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Re:Car-free walkable net-zero neighborhood opens in city of ... by ericbarrett on Sunday August 06, 2023 @04:37PM (#37026409)
This is vaguely laudable, but I can't think of a place in the US less hospitable to outdoor activities than a Phoenix suburb.

At first glance[0], the campus is shiny but severely lacking in shade (except the buildings themselves) and especially trees.

I wish them good luck; they're going to need it.

[0] https://culdesac.com/

Re:Car-free walkable net-zero neighborhood opens in city of ... by NoZebra120vClip on Sunday August 06, 2023 @05:32PM (#37027047)
It appears that they have planted some saplings, which could grow to large, leafy canopy trees, given enough decades.

Keep in mind that this is a brand-new development, and they started by razing derelict SFHs to bare earth. You cannot simply plant fully-grown shade trees.

However, this is already an oasis of shade and civilization in a concrete urban jungle. If anyone exits the property to walk to the post office, or to where they parked their car, they'll find a dearth of shade trees. There are a few Palo Verdes, but the most shade can be found next to a traffic signal, really.

Re:Car-free walkable net-zero neighborhood opens in city of ... by lotsoweiners on Sunday August 06, 2023 @06:13PM (#37027437)
Phoenix suburbs have pretty great weather (in my opinion) for about 6 months of the year and wouldn’t really consider it worse than having to walk around Chicago suburbs in winter. My biggest concern would be: is the grocery store, restaurants, etc that they advertise as onsite guaranteed? Could these businesses go out of business and then not be replaced for a year? That would really kill the appeal of living somewhere like this.
Re:Car-free walkable net-zero neighborhood opens in city of ... by ttymck on Sunday August 06, 2023 @06:36PM (#37027628)
> wouldn’t really consider it worse than having to walk around Chicago suburbs in winter.

I've never understood this. Properly clothed, a cold winter is far more bearable than a hot summer, in my opinion.

Maybe it's just personal preference, but I feel like people have an overreaction/over-aversion to cold, because they associate hot climate with vacation.

Re:Car-free walkable net-zero neighborhood opens in city of ... by flygurl on Sunday August 06, 2023 @09:02PM (#37028698)
If you don’t like being outside in the cold, they are broadly equivalent. These folks aren’t going out in the proper clothes, they are just not going out.
Re:Car-free walkable net-zero neighborhood opens in city of ... by DANmode on Sunday August 06, 2023 @11:59PM (#37029919)
Humidity is the more important, or limiting, factor in most of these conversations.
Re:Car-free walkable net-zero neighborhood opens in city of ... by lotsoweiners on Monday August 07, 2023 @12:40AM (#37030219)
Yeah that is a personal preference and I certainly don't disagree that proper clothing can make cold winter feel much better. Then again, I'll spend 3 hours straight outside in 110+ afternoons in Phoenix working in my backyard and it doesn't bother me too much since I stay hydrated, sunscreened, and may jump in the pool on occasion if necessary. The big difference to me is that warm climates don't have the other non-temperature things that get in the way when you are on foot. I'm talking about snow, icy sidewalks etc.