Kristof Dascher from the University of Regensburg spoke at a WIFO Research Seminar on 14 December 2022, about the importance
of continuous house fronts for urbanity and the economic incentives that tempt real estate developers today not to orient
their houses towards the street. WIFO regional economist Michael Klien commented on the lecture afterwards.
WIFO Research Seminar, Österreichisches Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Wien, 14.12.2022 12:30, https://tinyurl.com/mr2wxzfz
Comment: Michael Klien – This lecture will take place at WIFO. However, you can also participate via MS Teams, see link above.
Organised by: Austrian Institute of Economic Research
Online since: 01.12.2022 0:00
Le Corbusier's 1929 vision for the modern city was that of bright housing set into green open space. Following Le Corbusier,
houses need to withdraw from the streetfront. Jane Jacobs (1961) instead pointed to the importance of "eyes on the street"
in making streets safe. For Jacobs, houses need to align with the streetfront. Today developers around the world overwhelmingly
appear to pursue the Corbusian vision. This paper provides an economic rationale for, and a welfare assessment of, the discontiguous
streetfront that results. Daylight has become internal to large developers' designs. This is why their houses are bright.
Yet "eyes on the street" remain external even to large developers' designs. This is why these developers' streetfronts are
blind. We argue for redressing the balance between "daylight externality" and "streetfront externality", and suggest supporting
institutions. Ultimately contemporary architecture should align better with the street.
