Ten years ago the world was jarred at seeing a financial institution of a high urban city destroyed. Maybe at that moment we found ourselves second-guessing the security of our society and our government, of the stability of our ever-expanding cities, of the soundness of our buildings. But a decade later cities are still thriving: growing and rebuilding. Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan predicted that our attitudes toward the value of urban development would remain unchanged, and he may have been right. So have we, as law-makers, designers and inhabitants of the urban environment learned from what ten years ago was considered a failure in our cities and government agencies? ArchDaily had the pleasure of interviewing Mr. Patrick Phillips, CEO of the Urban Land Institute (ULI), an international organization devoted to the responsible use of land and in creating sustainable thriving communities worldwide.
Read on for the interview after the break.
AD: People are continuing to steadily migrate to cities and large urban centers for their opportunities, their vast cultural institutions and the street life inherent in their density. Some may argue that these very same factors are what make our cities targets for disasters and terrorism. In today’s climate, what changes are you seeing in policy and design that attempt to insulate or defend our urban institutions? Do you find that builders and developers are more prudent about the risks involved with building in urban centers that we have seen become targets?
