18.1. Subsidiarity

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In developing urban projects, it is important to keep the scale appropriate to the project, and as local and distributed as possible — for example in the Neighborhood Planning Center, and in applying Economies Of Place And Differentiation.


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Problem-statement: The best-quality adaptive urbanism occurs at the most locally distributed scale possible.


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Discussion: We know from the dynamics of highly-adapted complex systems that they often require adaptive actions at small scales, often at the smallest scale possible. In the political realm, this same idea is known as subsidiarity.


The Oxford English Dictionary defines subsidiarity as “(in politics) the principle that a central authority should have a subsidiary function, performing only those tasks which cannot be performed at a more local level.”1 Wikipedia describes “a principle of social organization that holds that social and political issues should be dealt with at the most immediate (or local) level that is consistent with their resolution.”2 The goal is therefore the decentralization of problem-solving to the most distributed scale that is effective. The concept has been developed within and applied to a number of institutions including the European Union, and is stated as a goal of the New Urban Agenda.


What is at stake is not just a working principle of political decentralization, but the ability to solve problems in the most effective way possible. There are indeed times when this requires a centralized response — for example, in creating large-scale infrastructure systems. But very often, a far more powerful approach is to distribute the problem-solving among many decentralized agents within a “complex adaptive system.” In the case of urban systems, those agents are the various smaller-scale institutions and individuals that carry out so much of the actual creative work of building settlements. This is not, however, a prescription for a solely laissez-faire approach. On the contrary, the role of both the more centralized and the more decentralized units is to work together to establish and maintain cooperative governance structures (see Polycentric Governance, 18.2). This process is dynamic, sometimes messy, but at the same time essential for optimum problem-solving and adaptive quality.


This is not, however, a prescription for a solely laissez-faire approach. On the contrary, the role of both the more centralized and the more decentralized units is to work together to establish and maintain cooperative governance structures (see Polycentric Governance, 18.2). This process is dynamic, sometimes messy, but at the same time essential for optimum problem-solving and adaptive quality.


This approach must also be mindful of the pursuit of justice in human affairs. Subsidiarity must not be a license to deprive people of a just opportunity for access to resources and quality of life. In such a case, by definition, the resolution of the injustice must occur on a more centralized scale.


Finally, it is critical to provide mechanisms for monitoring at the smallest scales, to ensure that they actually produce results — not in order to suppress local actions “from above”, but instead to provide resources as needed to improve results, using Polycentric Governance.


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Therefore:

Do not centralize decision-making and problem-solving too much in cities and towns — but do not decentralize them too much either. Instead, aim for the distribution of tasks to the smallest possible scale that will be effective in resolving them. Refine and adjust the scales based on results.


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Structure subsidiary institutions according to Polycentric Governance. Use Public-Private Place Management carefully, without allowing local problem-solving to become too centralized within either public or private entities. …




¹ See https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/subsidiarity.



Mehaffy, M. et al. (2020). SUBSIDIARITY (pattern). In A New Pattern Language for Growing Regions. The Dalles: Sustasis Press. Available at https://pattern-language.wiki/.../Subsidiarity



SECTION I:

PATTERNS OF SCALE


1. REGIONAL PATTERNS

Define the large-scale spatial organization…

1.1. POLYCENTRIC REGION

1.2. BLUE-GREEN NETWORK

1.3. MOBILITY CORRIDOR

1.4. 400M THROUGH STREET NETWORK

2. URBAN PATTERNS

Establish essential urban characteristics…

2.1. WALKABLE MULTI-MOBILITY

2.2. LEVEL CITY

2.3. PUBLIC SPACE SYSTEM

2.4. BIOPHILIC URBANISM

3. STREET PATTERNS

Identify and allocate street types…

3.1. URBAN GREENWAY

3.2. MULTI-WAY BOULEVARD

3.3. AVENUE

3.4. SHARED SPACE LANE

4. NEIGHBORHOOD PATTERNS

Define neighborhood-scale elements…

4.1. STREET AS CENTER

4.2. PEDESTRIAN SANCTUARY

4.3. NEIGHBORHOOD SQUARE

4.4. NEIGHBORHOOD PARK

5. SPECIAL USE PATTERNS

Integrate unique urban elements with care…

5.1. SCHOOL CAMPUS

5.2. MARKET CENTER

5.3. INDUSTRIAL AREA

5.4. HOSPITAL

6. PUBLIC SPACE PATTERNS

Establish the character of the crucial public realm…

6.1. PLACE NETWORK

6.2. WALKABLE STREETSCAPE

6.3. MOVABLE SEATING

6.4. CAPILLARY PATHWAY

7. BLOCK AND PLOT PATTERNS

Lay out the detailed structure of property lines…

7.1. SMALL BLOCKS

7.2. PERIMETER BLOCK

7.3. SMALL PLOTS

7.4. MID-BLOCK ALLEY

8. STREETSCAPE PATTERNS

Configure the street as a welcoming place…

8.1. STREET AS ROOM

8.2. TERMINATED VISTA

8.3. STREET TREES

8.4. STREET FURNISHINGS

9. BUILDING PATTERNS

Lay out appropriate urban buildings…

9.1. PERIMETER BUILDING

9.2. ARCADE BUILDING

9.3. COURTYARD BUILDING

9.4. ROW BUILDING

10. BUILDING EDGE PATTERNS

Create interior and exterior connectivity…

10.1. INDOOR-OUTDOOR AMBIGUITY

10.2. CIRCULATION NETWORK

10.3. LAYERED ZONES

10.4. PASSAGEWAY VIEW



SECTION II:

PATTERNS OF MULTIPLE SCALE


11. GEOMETRIC PATTERNS

Build in coherent geometries at all scales…

11.1. LOCAL SYMMETRY

11.2. SMALL GROUPS OF ELEMENTS

11.3. FRACTAL PATTERN

11.4. FRAMING

12. AFFORDANCE PATTERNS

Build in user capacity to shape the environment…

12.1. HANDLES

12.2. CO-PRODUCTION

12.3. FRIENDLY SURFACES

12.4. MALLEABILITY

13. RETROFIT PATTERNS

Revitalize and improve existing urban assets …

13.1. SLUM UPGRADE

13.2. SPRAWL RETROFIT

13.3. URBAN REGENERATION

13.4. URBAN CONSOLIDATION

14. INFORMAL GROWTH PATTERNS

Accommodate “bottom-up” urban growth…

14.1. LAND TENURE

14.2. UTILITIES FIRST

14.3. DATA WITH THE PEOPLE

14.4. INCREMENTAL SELF-BUILD

15. CONSTRUCTION PATTERNS

Use the building process to enrich the result…

15.1. DESIGN-BUILD ADAPTATION

15.2. HUMAN-SCALE DETAIL

15.3. CONSTRUCTION ORNAMENT

15.4. COMPLEX MATERIALS



SECTION III:

PATTERNS OF PROCESS


16. IMPLEMENTATION TOOL PATTERNS

Use tools to achieve successful results…

16.1. FORM-BASED CODE

16.2. ENTITLEMENT STREAMLINING

16.3. NEIGHBORHOOD PLANNING CENTER

16.4. COMMUNITY MOCKUP

17. PROJECT ECONOMICS PATTERNS

Create flows of money that support urban quality…

17.1. TAX-INCREMENT FINANCING

17.2. LAND VALUE CAPTURE

17.3. EXTERNALITY VALUATION

17.4. ECONOMIES OF PLACE AND DIFFERENTIATION

18. PLACE GOVERNANCE PATTERNS

Processes for making and managing places…

18.1. SUBSIDIARITY

18.2. POLYCENTRIC GOVERNANCE

18.3. PUBLIC-PRIVATE PLACE MANAGEMENT

18.4. INFORMAL STEWARDSHIP

19. AFFORDABILITY PATTERNS

Build in affordability for all incomes…

19.1. INTEGRATED AFFORDABILITY

19.2. COMMUNITY LAND TRUST

19.3. MULTI-FAMILY INFILL

19.4. SPECULATION TAX

20. NEW TECHNOLOGY PATTERNS

Integrate new systems without damaging old ones…

20.1. SMART AV SYSTEM

20.2. RESPONSIVE TRANSPORTATION NETWORK COMPANY

20.3. AUGMENTED REALITY DESIGN

20.4. CITIZEN DATA