Site Matters

Site Matters
Design Concepts, Histories, and Strategies

Edited by Ca r ol J . Bu r n s a n d A n d r ea Ka h n

ROUTLEDGE NEW YORK AND LONDON

Published in 2005 by Routledge 270 Madison Avenue New York, NY 10016 www.routledge-ny.com Published in Great Britain by Routledge 2 Park Square Milton Park, Abingdon Oxon OX14 4RN www.routledge.co.uk Copyright © 2005 by Taylor and Francis Books,Inc. Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor and Francis Group. This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2005. “To purchase your own copy of this or any of Taylor & Francis or Routledge’s collection of thousands of eBooks please go to www.eBookstore.tandf.co.uk.” All rights reserved. No part of this book may be printed or utilized in any form or by any electronic, mechanical orother means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or any other information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Burns, Carol, 1954Site matters : design concepts, histories, and strategies/edited by Carol J. Burns and Andrea Kahn. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references andindex. ISBN 0-415-94975-0 (hardback : alk. paper) — ISBN 0-415-94976-9 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. Building sites—Planning. 2. Architecture, Modern—20th century. 3. Architecture, Modern—21st century. I. Kahn, Andrea, 1958- II. Title. NA2540.5.B86 2004 720’.28—dc22 2004012430 ISBN 0-203-99796-4 Master e-book ISBN

Contents

Acknowledgments Why Site Matters Carol J. Burns and Andrea Kahn

v vii1

Around the Corner: A Photo Essay Lucy R. Lippard

1

2

Claiming the Site: Evolving Social–Legal Conceptions of Ownership and Property 19 Harvey M. Jacobs From Place to Site: Negotiating Narrative Complexity Robert A. Beauregard Groundwork Robin Dripps Site Citations: The Grounds of Modern Landscape Architecture Elizabeth Meyer Shifting Sites Kristina Hill Contested Contexts SandyIsenstadt The Suppressed Site: Revealing the Influence of Site on Two Purist Works Wendy Redfield Neighborhoods Apart: Site/Non-Sight and Suburban Apartments Paul Mitchell Hess 39

3

4

59

5

93

6

131

7

157

8

185

9

223

10

Study Areas, Sites, and the Geographic Approach to Public Action 249 Peter Marcuse

11

Defining Urban Sites Andrea Kahn High-PerformanceSites Carol J. Burns

281

12

297

Engaging the Field William Sherman Biographical Information Figure Credits Index

311 315 321 323

Acknowledgments

The realization and the quality of this book depend on the efforts of many people. For generosity in providing funded support to enhance the print quality, we are grateful to the School of Architecture at the University of Virginiaalong with the Office of the Dean, Graduate School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation at Columbia University. Without their assistance the book would not have color illustrations. Many friends and colleagues have informed the process. Even if their words are not contained herein, their ideas affect us. We appreciate the input of Marlon Blackwell and David Beuge, Renee Chow, CarolineConstant, Miriam Gusevich, Chris Reed, Michael Sorkin, and Nigel Thrift. Excellent built work by our contemporaries concerned with siterelated issues has enhanced our thinking. We particularly recognize Ed Blake, Wendell Burnette, Coleman Coker, Roy Decker, Steve Dumez, Frank Harmon, Raymond Huff, Rick Joy, Brian McKay-Lyons, David Salmela, Jennifer Siegal, Kevin Sloan, and Julie Snow. For valuable ideasin conversation and other forms of help along the way, we thank Neil Brenner, Holly Getch Clarke, Julia Czerniak, Hope Hasbrouck, Sandro Marpillero, Eeva-Lisa Pelkonnen, and Anne Spirn. Among the many friends whose writing helped shape ours, we recognize Anita Berrizbeita and Linda Pollak, Elizabeth Gamard, Margaret McAvin, and Ellen Whittemore. We are grateful to Annette Fierro, Nancy...