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Start With Place
Urban and physical design is the meeting point of a society’s belief systems, development techniques, and social behavior. That design creates places where legitimate activities and healthy living can take place, or vise versa. CPTED and sustainability practices can have a major impact on urban or suburban communities. Thus, Safe Cascadia begins by looking at the physical places where people live, work and play.
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Unchecked growth can create risks
Contemporary community development, urban design and building practices are dependent on the costs and expenses for building and construction. Demands for energy and financial efficiency can skirt the social needs every healthy community requires. This development process can create dehumanized, and unsafe urban and pedestrian environments. The same risks apply to currently existing neighborhoods in which many of our citizens suffer unsafe, unlivable, and unhealthy conditions.
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A holistic view
Safe Cascadia takes inspiration from newly emerging environmental green development styles and a softer, artistic approach to design where there is an emphasis on a more holistic, systems thinking. It is that more holistic view that guides our approach. It includes a need to see the myriad social, cultural, and environmental relationships between people, places, systems of nature, economic viability, and an awareness of social management, planning and design. We believe the inability to appreciate and manage those
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Balanced Development
We believe that a sensorial and visually appealing, functional and safe building, neighborhood, or street does not mean economic value trumps elimination of aesthetic value of the built environment. We believe social and physical development go hand in hand; with thoughtful and informed planning they can enhance each other.
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The Big Picture
We are mindful also of global trends in environment and culture. Current external factors could potentially play a role in a change in how people relate to the built environment and each other in the near and long term. Climate change may affect our views of water use, heating and cooling costs, and petroleum prices may affect almost all our lifestyle choices. Our communities are going to change in some very different ways regionally and locally in response to these stressors. Safe Cascadia believes we can help lead that change with a holistic view, state-of-the-art practices in sustainable neighborhood safety, community livability, and informed, thoughtful planning.