2.6Theme 4: Density is not the problem, poor design is

Density is not the problem, poor design is

Figure 2.6.1MSurveyed plots, coloured by density and housing quality.

Housing quality (0 to 32)

Figure 2.6.2MDensity against housing quality. One dot is one plot; equal plots sit side by side.

Sources Toolkit 3 survey, 36 plots. Dense: FAR 1.87 or more (Sim, Soft City, p. 380). Good: 16 or more of 32.

32

Dense from FAR 1.87

24

16

8

0

0

2

Density: floor area ratio (FAR)

4

WHAT WE COUNTED

Dense housing is often blamed for poor living conditions. We measured the density of 36 plots and scored each for housing quality out of 32.

RESULT, 36 PLOTS

WHAT IT MEANS

Density does not decide quality. Of the 31 dense plots, 21 (68%) score below the midpoint and 10 score above it. All 5 plots that are not dense score poor too.

Good from 16 of 32

The best plot reaches 19 of 32, and no plot earned a point for ground-floor access. The poor plots lack what the score counts, such as human scale and access, whatever their density.

6

8

21

Dense + poor quality

58.3% of plots

27.8% of plots

5

Not dense + poor quality

13.9% of plots

0

Not dense + good quality

no plots