However, the ideas behind New Urbanism have seldom been intellectually
destroyed, with detractors preferring to sneer at the clichéd attempt
at Classicism (or Romanticism). The two other famous exemplars of New
Urbanism are Seaside in Florida, built 25 years ago (best known in
Britain as the picket-fenced setting for ‘The Truman Show’); and
Celebration, the town completed 10 years ago as Disney’s wholesome
urban paradise. (Celebration, incidentally was built on swampland). New
Urbanism primarily advocates close-knit communities based on
‘neighbourhoods [that are] compact, pedestrian-friendly, and mixed-use
[which] bring diverse ages, races, and incomes into daily interaction,
strengthening the personal and civic bonds essential to an authentic
community.’ (8) They decry suburbia, car-prioritisation and
sprawl.Today, in the particular setting of New Orleans, progressive
architects are refusing to engage, deeming ‘progress’ to be part of the
problem rather than the solution. Consequently, the more romantic
vision of community design emanating from the New Urbanists is in the
ascendant. And they are keen to make the most of their time in the
limelight.

Link: spiked-essays | Essay | New Orleans and the New Urban vision.