Death and Life became the most famous book on urban planning. It is fundamentally about the natural origins and benefits of “the spontaneous order.” Written a third of a century after Euclid normalized centralized planning, Death and Life rejected that precedent, arguing that throughout human history, cities had been built on spontaneity, with... See more

This order created uncoordinated systems that worked, without staff, as if by magic. Such was Jacobs’s “Sidewalk Ballet.” With density, she argued, came “eyes on the street,” a community-based security system that required neither barbed wire nor an extensive police presence. With wide sidewalks comes trusted interactions, even with strangers—a... See more

Nestled in the heart of a bustling city is Unity Avenue, a vibrant street teeming with life. It's early morning, and the sunlight washes unevenly over a diverse mixture of new and old buildings ↕, some graffiti-sprayed and worn out by the ravages of time.