From Michael Farrugia
I was disappointed to see that while the magazine’s cover art gave a breathtaking image of an eco-friendly metropolis, complete with people-carrying tubes and exciting wind turbines modelled into skyscrapers, the accompanying articles suggest that the only way forward is to abandon the idea of high-rises completely and move to less dense “medium-rise” buildings (17 June, p 36 and 43).
However, high-rise buildings are an extremely efficient way to pack a large number of people into a relatively modest space. Wouldn’t the very nature of medium-rise developments mean that they occupy a much larger area to house the same number of people as high-rise cities do? And wouldn’t this offset any advantages that the novel design would bring?
Living in an island state which is immensely shy of high-rise developments, I see first hand the effects of urban sprawl on a chronically limited supply of land. Instead of demonising compact skyscraper cities, efforts should be directed to designs turning these “people-packers” into the eco-friendly high-rise cities your magnificent cover art portrays.
Paola, Malta
