I spy ...scenes from micro-suburbia

Compiled by Linda Carroli & JM John Armstrong

I spy ...scenes from micro-suburbiacompiled by Linda Carroli & JM John Armstrong(cc) 2013

Unless otherwise specified, the content of this pamphlet is licensedunder a Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial-NoDerivative Works 2.5 Australia License.

This pamphlet is produced as part of Enabling Suburbs, under theumbrella of the Fieldworking project. Enabling Suburbs is aninterdisciplinary project exploring suburban futures by drawing onand developing alternative representations as a strategy for enablingchange and diversity.http://enablingsuburbs.wordpress.com

Fieldworking was assisted by the Australian Government throughthe Visual Arts Board of the Australia Council, its arts funding andadvisory body.

Harbinger ConsultantsCreative Sustainability :: Place, People, Product, Partnership,Potential + PollinatePO Box 334, Aspley Qld 4034http://harbingerconsultants.wordpress.com

Author bios

JM John Armstrong has held executive and senior managementroles in higher education, enterprise and government. Prior toestablishing Harbinger Consultants and developing a vibrantconsultancy practice, he worked as the manager of an Indigenousbusiness development hub. He has worked with many organisationsto develop and facilitate strategy, policy and change. An experiencedproject manager and formerly CEO of a creative enterprise incubator,John was a member of the Board of the Queensland IndigenousArts Marketing and Export Agency and the chair of an arts anddisability organisation. He has also participated in governmentinitiatives in placemaking, creative city and urban agriculture. Asa contemporary artist, practicing in the 1970s and 80s, Armstrongtraveled widely and his artwork is held in many public collections.He has represented Australia in international cultural eventsincluding the Sao Paolo Biennale and Paris Biennale.

Linda Carroli has worked across community, urban, organisationaland cultural contexts with a special interest in stakeholderengagement and consultation.The diverse scope of her work hasincluded reporting and analysis, public relations, communityconsultation and engagement, planning and policy, programevaluation, project management, publishing and information/digitalcontent management. She chaired a national art, science andtechnology organisation, the Australian Network for Art andTechnology, and was formerly the editor of an international art,science and technology electronic magazine, fineArt forum. As anaward winning writer, she publishes in a range of media bothnationally and internationally and is also the recipient of a CentenaryMedal for ‘long and distinguished service in the arts’. She hascompleted studies in media, cultural studies,heritage and urbanplanning and design.

ContentsIntroduction

Street stalls & yard salesCarpark concerts & events

Front yardingStreet art & chalking

Street furnitureCreative studiosMarkets & fetes

Informal ‘commoning’‘Hole-in-the-wall’ businesses

Suspended coffeeCommunity garden

Micro-businessStreet parties & gatherings

Treehouses & playLocal flavour

Mobile & roadside vendingOpen house, hidden treasures

Self-organisationSocial space

Feral foodLively streets

GivingNotes & ideas

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I spy ...scenesfrommicro-suburbia

Introduction Linda Carroli & JM John Armstrong

The suburbs can sometimes seem like a sleeping giant, curled uparound the city. It is hard to say which is giving and receiving thecomfort of this embrace. A body of such proportion and strengththat it might strangle that frail centre determined to wall its culturalboundary by any means possible. We live in a middle/outer suburbin the mythic heart of the great Australian dream. In the literaturewe read about city design and planning, the suburbs are a problem;fraught territories. This pamphlet captures scenes from our localityand endeavours to show some of the nuances and subtleties ofsuburban environments. While there has been a blossoming ofengagement with DIY and tactical urbanism, it tends to overlookthe complexity and difficulty of suburbia. Enabling Suburbs was,in part, set up with a view to work with that difference in the makingof place and culture in and of the suburban landscape in ways thatengender sustainability.

We've described our examples as ‘scenes from ‘micro-suburbia’ tomake a point about scale. Suburbia is often described as a massiveand creeping expanse of homogeneity that generates blandness,waste and excess. Big houses, big cars, big consumption, big brands,big blocks of land, big roads, big shopping centres, big boxes, biginfrastructure and so on. While that is true, it is also only one facetof the suburban. The macro-view of ‘suburbia-as-monolith’ makesfor a feeling of placelessness and non-place. Over the years we havebeen living in Brisbane's north, we have observed and documentednumerous micro-views of suburbia that we have, quite simply,appreciated. This, in turn, has engendered small and intimaterelationships with space, place and others. So, in identifying

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micro-suburbia we are saying that the suburbs, like most places,function and dysfunction at varying scales. From our own experienceand our own forays in the suburban field, which we play as a kindof embedded fieldwork, macro-suburbia is failing, while micro-suburbia is flourishing. These moments - the ‘micro’ - give us pauseto consider how suburban systems can be disrupted through simple,productive and localising everyday acts. This pamphlet presentssome of the un/usual and un/expected things we have encountered.These are not merely copies of ‘authentic’ urban phenomenon, butgenuine articulations of the local. This small survey seeks to encouragea closer look at what we have recognised as a kind of ‘everdaycreativity’ (Elizabeth Sanders), ‘enabling city’ (Chiara Camponeschi)or ‘everyday urbanism’ (Margaret Crawford) in suburbia. Werecognise the limits and understand that these examples are notheralding an emergent ‘redirective practice’ (Tony Fry) ofsuburbanism. However, as Fry urges, from a futuring perspectiveit is important to work with what is already at play, to retrofit andredirect.

One morning, drawing on our fieldwork and documentation fromthe Placing Project, we compiled this list of small community drivenlocal innovations and informal activities that have made our suburbanlocality seem more open and vibrant. We have seen, encounteredand participated in these things during our life in Brisbane’s north.Suburban streets can offer gifts and surprises - the generosity ofneighbours, an entrepreneurial spirit and makeshift encounters.Many of the initiatives presented here roll and spill out of homesand businesses into underutilised public or semi-public spaces, likeverges and carparks. Domestic and private spaces become more

porous and open as residents share andparticipate. It is not the kind of activityordinarily attributed to suburbancommunities, though we suspect it hasalways been here in various guises, likecul-de-sac cricket and street parties. Forus, there is a sense of an ‘enabling suburb’emerging from these small invitations,innovations and actions.

This pamphlet is a kind of ‘mattering map’ endeavouring to pinpointmoments of aspiration and participation. Creativity is often regardedas an urban phenomenon thriving on the energy and density ofinner urban life. Subsequently, there can be a distinctly anti-suburbantone in design, planning and academic discourses and practiceswhich perpetuate an outdated view of our suburbs. However, culturaland aesthetic thinking now places value on participation, relationality,improvisation, informality, adhocism, conviviality and the like. Wesee signs of this in suburbia where citizens are finding ways to “do,adapt, make and create” (Elizabeth Sanders). When we bump intofriends while walking to a restaurant, or organise meetings or co-working in a cafe, we jokingly declare “how urban!”. Perhaps thereis a small truth here, as it seems that ‘urbanism’ can be experiencedand practiced in ways not bound to urban form, that confound theurban/suburban divide. The urban can be embedded in the suburban.In these scenes from our own micro-suburbia, we are detecting acreative, generous and productive drive that runs counter to persistentperceptions of a self-absorbed suburbia. It is slowly and minutelyreconfiguring the everyday for people and of place.

it seems that ‘urbanism’ canbe experienced and

practiced in ways not boundto urban form ... the urban

can be embedded in thesuburban.

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Street stalls & yard salesLike garage and yard sales,street stalls, sausage sizzlesand charity stalls invitepassersby and neighbours toparticipate in informalexchange. Such events tendto be about more than sellingoff disused possessions. Theyhybridise private and publicspaces by using the streetand/or yard for social andeconomic exchange.

Carpark concerts & eventsAbove: A footpath stall set up by a child.Left: Yard sale at a suburban op shop.

Suburban centres can be dominated by carparks which are rarely used to capacity andare often left empty during closing hours. Sharing and re-using space can help activatecommunities especially where the empty car parks become dead zones. A communityminded business can change this dynamic. The car park at our local shopping centreis already used for mobile community services such as the blood bank and library. Priorto the anti-hoon campaigns, young people would gather and socialise in that car park,showing off their cars and attitude. Having built a back deck in its car park, a localcoffee shop uses this space for small concerts and acoustic sessions. Hidden from themain road, the space is relaxed with an alternative feel, like a laneway, that enlivenswith the social and cultural interaction. Other uses for this carpark are also beingconsidered, such as a small market or jumble sale.

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Front yarding

Street art & chalking

‘Front yarding’ means using the front yard as an active space e.g. yard sales and foodgrowing. Several homes nearby have established food gardens in their front yards. Thischanges the dynamic of the street as it realises a role of the the front yard as an extensionof living and social space. It can connect people and enable passive street security.Instead of being an empty zone, the front yard is activated and used. Another householdhas installed raised garden beds of vegetables and herbs in their front yard.

This kind of low key social activity is part of the thinking of new urbanism and traditionalneighbourhood design. As residents garden, they are engaged with the street and theneighbourhood. Nearby, another resident has installed a skateboard ramp in his frontyard. It makes for a potentially more sociable, open and safe street that cultivatesneighbourhood relations rather than concealing activity in the back yard.

Small street artworks producedthrough stencilling, stickeringand chalking can personaliseand animate a space or objectthat otherwise lacks character.They can add visual appeal,detail and interest. These imagesare not intended to last and willeventally wear or wash away. Itis also a very accessible form ofcreativity - ranging fromelaborate drawings to haiku tohopscotch to QR codes.

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Street furniture

Creative studio

Many front yards are not fenced and their gardens roll out to landscaped propertylines, which mark the beginning of private property. At the front boundary of one ofthose yards, the home owner has installed a small ‘fairy garden’ populated with smallfigurines as well as a bench and water for dogs. Here, a portion of the front yard isshared and anyone is welcome to use it and enjoy it under the shade of a large streettree. Small children squeal and point as they pass when they spot the small figurinesfixed to the ground – ‘mummy mummy, I saw a fairy’ – and the dogs slurp up thewater on hot summer days. More recently a second bench was installed, abutting thetree on the footpath. This bench is one our favourite street insertions as one of severalthoughtful and kind gestures that endeavour to share and use the space in a community-aware way, recognising too that there is no seat at the nearby bus stop.

Photo: Sophie Munns’ studio, Chermside. Republished with kind persmission of Sophie Munns.http://sophiemunns.blogspot.com.au

There is a secret creative and entrepreneurial undercurrent in the suburbs. Suburbanhouses and yards are often large enough for residents to establish studios, workshopsand other workspaces. We know there are many craftspeople, designers and artistsworking in their suburban homes. At local markets, we meet many creative practitionerswho are reviving domestic crafts like sewing and knitting. Others make jewellery andchildren’s clothing. Others are salvaging and upcycling discarded materials for all kindsof crafted items. While there are many diverse home-based businesses scattered throughsuburban neighbourhoods, there are other creatives too - like architects and fashiondesigners - who also maintain home studios. Recently, we attended the opening of artistSophie Munns’ studio in nearby Chermside where she offered her work for sale and iscontinuing to develop her major project titled ‘Homage to the Seed’.

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Markets & fetes

Informal ‘commoning’

We are regular attendees at localmarkets and fetes. They crop upin unlikely places like the carparkof a nearby hotel and another at alocal high school. Our localmarkets sell fresh seafood, fruitand vegetables, quality handmadegoods and crafts, second handgoods and more. Markets and fetesare a hub of enterprise with manysellers having a relationship withthe locality.

A large road reserve has provided neighbouring residents with an opportunity to developtheir own 'community common'. The land is being used for a range of formal andinformal uses such as play spaces (tree houses and cubby houses), fruit growing,gardening and car parking. In general, it looks like residents treat it like an extensionof their backyard. Proximity of houses, especially backyards, to much of this area providesfor passive surveillance, making it a safe place for many neighbourhood activities. Thereis a small banana tree grove (pictured) as well as a copse of mango trees. The land reservelooks occupied and cared for with local residents obviously playing a part in shapingthe space and its use. An enquiry to the local authority revealed that this ‘commoning’is tolerated rather than permitted. While much land in suburban areas is underutilised,there are few opportunities to bring it into a common use like this.

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‘Hole-in-the-wall’ business

Suspended coffee

Small and ‘hole-in-the-wall’ cafesand bars are spreading, even in thesuburbs, as customers are lookingfor intimate and interesting placesclose to home. Destinations don'tneed to be big or flashy. At Sandgatea ‘hole-in-the-wall’ coffee shop usesits shop space for bean roastingwhile customers sit on stools on thefootpath while a new small barencourages small talk.

Many suburban coffee shops are now selling ‘suspended coffees’. The principle of‘suspended coffee’ is simple and the Suspended Coffee website describes it as “Someonegoes into a cafe, bakery, restaurant and pre-purchases a coffee or food. This is then a‘suspended coffee’. Someone in need can then go into the business and ask if they haveany suspended coffees.” However, anyone can go to a participating coffee shop and askfor a suspended coffee. The process is based on generosity and ‘paying it forward’rather than asserting a stereotype of the ‘deserving poor’. Our local coffee shop, Cupfrom Above, was one of the first to offer suspended coffees and many of the coffee shopswe visit now do so. Like supporting charity stalls and community fetes, buying asuspended coffee is part of the ‘gift economy’ in which goods and services are givenwithout any expectation of reward or gain.More information at http://www.suspendedcoffee.com.au

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Community gardens & recyclingAs part of a masterplanned community in Fitzgibbon, a community garden has beenestablished, planted with fruit, vegetables and herbs. The project has attracted muchinterest and support from locals who, having received start up support from the StateGovernment, are seeking additional funds to maintain the project. The special schoolalso runs a community garden, cafe and recycling centre, which is apparently the world’slargest school-based recycling centre. Like many social enterprise initiatives these projectsaims to bring people together to learn, develop new skills and connect. These initiativesencourage engagement with sustainable food systems, healthy living and nutrition.

Micro-businessResidents also turn their love ofgardening into micro-businessesby selling their propagated plantsfrom their yard. These home basednurseries sometimes sell at marketsat lower prices than garden centres.Home growers have muchexperience of local growing andplanting conditions, often offeringadvice. Bromeliads and orchidstend to be local favourites, attractingmany appreciative buyers.

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Treehouses & play

Street parties & gatheringsStreet parties and similar socialevents can build a sense ofcommunity. Street parties requiresome planning and coordinationincluding permission from thelocal authority to close the street.They encourage people to meetand can help build trust,friendships and social capital inneighbourhoods.

Trees hold a particular appeal for children. Not only for building treehouses but alsofor climbing and suspending swings. A few years ago a battle raged in nearby Newmarketabout a treehouse that was torn down by the local authority. The treehouse was usedas a meeting place for residents in the street, with birthday parties and other localgatherings held there, as well as many informal play sessions. According to a newsstory, eight boys from six families spent many hours building it, scavenging buildingmaterials and tools to construct four platforms. Local dads supervised, intervening toensure the safety of the structure. We’ve noted that treehouses and swings can be foundin bushland, parks and other open spaces, including tyre swings suspended over thecreek. Such play spaces are a kind of commoning and give children a claim to publicspace and allow them to get dirty as well as exercise their creativity and problem solvingskills.

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Local flavourIn the shadow of the big franchisesthat dominate local centres, newservice and hospitality businessescreate a different kind of localeconomy and vibe. Ethnic food andspice stores and restaurants -Indian smorgasbord, traditionalThai, Japanese noodle house - thatinvite locals to experience ourcultural diversity. Coffee shops anda traditional bakery also addambience, while a tattoo parlouradds colour.

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Mobile & roadside vendingLike the seasonal mango and cherry seller, the ‘fisho’ at the ‘servo’ is almost an institutionin the suburbs. While regarded as a sign of suburban blight, service stations also providespace to independent sellers who offer seasonal produce, seafood and flowers at low pricesoff the back of a truck. The excess space in service stations can be used temporarily andopportunistically. Further north, a pie seller parked his distinctive 1927 Chevy truck onan access road, where it did a roaring trade and attracted other vendors sellingcomplementary goods like hot beverages and fruit unless roadworks forced closure. Atpeak times like Mothers’ Day and St Valentine’s Day, flower sellers line the roads withbeautiful displays of seasonal floral arrangements.

Note: These sellers are licensed.

Self-organisationAs the day ends and cools, the residents of a quiet shady street step out of their homesto meet and greet each other. It looks like a relaxed experience, where residents canmix and build friendships. As they walk along the street or sit on fences, they sharestories and laugh. We’ve wondered how this practice started as it seems more liketradition than habit. While this ability and willingness to self-organise seems intuitiveand flexible, it requires some energy and passion on the part of residents. It remindsus that ‘doing something’ or participating in something - a reading group, seed saving,craft circle, swap meet, catchment group, walking or cycling group - can bring manybenefits. Social media has a role to play here too because the nature of the suburbanform can hinder connections with others - self-organising, social media, broadbandand wi-fi access can mesh to enhance openness and neighbourliness.

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Open house, hidden treasuresWhat could happen if we opened our homes more regularly to show off our eccentricitiesor uniqueness? The residents of one home kindly decided to share their collections ofvintage and retro treasures with their social networks. Via facebook, they extended aninvitation to join an afternoon of chatting and appreciating the collection of ‘hiddentreasures’. The afternoon was relaxed and enjoyable, presenting an opportunity toinformally socialise and share stories about collecting and collectables. Beautiful andquirky objects were carefully curated and clustered; apparently with help from localchildren. Aprons lined the verandah, with tablecloths and tea towels hanging on thewashing line, fluttering in the breeze. The Australiana motifs provide insight into ourhistory of domestic design. This event presented a different view of suburban creativity:highly personal, individual, domestic and eclectic. With another ‘hidden treasure’ openhouse scheduled elsewhere, the host entreats others to follow suit.

Social spaceSuburban estates are rarely surprising or extraordinary place. They tend to face awayfrom main streets, with one entrance leading into a network of cul-de-sacs. In one suchhousing estate, a circle of cut logs has been arranged under a street tree. These logs arejust high enough to sit on and provide a social or resting place on a quiet street. Theyinvite passersby and neighbours to gather in the shade, perhaps with a cup of tea orfreshly baked scones in hand, to socialise. It offers respite to the elderly and childrenwho might need to rest. Like other forms of improvised street furniture, it extends aninvitation and desire for connection.

Feral foodFeral food, especially fruit trees,grows in or overhangs publicspaces and can be picked byanyone. Mango trees and LillyPillys can be prolific. Other foodplants, including bush tucker andthe odd corn stalk sprouting inthe gutter, can also be found bythe keen gatherer. Cook andpreserve this produce - Lilly PillyJam, Lilly Pilly Jelly, Mango Pickleand Mango Chutney.

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Lively streetsWhen local traders band togetheror take initiative, streets can comealive with new social, commericaland creative opportunities. On thefootpath outside a row of smallshops in a suburban centre, a cafeoperator offers a workshop witha papermaker and a meal. Thatsame group of businesses alsowork together to present micro-markets featuring local makersand growers.

GivingGiving and gifting can be easy.Baskets of lemons and other homeproduce, unwanted furniture andhousehold goods, and otherdisused items are often presentedon the footpath with signs like‘please take’ or ‘free’. There is noexpectation of return or reward.However, it would a moremeaingful gesture of generosity tooffer these items when fresh or ingood condition.

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Notes & ideasHow can I make my suburb ...

more interesting?

more sociable?

more creative?

more local?

more open?

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Enabling Suburbshttp://enablingsuburbs.wordpress.com