what he refers to as " . . . this idea of private development masquerading as public space."  See the article at www.landliving.com/articles/0000000495.aspx My own view of such places is somewhat more positive. Kudos ought to go out to anyone offering an alternative to the "boxes in a parking lot" format of retail that is so predominant these days. Nonetheless, Lippincot offers some interesting commentary and photos.

Lippincott likes several aspects of Victoria Gardens (in Rancho Cucamonga, CA, about forty miles east of downtown Los Angeles.) Overall, he has fewer compliments for Crocker Park (in Westlake, OH, about 15 miles west of downtown Cleveland.)  However, after decrying the fact that it is yet another mall Lippincot says that Crocker Park " . . . does embrace New Urbansim a bit more than some of the other projects we have looked at like Victoria Gardens, and much more than the Grove, with the placement of office and residential units in the upper two storys of the buildings. In this respect, Crocker Park would appear to us to be a more successful model."

H. Pike Oliver

H. Pike Oliver focuses on master-planned communities. He is co-author of Transforming the Irvine Ranch: Joan Irvine, William Pereira, Ray Watson, and THE BIG PLAN, published by Routledge in 2022.

Early in his career, Pike worked for public agencies, including the California Governor's Office of Planning and Research, where he was a principal contributor to An Urban Strategy for California. For the next three decades, he was involved in master-planned development on the Irvine Ranch in Southern California, as well as other properties in western North America and abroad.

Beginning in 2009, Pike taught real estate development at Cornell University and directed the undergraduate program in Urban and Regional Studies. He relocated to Seattle in 2013 and, from 2016 to 2020, served as a lecturer in the Runstad Department of Real Estate at the University of Washington, where he also served as its chair.

Pike graduated from San Francisco State University's urban studies and planning program and received a master's degree in urban planning from UCLA. He is a member of the American Planning Association and the Urban Land Institute and a founder and emeritus member of the California Planning Roundtable.

https://urbanexus.com
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