Density done kindly

Opposition to density is rarely about numbers. It is about shadow, noise, parking and trust.

Every housing debate arrives dressed as a dispute about dwellings per hectare. Sit through enough of them and the real objections surface: overshadowing at 3pm in winter, headlights sweeping a bedroom, a street that already has nowhere to park.

These are design problems with design answers. Set the massing back where it shadows. Put the driveway where it does not sweep. Trade car parking for a car share fleet and a decent bicycle room.

Answer the actual objection and the number stops being the argument.