I was talking this over with a Charlestonian raised mutual of ours who echoes similar sentiments as your own. My question to him is this: is the problem here described merely a complete inability or unwillingness to serve a telos (in this case preservation of the good of the unique local culture), sacrificed upon the altar of “bottom line go up”? Is that how city planning meetings go? Attention and focus on budget and local economic growth with little to none left over for the very soul of the city?
There is no federal or state law preventing a city from implementing simple, common sense measures.
It seems to be that the politicians/preservation societies are pretty taken with modernism because to be anything but modernist would be "anachronistic." This is why the "preservation society" will reject buildings that fit the local architectural fabric in favor of modernist buildings because they think it is somehow dishonest.
Even under the last mayor, the city has generally given into the desires of the business class which is tourism which I've written about before is an extractive industry not value adding. Which well it is modernity these things will exist and some extraction is necessary, but should not be the goal. You can't build self reliant prosperity on extraction.
Awendaw, SC (a small, rural community in the Charleston general area off of US-17 headed towards Myrtle Beach) has enacted relatively strict laws on building new things and has taken efforts (even if YIMBYs take issue with it) to preserve the style of life they have.
As a local government apparatchik of sorts (chairman of a city board), I am keenly aware of the fact that city councils are generally well meaning people who are not full-time staff and are often not given the tools to do things that might preserve a way of life (which doesn't have to exclude people from moving to a locale to be fair).
I was talking this over with a Charlestonian raised mutual of ours who echoes similar sentiments as your own. My question to him is this: is the problem here described merely a complete inability or unwillingness to serve a telos (in this case preservation of the good of the unique local culture), sacrificed upon the altar of “bottom line go up”? Is that how city planning meetings go? Attention and focus on budget and local economic growth with little to none left over for the very soul of the city?
There is no federal or state law preventing a city from implementing simple, common sense measures.
It seems to be that the politicians/preservation societies are pretty taken with modernism because to be anything but modernist would be "anachronistic." This is why the "preservation society" will reject buildings that fit the local architectural fabric in favor of modernist buildings because they think it is somehow dishonest.
Even under the last mayor, the city has generally given into the desires of the business class which is tourism which I've written about before is an extractive industry not value adding. Which well it is modernity these things will exist and some extraction is necessary, but should not be the goal. You can't build self reliant prosperity on extraction.
Awendaw, SC (a small, rural community in the Charleston general area off of US-17 headed towards Myrtle Beach) has enacted relatively strict laws on building new things and has taken efforts (even if YIMBYs take issue with it) to preserve the style of life they have.
As a local government apparatchik of sorts (chairman of a city board), I am keenly aware of the fact that city councils are generally well meaning people who are not full-time staff and are often not given the tools to do things that might preserve a way of life (which doesn't have to exclude people from moving to a locale to be fair).