Co-operation or Co-presence? The Comforting Ideal of Community in a Master Planned Estate

Abstract

Given the long and well-documented decline in the existence and relevance of place-dependent urban community, we explore the use of an idealised version of community of place in the marketing and implementation of a new suburban master planned estate (MPE) in Australia. In a social policy environment where strong communities of place are idealised, we find residents lack the resources or inclination to devote to the establishment of civic norms or durable social networks within the boundaries of the development and, for the most part, they are content to leave the establishment of the symbols of community to the property developer. It is the idea, rather than the reality, of community that is important, but in order to generate that idea, the developer needs to go to some lengths to create an ‘illusion’, or ‘sense’ of strong local community in the estate through marketing, the creation of nostalgic physical reminders, and selected community interventions such as cyclical events and celebrations. These all play an important role in the establishment of subjective ontological security for residents; to the benefit of both resident and developer.

Keywords:

• Community
• sense of community
• master planned estate
• suburb

Notes

1. ‘Sense of community’ is used in this article in its phenomenological sense, rather than the more rigorous definition first given to the term by McMillan & Chavis (1986), which requires a higher degree of actual social interaction than is implied here.

2. Median house price for Greater Brisbane area in 12 months to March 2007 was $390 000 and for Springfield Lakes $331 500 (Real Estate Institute of Queensland, 2007).

3. This research was conducted as part of a University of Queensland, Australian Research Council Linkage project “Building Sustainable Social Capital in New Communities”, with the industry partner Delfin Lend Lease, the developer of Springfield Lakes.

4. Pseudonyms have been used for resident quotes.