The European Look -- Rome's fallen souffle!

Over the last year, those who have been in favor of "development" (i.e., high-rise development) have oddly enough repeatedly used the term European to describe their vision. At the same time they have attacked the so-called fallen souffle look of Evanston.
031
Well, either these folks have never been to Europe or they can't think straight. My wife and I are lucky enough to be in Rome this year and recently looked down on the city center from one of the city's several hills. Quickly apparent is that Rome's historic center is a fallen souffle -- not one high rise visible (except for a handful of tall monuments). Rome is no exception in Europe. Paris, London, and practically all European capitals are the same -- low rise city centers that preserve each city's character and historic buildings. So, if we want the European look -- historic, low-rise buildings, with side-walk cafes -- then we need to stop the high-rises or put them on the periphery of the downtown area, so we can continue to build our fallen souffle. For us "progress" means preserving and enhancing what we have and preventing outside developers from reshaping our city.

Peter Sanchez

Forums: