The piazzas are coming…
True piazzas (pedestrian-oriented plazas completely enclosed by buildings, ringed by restaurants and shops and offices and housing above) are everywhere in Europe, but nowhere to be found in the U.S.
Rockville in Maryland is doing their part with its upcoming Rockville Town Square, a new $360 million, 15-acre town center for their rather suburban town just north of Washington DC. It’s not a true piazza in that there are auto-oriented streets on two sides, but if you take a look at the map, it’s getting close… and yes, city officials were indeed using Italy’s piazzas as a model.
Not surprisingly the housing prices aren’t attainable by most and national chains will occupy much of the commercial, so it isn’t a very ‘cool town’. However, hanging out in the ‘piazza’ along with its many events is free, and the City is offering $10 million in rent subsidies and relocation funds for local merchants that were dislocated in the redevelopment.
Vitals:
– 108,000 s.f. of restaurants and shops, 644 condominiums in three stories above
– 100,000 s.f. library on the town square
– Two blocks from Washington DC Metro/subway.
Read more in this NY Times article.
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You must have the density of residents mentioned for urban public spaces like this to work.
Many plazas built years ago within office parks or towers created dead space.
The rent subsidies for local merchants as mentioned are very cool.
Thanks David,
What’s interesting is that the title of the NY Times article is ‘A Piazza for Maryland Suburb’ – this will be the densest part of Rockville! Being two blocks from the Washington DC Metro subway makes it possible, but this just shows you what the demand is for ‘highly pedestrian-oriented places’ (ie high density) are, even within the auto-oriented fabric of Rockville where owning a car is pretty much a necessity.
I live in Rockville, Maryland, and have for most of the last twenty-five years. For a while I went out West and when I came back I was amazed at just how much cooler this place had become in my absence! Still, it could use a lot more art. That whole ‘creative class’ thing, you know.
I live in Rockville, Maryland, and have for most of the last twenty-five years. For a while I went out West and when I came back I was amazed at just how much cooler this place had become in my absence! Still, it could use a lot more art. That whole ‘creative class’ thing, you know.