Can a city be not crowded enough?

February 19, 2015

Residents of Manhattan and other densely populated urban areas might welcome small parks and open spaces as a respite from the pervasive concrete and asphalt, but a Yale Law professor says these urban oases have plenty of downsides.

“I advance the heretical view that a metropolitan area can suffer from having too much open space, and propose some policy reforms,” writes Robert C. Ellickson, the Walter E. Meyer Professor of Property and Urban Law at Yale Law School.

Ellickson will present his lecture, “Open Space in Urban Areas: Might There Be Too Much of a Good Thing?” at the University of Florida Levin College of Law for the eighth annual Wolf Family Lecture, Feb. 26, at 11 a.m. in the UF Law Martin H. Levin Advocacy Center courtroom. The event is free and open to the public.

While numerous policies encourage the creation of open spaces citing the enhancement of recreational opportunities and scenic vistas for nearby residents, Ellickson proposes that a “key advantage of urban living is proximity to other people. Open spaces reduce urban densities, increase commuting times, and foster sprawl.”

He adds that the costs of open spaces are also often underestimated.

The Wolf Family Lecture Series was endowed by a gift from UF Law Professor Michael Allan Wolf, who holds the Richard E. Nelson Chair in Local Government Law, and his wife, Betty.

For more information, please visit https://www.law.ufl.edu/flalaw/.