--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: One of our troubles is that we try to…" description: "\"One of our troubles is that we try to make municipalities that are totally different from each other all act as if they were the same kind of creature,..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bfa/jane-jacobs-1991_alike_one-of-our-troubles-is-that-we-try-to-ma_3160634.png" --- # One of our troubles is that we try to make municipalities… ![“One of our troubles is that we try to make municipalities that are totally different from each other all act as if they were the same kind of creature, with the same kinds of possibilities.” quote by Jane Jacobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bfa/jane-jacobs-1991_alike_one-of-our-troubles-is-that-we-try-to-ma_3160634.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bfa/jane-jacobs-1991_alike_one-of-our-troubles-is-that-we-try-to-ma_3160634.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bfa/jane-jacobs-1991_alike_one-of-our-troubles-is-that-we-try-to-ma_3160634.png) > “One of our troubles is that we try to make municipalities that are totally different from each other all act as if they were the same kind of creature, with the same kinds of possibilities.” [Jane Jacobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-jacobs/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Cities are diverse; imposing uniform policies ignores local differences and hampers effective governance. **In simple terms:** Uniform rules ignore local uniqueness. Key Takeaway Tailor policies to local contexts. Themes urban planning diversity governance Mood thoughtful critical Type analytical policy-oriented When to use this quote - city zoning - community projects - public services - neighborhood development Key Concepts social ecology municipal autonomy Questions to Reflect On - How can planners balance consistency with local needs? - What mechanisms support flexible municipal governance? A Different Perspective Uniformity can simplify administration but may stifle innovation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Municipality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/municipality/) [Possibility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/possibility/) ## Related quotes > [Lots of things are not possible for municipalities, suburbs, or collections of them now. 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We need a mayor of Toronto that will work with the municipalities of the Greater Toronto Area.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hazel-mccallion/i-m-very-happy-that-john-tory-won-we-need-a-mayor-of-toronto-that/) [Hazel McCallion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hazel-mccallion/) > [The socially redeeming aspect of golf lies in the vast number of lawyers and bankers and managers who play it, and when you think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrison-keillor/the-socially-redeeming-aspect-of-golf-lies-in-the-vast-number-of/) [Garrison Keillor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrison-keillor/) ## More by Jane Jacobs > [People who try to predict the future by extrapolating in a line of more of what exists - they are always wrong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-jacobs/people-who-try-to-predict-the-future-by-extrapolating-in-a-line-of/) [Jane Jacobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-jacobs/) > [My mother used to say when we were children, 'When a boy gets a stick in his hand, his brains run out the other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-jacobs/my-mother-used-to-say-when-we-were-children-when-a-boy-gets-a-stick/) [Jane Jacobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-jacobs/) > [Design is people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-jacobs/design-is-people/) [Jane Jacobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-jacobs/) > [To approach a city, or even a city neighborhood, as if it were a larger architectural problem, capable of being given order by converting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-jacobs/to-approach-a-city-or-even-a-city-neighborhood-as-if-it-were-a-larger/) [Jane Jacobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-jacobs/) > [Cities need old buildings so badly it is probably impossible for vigorous streets and districts to grow without them… for really new ideas of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-jacobs/cities-need-old-buildings-so-badly-it-is-probably-impossible-for/) [Jane Jacobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-jacobs/) > [The notion that you could discard the old world and now make a new one. 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In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-jacobs/privacy-is-precious-in-cities-it-is-indispensable-perhaps-it-is/) [Jane Jacobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-jacobs/) [Explore all 193 Jane Jacobs quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-jacobs/) ## More Alike quotes > [I'm a humanist at heart: at the end of the day, we are all human beings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chet-faker/i-m-a-humanist-at-heart-at-the-end-of-the-day-we-are-all-human-beings/) [Chet Faker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chet-faker/) > [No state of society or laws can render men so much alike but that education, fortune, and tastes will interpose some differences between them;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-de-tocqueville/no-state-of-society-or-laws-can-render-men-so-much-alike-but-that/) [Alexis de Tocqueville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-de-tocqueville/) > [We all are different. 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