How people perceive density...

I had a great brunch on Sunday with some of the neighborhood movers and shakers in the H Street neighborhood and one of the things we discussed is my concern about what I call "the tyranny of neighborhood parochialism" and balancing legitimate neighborhood and resident concerns with broader planning objectives.

This photo from the New York Times, from the article "Contemplating the boobs we were" is a great illustration of sometimes how I think the typical DC resident reacts when they hear the word "density" in the context of city and neighborhood planning.

Vincent Lafloret/New York Times. Go to the article link for a full sized version of this photo.

This is an extension of my joke that when people hear the word "entertainment" or "tavern" in the context of neighborhood commercial districts, they think Bourbon Street in New Orleans, rather than the more timid DC experience.

Men party on Bourbon Street during the annual gay Southern Decadence August 30, 3008 in New Orleans, Louisiana. Hurricane Gustav has strengthened into a dangerous Category 4 storm as it heads toward the Gulf Coast. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)

We need to get past these faulty images, and focus on what these terms mean in the DC context. Note that before I visited New Orleans, I provided some phone- and email-based technical assistance to a neighborhood association in the French Quarter, and I didn't fully understand some of their concerns about the city working to expand the areas that Bourbon Street-like pro-baccanialia regulations. (Understanding is relative.)