This paper is in essence a work about repetition and preservation. It gives details on the measures of Americans in order to follow their individual notions of happiness. The home, residence and place of residence alike, is essential in this process and it is our aim to discuss the most recent step in securing that this place remains what it used to be. Defined by the move of the masses to the periphery, the ideal of the suburban homeowner has persisted over the last 100 years. But this ideal now includes gates. A mayor reason for this move, that in fact so highly is against what life on the periphery used to be, is the transformed character of suburbia. Now, the gated community has become part of suburban lifestyle. It is the preservation of the old by repeating the standard measures of the old. And it is a way that more and more Americans are making use of adding to it a dimension of pre-eminent national importance. While various other countries, among them Brazil, Argentina, France, Spain, South Africa or Australia, have experienced the same phenomenon, we want to focus on the situation in the United States. It is in America where there has been a close connection between the policies set by the process of suburbanization and the subsequent fortification of living space in the suburbs. Moreover, in the United States the phenomenon has in some parts of the country developed into a mass movement and has thereby generated sufficient scientific attention. On the one hand, we embark by trying to shed light on the relations between the new character of suburbia that has seen the arrival of urban problems, and the ongoing proliferation of walled neighbourhoods. But the focus is undoubtedly lying on the analysis of gated communities itself; those neighbourhoods that progressively hail the private realm in order to keep unwanted problems out. And those neighbourhoods that so frequently bear antagonisms that seem to work against the desires of the residents. Chapter one begins with an overview of the suburbanization process, exploring the different phases of the move to the periphery and the character of the traditional American suburb. It continues with the description of the processes that leads to a transformed suburbia describing how characteristics previously associated with the city have reached the fringe. Further, follows an examination of the early methods on how to fight those new suburban problems. [...]
Table of Contents
Introduction
1. A New Suburban Environment
1.1 The Old Suburbia
1.2 The Transformed Suburbia
2. Gated Communities
2.1 The History of Walls
2.2 Definition and Typology
2.3 Proliferation
2.4 Security
2.5 Community
2.6 Covenants, Conditions & Restrictions
2.7 Private Governments
2.8 Externalities
3. Conclusion
4. Outlook
Research Objectives & Key Themes
This paper examines the rise of gated communities in the United States as a defensive response to the socioeconomic and spatial transformations of suburbia. It investigates the motivations behind this "fortification of living space," exploring how suburbanites attempt to preserve traditional ideals of comfort, safety, and exclusivity amidst growing urban-like problems, and discusses the implications of privatized governance and exclusionary social structures.
- The transition from traditional, open suburbia to a transformed, diverse metropolitan fringe.
- The development, typology, and rapid proliferation of gated communities.
- The role of fear of crime and the desire for social homogeneity in residential choices.
- The emergence of private governments, homeowner associations, and restrictive covenants.
- The wider societal impacts, including social segregation and the privatization of public space.
Excerpt from the Book
1. A New Suburban Environment
Suburbia is not any more what it used to be. The antagonism between suburban and urban has in many parts lost its validity in today’s America. Since the last third of the 19th century people in relevant masses were flocking to the urban periphery in search for the virtues of a semi-rural life opposed to what they had been experiencing in the city. Those people had come to live according to the ideals of the traditional American town. They wanted their own spacious house, peaceful and quiet environments, community and safety; they were predominantly white, middle-class and living in the nuclear family. Millions of Americans took part in the process of suburbanization, which was ironically dubbed the most peaceful mass movement in recent history. But it was also a movement of exclusion. Ethnic minorities, low income employees and people not living in the traditional family setting were for a long time not part of it.
However, when this mass movement of homebuyers was followed by economic entities of various kinds, the character of suburbia began to change fundamentally. A process of stratification in economic status, race and lifestyle was initiated. The suburbs were not bedroom communities any more. They became places where people sleep, work, shop or amuse themselves. Likewise they became places that reflected the circumstances previously only associated with life in the city. Crime, congestion, pollution and social diversity have penetrated the periphery making the reasons for which people left the cities in direction of the suburbs obsolete. Nevertheless residents did not give up their ideals of how they would like to live in comfort. These ideals are only to a limited extent realisable in the suburbia as it is presenting itself to us today. But residents and businesses have come up with proposals as to how to retain the suburban life as it used to be.
Summary of Chapters
Introduction: Provides an overview of the suburbanization process and introduces the gated community as a mechanism to preserve suburban ideals in an increasingly urbanized fringe.
1. A New Suburban Environment: Details the historical evolution of suburbia from traditional bedroom communities to a transformed, diverse landscape reflecting urban problems, prompting residents to seek new defensive measures.
2. Gated Communities: Analyzes the emergence, types, security motivations, and social mechanisms of walled neighborhoods, including the role of private governance and restrictive covenants.
3. Conclusion: Summarizes the study’s findings, suggesting that gated communities are a logical but exclusionary response to metropolitan changes, prioritizing private control over shared public life.
4. Outlook: Discusses potential future developments, suggesting that political action may be necessary to address the societal impacts of fortification and the power of private governance models.
Keywords
Gated Communities, Suburbia, Suburbanization, Private Governments, Homeowner Associations, Covenants Conditions and Restrictions, Social Segregation, Urban Planning, Privatization, Security, Community, Exclusion, Property Values, Metropolitan Transformation, Land Use.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core subject of this paper?
The paper focuses on the development and proliferation of gated communities in the United States, positioning them as a reaction to the shifting character of suburban life.
What are the primary themes discussed?
The central themes include the transformation of the American suburb, the rise of private governance through homeowner associations, the impacts of security-focused residential design, and the resulting social segregation.
What is the main research objective?
The aim is to analyze how residents of suburban environments use fortification and privatization to maintain traditional notions of happiness, safety, and exclusivity in the face of urban-like problems.
Which methodology is employed?
The paper employs a sociological analysis of suburban transformation, drawing on historical context, urban studies data, and critical literature regarding the impacts of private interest developments.
What does the main body address?
It covers the history of the suburb, the definition and types of gated communities, the influence of security concerns on real estate, the role of mandatory homeowner associations, and the social externalities of closed neighborhoods.
Which keywords characterize the work?
Key terms include gated communities, suburbanization, private governments, social segregation, and common interest developments (CIDs).
How do gated communities affect non-residents?
The paper notes that they can lead to increased segregation, the privatization of formerly public scenic spaces, and the potential diversion of crime to neighboring, unprotected subdivisions.
What role do Covenants, Conditions & Restrictions (CC&Rs) play?
CC&Rs serve as a rigid regulatory framework that enforces homogeneity and control over residents' behaviors, property maintenance, and even personal lifestyle choices to protect property values.
Why is the concept of "community" described as problematic in these areas?
The author argues that "community" is often used merely as a marketing term by developers, resulting in neighborhoods that lack the organic social relationships found in traditional towns, leading to a "culture of non-participation."
- Arbeit zitieren
- Eike Christian Meuter (Autor:in), 2006, Gated Communities in the United States: The Fortification of Living Space in the Light of a Transformed Suburbia, München, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/62004
