Agencies such as the planning board, design review board, developer’s office, and homeowners’ association decree the size and shape of your lot, where you can build or expand on it, the size and shape of your building, the look of your building, and what you can use it for. The overall rule is always “Fit in.” It is never “Become interesting.” Some buildings become interesting anyway. What you see on the street is the product of the unending conflict between the organizations inside and outside—buildings pretending to fit in or defying fitting in. Each facade asserts, “Don’t worry; nothing
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