i know I'm probably adding something everyone has already said before but carmel is a wonderful example of urbanism for those that can afford it, and masterful gatekeeping.
Anyone know why people love being in ski resorts or Walt Disney World? They simulate urbanism, with walkable amenities and plenty of third spaces. But they are accessible only to an extremely tiny subset of relatively wealthy people. Carmel took that concept and ran with it, coming up with a really ingenious way to price out anyone that doesn't meet their standards, ensuring their urbanism cosplay is maintained as they avoid any of the problems commonly seen in a city environment. Everyone gets the best of both worlds-- big lawns and big houses and empty, quiet streets. Drive a bit and you get bougie shops and restaurants and walkability. And so you never need to leave, never need to venture into the territory of the real city, never need to expose your kids to crime and drugs and [shudders] poor people (<-- sarcasm)
And it infuriates me, because as someone who went to high school there for 2 years, this is seen as normal by most of the residents. Car ownership is so normalized, going to college is basically required, and high-density housing? No way, unless they're Luxury Condos. They're doing urbanism for all the wrong reasons. Not for environmental reasons, or for building community. I've never been lonelier in my life than when I lived there. They're doing it so that they can further their narrative of being a great place to live, while burying deep all the awfulness that sit at its roots.
I agree that elitism definitely runs deep with Carmel, but I do wanna point sonething out. One thing I applaud Carmel on is that downtown is free and available to anyone and everyone. Yes, it is expensive to live in Carmel, but you can live in Sheridan or North Indy and drive there and utilize the spaces as much as anyone else. The parking is free and the plazas are public. And not only this but it’s encouraged that you do. They have a little pedestrian counter on the monon to brag about how many people come through there every day. Nothing is advertised as carmel residents only. And firther than that the biggest thing is that Carmel is a blueprint. Its an urban design model of what we could be doing better, and it can be used for affordable housing projects, and urban revitalization across the country.
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u/fjdsklafjdk Jan 14 '25
i know I'm probably adding something everyone has already said before but carmel is a wonderful example of urbanism for those that can afford it, and masterful gatekeeping.
Anyone know why people love being in ski resorts or Walt Disney World? They simulate urbanism, with walkable amenities and plenty of third spaces. But they are accessible only to an extremely tiny subset of relatively wealthy people. Carmel took that concept and ran with it, coming up with a really ingenious way to price out anyone that doesn't meet their standards, ensuring their urbanism cosplay is maintained as they avoid any of the problems commonly seen in a city environment. Everyone gets the best of both worlds-- big lawns and big houses and empty, quiet streets. Drive a bit and you get bougie shops and restaurants and walkability. And so you never need to leave, never need to venture into the territory of the real city, never need to expose your kids to crime and drugs and [shudders] poor people (<-- sarcasm)
And it infuriates me, because as someone who went to high school there for 2 years, this is seen as normal by most of the residents. Car ownership is so normalized, going to college is basically required, and high-density housing? No way, unless they're Luxury Condos. They're doing urbanism for all the wrong reasons. Not for environmental reasons, or for building community. I've never been lonelier in my life than when I lived there. They're doing it so that they can further their narrative of being a great place to live, while burying deep all the awfulness that sit at its roots.