Erl, I think the issue is how to design small incremental steps from where urbanisation is/has been providing us with urban residential systems toward where we would like to redesign into and operate. The step need to be significant but achievable and they should lower the cost to the inhabiting residents making them. I designed a revision of the autonomy of a residential block for a large farm development in Gosnells where rather than going into a network of fully serviced blocks as your initial image shows there were service-focussed POS blocks on each street-islanded block that received solar energy from all houses as a community battery, provided EV charge station (shared vehicle,scooters), returned U/G power to homes, received storm water from roof drainage, managed processing for a third pipe scheme to home gardens & a few swimming pools (its WA!), and optionally provide sewage network pumping, and house a community food garden. These sort of systems have existing examples in California but WA builders and developers do not really see them as viable options: they prefer to manage a simple system of individual independent builds relying on LG engineering layouts made before their block starts.
Many thanks Colin for taking an interest and making a comment. The problem has so many elements. Its hard to imagine the circumstances where a developer will want to challenge the orthodoxy. Our overlords the politicians don't want to seize the nettle. Advocacy and leadership is offensive and dangerous.
Your proposal will be seen as impossibly communal. Its thought that we are better off if we are islands to ourselves. But the way we design settlements makes it so.
Erl, I think the issue is how to design small incremental steps from where urbanisation is/has been providing us with urban residential systems toward where we would like to redesign into and operate. The step need to be significant but achievable and they should lower the cost to the inhabiting residents making them. I designed a revision of the autonomy of a residential block for a large farm development in Gosnells where rather than going into a network of fully serviced blocks as your initial image shows there were service-focussed POS blocks on each street-islanded block that received solar energy from all houses as a community battery, provided EV charge station (shared vehicle,scooters), returned U/G power to homes, received storm water from roof drainage, managed processing for a third pipe scheme to home gardens & a few swimming pools (its WA!), and optionally provide sewage network pumping, and house a community food garden. These sort of systems have existing examples in California but WA builders and developers do not really see them as viable options: they prefer to manage a simple system of individual independent builds relying on LG engineering layouts made before their block starts.
Many thanks Colin for taking an interest and making a comment. The problem has so many elements. Its hard to imagine the circumstances where a developer will want to challenge the orthodoxy. Our overlords the politicians don't want to seize the nettle. Advocacy and leadership is offensive and dangerous.
Your proposal will be seen as impossibly communal. Its thought that we are better off if we are islands to ourselves. But the way we design settlements makes it so.
In relation to the expense attached to housing I came across an excellent paper just published in the US that looks at the macro factors involved in the decline in affordability. You can see it here: https://www.economicliberties.us/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/20251014-aelp-capitalcrunch-final.pdf
Vested interests seek monopolistic control as Adam Smith noticed quite some time ago. There is a pecking order.