Sustainable Urban Planning

Part 1:

I live in Bucks County, PA which is located roughly an hour from Philadelphia and about 30 mins from a bridge to New Jersey. Bucks county has an approximate population of 626,976 people living in the county as a whole as of 2010. Within Bucks County I live in the township of Perkasie, PA which has a population of approximately 8,515 people. I live in a more rural part of the township, by that I mean I live on a larger piece of land with fewer neighbors. I would definitely classify my area as a automobile suburb. While you could walk from place to place inside town, for people like me that is difficult to do. I am not in close proximity to the necessity stores that I could walk to if needed. We use cars to get almost anywhere. I like the area within Perkasie I grew up because it was spacious and not crowded like a development, we have fewer neighbors to deal with and when you want to see someone or need something they are only a short drive away.

Part 2:

For my first city I chose Charlottesville, Virginia. I was interested in this town because of the rustic older feel to the town itself. I personally and a bug history buff so I am fascinated by old buildings and the history behind them, which Charlottesville has a lot of. In Perkasie we have a few older buildings that we have been able to restore and keep around which I am grateful for. I also love the old time southern feel of Charlottesville, VA a town that has existed for a while and has prospered with the traditions still intact is very intriguing to me. They have also done important things like creating the Pedestrian Mall in order to create a place reserved for walking and enjoying the town. Perkasie does not have anything like this but we do have many sidewalks that you can roam for the day to gain a new perspective on the town itself.

My second city I chose was the city of Haiti. I chose this because I actually was able to visit there once and saw some of the damage that was caused by their many tragedies that the city has gone through. Although they seem to always rise from the ashes of the terrible hands they are dealt and try to make some good come out of it. Like the old tires that are then used as planters, this is an innovative way for the people of Haiti to use the resources they have to improve on a situation. Perkasie has never been through the tragedies that Haiti has but they do tend to do innovative things in order to brighten the community as a whole. Haiti uses these planters to grow fruits and veggies to support their community, although Perkasie is not primarily urban area it does have buildings in which we could try this method of growing to aid in the community.

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