neoHouston says:
One of the big problems in development today, in particular in the area of city planning, is distinguishing between good urban infill and mediocre urban infill. At first glance the two may look very similar, but they are not. Good urban infill has a great interface, like what you see in the photo above. Mediocre (or bad) urban infill does not. People don’t want mediocre infill, it adds density without adding vitality. People crave good urban infill, because when you combine density and great interface, you get the best part of urban life – vibrant and healthy street-life.
Click over to see the picture (there are several more) and read the post about how to do urban streets right, how to do it wrong, and how doing it wrong can have negative effects that can cancel out some of what was done right. Excellent post, well worth your time. See also this comment on Swamplot for a coda.