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Are New Towns the solution to the UK's housing crisis? Well they are if you are of the view that the crisis is essentially a supply problem (too few houses being built)...
if you are of the opinion its a problem driven by financial services (linked to the provision of crest including buy-to0let mortgages), or the result of a mass of under/un-utilised housing stock, then New Town might offer some relief but are hardly an overall solution.
We definitely need more houses But we also need a different way to buy them
Combining the primary form of investment that's available to ordinary people with one of the most necessary basic needs is a fecking terrible plan
But also, the houses need to be good They need to be solidly built, energy efficient, spacious, good storage, outside space, good public transport links, etc etc Not a bunch of ticky tacky that will fill with mould and have nowhere to put your bike!
They were a good solution for around 40 years from inception. I worked for 2: Glenrothes in Fife 1976-80 & Skelmersdale 1981-84. Glenrothes revived the central Fife region from a mining slump & was fairly successful, although rushed house-building & latent issues problematic throughout New Towns. Skelmersdale was a disaster - merely exported Liverpool issues to an isolated neck of the woods & amplified housing issues. Not sure the concept is right for the current decade/century.
Are they going to build large numbers of affordable housing? No. It will be middle-class housing at middle-class prices, which is not what is needed at all.
It is seeking to solve a problem by giving money to the already wealthy. That is not an answer.
@SteveClough developers always claim they need the profits from their market priced estate in order to be able to build ‘affordable’ housing. How about turning that on its head? Once the ‘affordable’ housing is built and occupied they get permission to build the market priced ones.
houses for offshore capital funds to buy out and rent or just hoard. Not that we have any spare builders. They need to sell most of them with owner occupier primary residence or social housing provider ownership only restrictions in the deeds
How about the government fixed the towns we have - updated the water, electric, transport and sewage systems. Built properly insulated, energy efficient homes with heat pumps and solar panels on brownfield sites in those towns. The shops, surgeries, schools, etc are all there. We do not need even more countryside covered in miles of anonymous housing developments, with no transport.
Solve the problems of having unoccupied spaces and using what buildings exist first before going off to build new housing. Provide the need before building new estates on greenbelt.
Like "I remember when this was all fields", all this should remain fields is what I mean.
Brownfield redevelopment is good, just I feel like "new housing" isn't the solution because you can't build new houses forever. Where's the social housing, is that being built alongside these private houses? Who can live in these new towns? Are most of the properties going to follow the same path as other developments and sit empty as they're seen as investments and not places to live? We probably shouldn't be considering the idea of the 4-room detached property and should instead be thinking of something else, something more sustainable overall.
Yes, some new housing *is*required party for demographic & economic reasons of the changing geography of the UK economy (but that can also be shifted by encouraging business to move as well)... and a better mix of dwellings is required.
The issue of sustainability of an adequate hosing mix & supply is (as you suggest) the key Q. & one that seems too big for our current craven political class.
Hmm... I wonder if new towns founded properly, along Ebenezer Howard's garden city principles, could actually themselves be a vehicle for reshaping the financial services sector in service of the public good: garden city LAs as universal landlords of commercial property in their areas choosing which banks get premises based on those banks' service to the public.
It'd need the repeal of section 98 of the Local Government, Planning and Land Act 1980, which effectively makes it impossible for a garden city to operate as a garden city.
I support the three new towns, plus one each in Scotland and Wales, but 50% of them should be council homes that cannot be sold off for at least 25 years, or we'll get the same problems of lack of affordable housing as landlords buy them up.
#SilentSunday Autumn Shadows. The sun noticeably lower in the sky, evenfall speeding up.
(Edits to lighten this photo will NOT save. Different photos? Fine. Rebooted phone. Tried again. Hit save. Reverts to unedited dark photo. No idea why.)
Pomodori rosso sangue pressenza.com/it/2025/09/pomod… Il paesaggio agricolo ragusano, che un tempo appariva come un mosaico di campi aperti, muretti a secco e coltivazioni tradizionali, oggi è segnato da un orizzonte diverso: distese di serre bianche, plastica che riflette il sole e ricopre ettari di… Venera Leto
STOP à la FOURRURE d’animaux ! ❌❌ paroledanimaux.fr/stop-a-la-fo… "La Fondation 30 Millions d'Amis est présente en ce moment au Parlement européen pour ce qui pourrait être l'aboutissement d'un long combat : la fin des élevages d'animaux à fourrure en Europe. The post STOP à la FOURRURE d’animaux ! ❌❌ appeared first on Parole d'Animaux."
Printed some postcards. Mostly going to be a limited run of 9. Will share a @ko-fi.com store link once it goes live. Feel free to reply here so I can DM you when I set it up. Not sure if mail service to US have resumed. #Photography #Caturday #Mammals #Print4Sale #SnailMail #Nature #EastCoastKin
An #Egyptian figurine of a Hippo (with bulgy eyes 👀), made 5,000 years ago from calcite. Hippopotami were associated with life, regeneration, and rebirth. On display at Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek
Mom at the park just told me she wasn’t going to finish her baby’s vaccine schedule because “of the new information that has come out from the CDC”. Robert Kennedy is a fucking monster.
Atteso dal 2020, il ponte ciclopedonale per raggiungere la metro Anagnina è ancora fermo. I comitati di quartiere hanno organizzato una protesta per chiedere la realizzazione dell’opera, ritenuta essenziale per garantire accesso sicuro al trasporto pubblico.
Moin ihr Lieben und einen chilligen Sonntag euch allen! Hier wird es noch etwas arbeitsam, aber ich hoffe, dass so ab 15 Uhr dann auch fauler Sonntag angesagt ist. Das Dackelini macht es auf jeden Fall schon mal richtig. 😄
Das Bild zeigt ein kleines, braunes Hundchen, das friedlich auf einem weichen, farbenfrohen Kissen oder Bettlaken schlafen. Das Tier ist in einer entspannten, zusammengekauerten Position, mit dem Kopf auf dem Rücken und den Augen geschlossen, was auf einen tiefen Schlaf hinweist. Das Fell des Hundes ist lang und wellig, mit einem Mischton aus Braun und Gelb. Die Hintergrundfarben des Kissen oder Bettlakens sind in einem sanften Farbverlauf von Rosa und Gelb, was eine warme und gemütliche Atmosphäre schafft. Der Hund scheint sich in einem ruhigen und sicheren Umfeld zu befinden, was durch die sanfte Beleuchtung und die weichen Textilien unterstrichen wird.
Bereitgestellt von @altbot, privat und lokal generiert mit Ovis2-8B
Nooo, siamo secondi, roba da non crederci! Secondo la Cgia di Mestre gli italiani non sono più i maggiori tartassati tra i cittadini dell’Area Euro. Attualmente, tale primato negativo spetta alla Francia. Infatti nel 2024 la Francia è stato il paese con la pressione fiscale più alta nell'Area Euro
@OrionBelt Sicuramente retribuzione media più alta in Francia, ma comunque non è un paese messo così bene come i francesi vogliono far credere. È un paese molto simile all'Italia, con grandi discriminazioni, con un'integrazione che ha più problemi di quella italiana, se pensi agli attentati vari che ci sono stati e per fortuna in Italia no.
@OrionBelt Aggiungo che non so se sia peggio il loro sistema elettorale o il nostro, visto che anche loro ad instabilità di governo non scherzano. Ovviamente i politici sbagliano ed i cittadini pagano...
@versodiverso certamente in francia esistono problematiche dovute alla sua storia che da noi non si sono prodotte,vedi colonialismo,ma per certi versi,pur se politicamente in tutti e due i paesi governa la destra, ho la sensazione che in francia la società civile sia più reattiva che in italia
È una finzione, prova ad andare in una periferia e vedi se ne esci vivo. Sono peggio di Scampia, Tor Bella Monaca etc... hanno creato dei ghetti. Le proteste sembrano più grandi, più sentite delle nostre, ma in realtà i francesi sono numericamente di più degli italiani, quindi è normale che ti sembrano di più, quindi fa più effetto visivo. Loro hanno dei punti forti, ma anche dei punti deboli, che magari sono diversi da quelli italiani, ma pesando stiamo lì.
@OrionBelt Per dire che da noi si parla di Mafia, di Camorra, di Ndrancheta... perché esiste una letteratura, delle leggi. Ma della mafia marsigliese, magrebina etc che c'è in Francia, non ne parla quasi nessuno e sono ancora impreparati con le leggi per combattere tali fenomeni. Noi ci lamentiamo che le nostre leggi sono inefficaci (e lo sono a volte), immagina in Francia. Questo come esempio, che noi non siamo così peggio dei francesi e loro non sono così migliori.
Es gab diesen Sommer ein Gewitter, da war der Himmel über Wien wie ein Tauchgang unter dem Nordpol. Ein selten faszinierender Moment für die Beobachtung von Wassereigenschaften.
a local makerspace has an intro welding class coming up but it's already full D:
does one of my PNW-area mutuals want to teach me to weld at some point? (I don't have an immediate need for it, just think it'd be a cool skill to have)
I just updated @chihu italian translations. Fixed some context based errors. I'd like to spy other profiles watch history to discover new movies to watch. But I can't visit other profiles right now. Also I can't interact with other users posts.
I'm also fluent in spanish so if you'd like I could help translate the UI in spanish!
From the timeline screen there should be a button to reply to people's posts. The button should open a new screen where the user can add the reply and it.
Get ready to be mesmerized by the fascinating world of 3D street art! In today's blog post, we'll delve into the mind-bending realm of anamorphic masterpieces, as we explore how these optical illusions are created and what makes them so captivating. So, b
Get ready to be mesmerized by the fascinating world of 3D street art!
In today’s blog post, we’ll delve into the mind-bending realm of anamorphic masterpieces, as we explore how these optical illusions are created and what makes them so captivating. So, buckle up and let’s dive into the intriguing world of 3D street art!
It’s all about perspective! The Art of Anamorphosis:
Creating Illusions Anamorphosis, the technique behind 3D street art, involves creating distorted images that only appear in their correct proportions when viewed from a specific angle or through a reflective device. This mind-blowing technique has been around since the Renaissance, but it wasn’t until the late 20th century that artists began applying it to the streets, transforming ordinary pavements into magical wonderlands.
We can’t talk about 3D street art without mentioning its pioneers, Kurt Wenner and Julian Beever. Both artists started creating anamorphic illusions on the streets of Europe in the 1980s, revolutionizing the street art scene. Their innovative works have inspired a new generation of artists to experiment with perspective and create their own jaw-dropping 3D masterpieces.
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By Kurt Wenner
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By Julian Beever
The Process: From Sketch to Lifelike Artwork
Creating 3D street art is a labor-intensive process that begins with a detailed sketch of the desired illusion. Artists then use mathematical calculations and perspective techniques to determine the correct proportions for the final piece. Once the groundwork is done, they meticulously apply chalk or paint to the pavement, using shading and highlights to bring the illusion to life.
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By Leon Keer, Ruben Poncia, Remko van Schaik and Peter Westerink during the 4th Sarasota Chalk Festival in Florida USBy Leon Keer, Ruben Poncia, Remko van Schaik and Peter Westerink during the 4th Sarasota Chalk Festival in Florida USBy Leon Keer, Ruben Poncia, Remko van Schaik and Peter Westerink during the 4th Sarasota Chalk Festival in Florida US
The Impact: Engaging and Interactive Art
One of the most captivating aspects of 3D street art is its interactive nature. Viewers are encouraged to engage with the artwork, often becoming a part of the scene themselves. This immersive quality allows people to connect with art on a deeper level, sparking curiosity and inspiring creativity.
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3D Pedestrian Crossings Are Slowing Down Speeding Drivers in Iceland
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Braga Last1, also known as Tom Bragado Blanco Brings Old Gas Tank to Life with Stunning Sphynx Cat Illusion.
Where to See 3D Street Art: Festivals and Events
Eager to experience these incredible optical illusions for yourself? Keep an eye out for street art festivals and events, where many 3D artists showcase their talents. Some popular events include the Sarasota Chalk Festival in Florida, the Lake Worth Street Painting Festival, also in Florida, and the Fiera delle Grazie in Italy.
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Sleeping kitten by WA in Lima, Peru.
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‘Knowledge speaks – Wisdom listens’ – Mural in by WD (Wilddrawing) in Athens, Greece.
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By Made in Graffiti: The sleeping beauty – In Picardie, France.
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By Peeta in Mannheim, Germany.
To understand the 3D effect better, see more photos of the mural here.
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Horse by Nikolaj Arndt in Neustadt, Germany.
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Giraffe Eating the Plants by Jan Is De Man in Utrecht, Netherlands.
8 Happy 3D Artworks by Jan Is De Man That Will Make You Smile
Jan Is De Man is a Dutch street artist renowned for his playful and interactive 3D murals that transform urban spaces into whimsical masterpieces.
His artworks invite viewers to engage with their surroundings in a whole new way, often blending reality with imagination. Let’s dive into some of his most striking murals, each bringing its own story to the streets.
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Giraffe Eating the Plants – Utrecht, Netherlands
This mural in Utrecht features a life-sized giraffe reaching out to nibble on the leaves of a nearby tree. Its realistic depiction and clever use of perspective make it appear as if the animal is interacting with the environment, adding a touch of nature to the urban setting.
Jan Is De Man: This concept where the giraffe is eating the plants, is going to be better within the years… The wall next to the giraffe becomes a vertical green garden. But I was a bit impatient, so I drew a few of the plants already.
Jan Is De Man’s peacock mural gracefully spreads its vibrant blue feathers across the wall, creating a beautiful illusion of the bird blending seamlessly with its surroundings.
This mural depicts a giant shelf filled with various objects, including a teddy bear, musical instruments, and vintage artifacts. It’s a nostalgic piece that invites viewers to step closer and explore the details, sparking memories of items they may have once owned.
Jan Is De Man: In this interactive project, local residents could send me their most precious object. Besides the size this also was a challenging mural for me cause I painted a lot of things that I usually would never do. As an example: I never thought I would paint a singing frog like this.
Jan Is De Man created a large-scale illusion of a bookshelf on the side of a building in Russia. This mural brings together the community’s favorite books, celebrating the joy of reading and knowledge while blending art seamlessly into the architecture.
This challenging anamorphic piece of a 3D airplane stretches across a concrete wall, showcasing Jan Is De Man’s mastery of perspective and technique. The realistic details make it appear as if the airplane is bursting through the wall, ready to take flight.
With a touch of humor and creativity, Jan Is De Man transformed this building into a giant smiling face. The clever use of windows as eyes creates an expression that feels alive.
This trompe-l’œil piece gives the illusion of three-dimensional books stacked on shelves, seamlessly blending into the architecture.
Discover More of Jan Is De Man’s Street Art
Jan Is De Man’s street art is a testament to his skill in blending imagination with urban landscapes, making the streets a canvas for fun and creativity. His unique approach not only beautifies spaces but also encourages viewers to see their environment from a different perspective.
To explore more of his captivating murals and follow his latest projects, be sure to check out his website and follow him on Instagram.
It's a weird thing with French nuclear fans. They regularly show up here, tell you how bad Germany is for having stopped using nuclear and when you show them the numbers on emission reduction Germany did manage *while also* leaving nuclear behind, they accuse me of being dishonest, not smart enough to understand them etc. Germany decided against nuclear energy. That decision cannot and will not be reversed. France chose a different path and we respect that. Maybe they should respect us too?
The European Union will need to invest 500 billion euros ($568 billion) in new generation nuclear power stations from now until 2050, the bloc's internal market commissioner said in an interview published at the weekend.
From my experience in political lobbying that sounds almost like a call by Breton to stop investing in nuclear ;) €500B to *reduce* the nuclear share from 26% to 15%, no new permissions after 2045. And public money instead of private capital ... seems to be an almost deliberate proposal to give up on nuclear investments ;)
@nemobis UK money blown on new nuclear so far would buy every UK household 1200W of plugin solar panels and about 2kWh of battery instead .. if we had plug in solar legal here.
Clarification: They regularly show up *in my timeline*. I am not insinuating it's a coordinated, planned thing. What is striking to me is that it is always the same, simple, binary argument: Germany dirty, France clean, when it comes to electricity production. Germany bad, France good. It never really goes beyond that and they never want to engage in factual discussions.
Also, as so often, in the replies under this post the discussion moves far away from the original topic and gets lost in "I am right, you are wrong" about things like natural gas, energy processing in other countries etc. My position, like it or not, still stays the same: more decentralisation of the grid, more (hyper)local solutions for electricity generation and storage based on renewables, that's the better future. Nuclear energy outprices itself in that market more and more.
I have tried Comet from Perplexity and I don't get the hype.
Having used various AI tools for a while, I find them incredibly useful in my professional life. But packaging them into an environment that's supposed to overhaul my own decisions in my digital life seems to be excessive, unnecessary, and harmful.
There is a popular children's cartoon in Russia, from Soviet times. A boy gets transferred to a fairy tail land and wins himself two magical helpers that do everything for him. They make a lot of candies for him and then eat them. The kid was shocked: "So you're going to even eat everything yourself?! - Yuuup!"
I feel it's the same faulty system. I'd rather wish the generative toolkit being developed for the intended uses. Instead, it feels like the battles against unhelpful telephone bots that do everything except for answering your actual inquiry. But inside your own PC, for God's sake! Just why?.. it bugs me why companies invest money in something that I really, really can't understand the purpose of. My only guess it's to scam general public and use their usage data for training the actual usable models - who knows what for, but my inner conspiracy theorist screams "military".
Disclaimer: I'm a designer, not a tech specialist.
Una nuova inchiesta di #Greenpeace e Public Eye ha rivelato che negli ultimi 7 anni l’UE ha quasi raddoppiato le esportazioni di #pesticidi tossici e vietati nei paesi dell’Unione.
È assurdo! Da un lato l’#Europa vieta l’utilizzo nei propri campi di questi pesticidi, dall’altro consente alle proprie aziende di continuare a produrli ed esportarli, in gran parte verso Paesi a medio e basso reddito.
Ridurre l'obiettivo della Flotilla alla consegna di aiuti è "strumentale al boicottaggio della missione" e al sostegno di Israele. Intanto la Family Boat è stata costretta a fermarsi, non potrà ripartire.
Patsy (she/her)
in reply to Emeritus Prof Christopher May • • •We definitely need more houses
But we also need a different way to buy them
Combining the primary form of investment that's available to ordinary people with one of the most necessary basic needs is a fecking terrible plan
But also, the houses need to be good
They need to be solidly built, energy efficient, spacious, good storage, outside space, good public transport links, etc etc
Not a bunch of ticky tacky that will fill with mould and have nowhere to put your bike!
Emeritus Prof Christopher May
in reply to Patsy (she/her) • • •@patsytheshark
Yup, but that seems unlikely in the current political climate, where quantity over quality seems to rule
CAFCA47
in reply to Emeritus Prof Christopher May • • •I worked for 2: Glenrothes in Fife 1976-80 & Skelmersdale 1981-84.
Glenrothes revived the central Fife region from a mining slump & was fairly successful, although rushed house-building & latent issues problematic throughout New Towns.
Skelmersdale was a disaster - merely exported Liverpool issues to an isolated neck of the woods & amplified housing issues.
Not sure the concept is right for the current decade/century.
Emeritus Prof Christopher May reshared this.
Schroedinger
in reply to Emeritus Prof Christopher May • • •Are they going to build large numbers of affordable housing? No. It will be middle-class housing at middle-class prices, which is not what is needed at all.
It is seeking to solve a problem by giving money to the already wealthy. That is not an answer.
Emeritus Prof Christopher May
in reply to Schroedinger • • •@SteveClough
Indeed in London the GLA is seeking to rescue the affordable housing proportion for new developments after companies from.... developers.
Eliza MB
in reply to Emeritus Prof Christopher May • • •How about turning that on its head? Once the ‘affordable’ housing is built and occupied they get permission to build the market priced ones.
The Penguin of Evil
in reply to Emeritus Prof Christopher May • • •Brian Smith
in reply to Emeritus Prof Christopher May • • •HarriettMB
in reply to Emeritus Prof Christopher May • • •Emeritus Prof Christopher May
in reply to HarriettMB • • •@HarriettMB
Yes, the existing housing stock is *clearly* a major aspect of the issue, although not so clear to the Landlord class
Nini
in reply to Emeritus Prof Christopher May • • •Solve the problems of having unoccupied spaces and using what buildings exist first before going off to build new housing. Provide the need before building new estates on greenbelt.
Like "I remember when this was all fields", all this should remain fields is what I mean.
Emeritus Prof Christopher May
in reply to Nini • • •@nini
yes I posted an interesting report on brown field sites not so long ago....
Nini
in reply to Emeritus Prof Christopher May • • •Emeritus Prof Christopher May
in reply to Nini • • •@nini
Yes, some new housing *is*required party for demographic & economic reasons of the changing geography of the UK economy (but that can also be shifted by encouraging business to move as well)... and a better mix of dwellings is required.
The issue of sustainability of an adequate hosing mix & supply is (as you suggest) the key Q. & one that seems too big for our current craven political class.
Only Ohm
in reply to Emeritus Prof Christopher May • • •Only Ohm
in reply to Only Ohm • • •Emeritus Prof Christopher May
in reply to Only Ohm • • •@only_ohm
Sounds like a great way to go... but an impossible dream with our landlord dominated political class.
Anarchic Teapot ⚧️
in reply to Emeritus Prof Christopher May • • •Pam C
in reply to Emeritus Prof Christopher May • • •Emeritus Prof Christopher May
in reply to Pam C • • •@Pamela1960
Yup, I agree