What to add to Sally’s enthusiasm about Venice?  She correctly points out its great buildings, architecture and art.  But as a real estate professional I must have something to add.  After all, it was my travels and walks in cities (in addition to lots of Lego free play) that led me to my career in real estate. 

Sure we have our cities with water ways in America.  I remember visiting Florida as a kid and seeing subdivisions with canals running throughout.  You could have a boat in a canal in your own backyard!  And that canal led to a river, and that river led to an ocean and…!!  (You can see how a young boy who loves boats would be excited.)  But those subdivision also had roads and the houses had garages.  In Venice, once you enter the island, there are big public garages where you park your car and that’s it – no more roads.  The remainder of your commute is by boat or walking.

All those different boats are fun to watch.  They have devised unique boats for all city functions – buses, deliveries, trash, taxis, and of course their famous tourist gondolas.  Many residents appear to have their own boats tied up on the canals by their house or apartment, just like we would have our cars in our driveways.  The boats tend to be narrow and low so they can pass under the hundreds of pedestrian bridges and pass each other while navigating the narrow channels.  We wondered what the rules of the water were but we never saw an accident or a traffic jam.

ADA lawyers would have a field day in Venice: the older buildings don’t have elevators; you can barely turn around in a bathroom; the paths are unevenly cobbled; and at the end of every block there are steps up and over a canal.  It is a terrible place to be old, in a wheelchair, pushing a stroller or dragging your darned duffel bags to your hotel.  We even watched with amusement as passing individuals tangled their umbrellas on a narrow walk.  Also making any upgrades to buildings is extremely difficult to do.

Venice does have beautiful large public spaces and they are all over the City. The piazzas usually have a church on them, and are ringed with many small neighborhood shops and restaurants with tables and chairs outside, even in winter.  Planners would love the city’s pedestrian orientation.  They also have a nice outside market selling fish and vegetables.  The busier walkways in the tourist areas are lined with small, high end shops.  I have never seen so many small shops; some micro in scale.  We admired their beautiful leather goods, art glass, linens and books but wondered how can all these small stores survive?  Their prices have to be higher.

So how do I rate Venice’s urban planning?  A crazy idea that is both enduring (it has worked for over a thousand years) and endearing.  But living there is hard on nearly everyone but the wealthy and physically fit.  I give it a solid B and look forward to visiting again.

Bob