Winter City

Winter City or Winter Cities is a concept for communities in northern latitudes that encourages them to plan their transportation systems, buildings, and recreation project around the idea of using their infrastructure during all four seasons, rather than just two seasons (summer and autumn).

Background

The concept was created over a period of years by cities themselves, especially those in Canada, as well as by a group of professional community planners in North America. As a result of preliminary work and study, Winter Cities Association was formed, now called the Liveable Winter Cities Association. For all practical purposes, this group is now defunct, according to a past president of the association. Even when it did have viable membership roles, it was small in numbers and non-profit.

The group's impact, however, should not be under-estimated. In areas where the concept of embracing winter has taken hold, it has made a dramatic impact on the lives of residents, especially in terms of increasing the numbers of tourists and strengthening the economy during what had been a traditional down time. The concept has been responsible for helping many communities see the opportunities that winter offers and helping many residents in the north acknowledge that winter can be an enjoyable time of year and that not everyone need move to warmer climes from November through May. Of course, despite the Winter City movement, millions of people make an annual trek to Non-Winter Cities believing it to more enjoyable because the temperature tends to be higher.

It has often been said that many communities in northern latitudes are living in denial of their northern climate. As evidence, they point to the fact that many northern cities are designed in much the same way that southern/warm-climate cities are designed.

Winter City v Frozen City

The concept is that in the northern latitudes of the northern hemisphere, there are two types of cities: Winter Cities and Frozen Cities

A Winter City is one which has embraced winter in its planning, in its cultural offerings, and in its attitude. Generally speaking, winter offers both challenges and opportunities for northern communities. Those cities that accommodate winter are Winter Cities. Those cities simply tolerate winter and do not accommodate it are Frozen Cities.

Winter Cities are found in the United States, Canada, Scandinavia, as well as other regions where snow and cold predominate during the winter season.

Liveable Winter Cities Association

From the webpage comes the following:

"People living in the 35% of the world that experiences a true winter have a lot in common and there's a lot we can learn from each other: infrastructure, personal well-being, applications of technology, tourism development, etc.

While the association's website makes it appear as if it is still a viable organization, in reality they do not function as a group and haven't published a newsletter or planned an event since 2005.

Features of a Winter City

Winter is often perceived as a negative force that generates inconvenience and added cost, in part due to cities and buildings planned and constructed as if they were in a southern, warmer location. City and town planning, site design, transportation and infrastructure engineering, and architecture can all benefit through the application of "Winter City" design principles that work with nature rather than against it, in order to make winter a positive part of a four-season lifestyle. The goal is to create livability, reduce human discomfort, promote energy efficiency and the economic sustainability of northern places.

External links

* [http://www.wintercities.com/ Liveable Winter Cities web-site]
* [http://www.upea.com/pages/winter.html Web site on Winter Design Issues]