In Praise of Front Porches, by Karin Chenoweth

Urban planners and architects are agonizing over how to create neighborhoods that have the "feel" of true neighborhoods. All kinds of novel ideas are being introduced: sidewalks, small shops near homes, and narrow, tree-lined streets. In other words, we are beginning to appreciate the town-planning skills of 100 years ago.

But there is one essential element that still is being overlooked by modern designers—the front porch.

Front porches provide the necessary transition from the privacy of indoors to the public scrutiny of yards and sidewalks. Front porches lure people out of their houses and out of their atomized, individual existences, but without requiring formal commitments to public interchange.

A family sitting on a front porch invites the hellos of passersby without the necessity of a lengthy chat. However, such a chat is easy to solicit with the wave of a hand.

I fell in love with my street the first time I saw it, but it took a while for me to recognize exactly why. It was partly that the street itself was narrow, forcing traffic to slow when cars are parked along the side. It was partly the tree-shaded sidewalks. It was partly the small, colorful front gardens, both those that were well-tended and those that were—shall we say—"naturalized." It was partly that a grocery store and other small retail stores were within walking distance and thus encouraged people to walk.

But it was mostly the front porches….(In Praise of Front Porches)