Airbnb ends war with New York, taking initiative in urban planning
Airbnb just make a astounding about-face, as State Assemblywoman Linda B. Rosenthal said in her statement about Airbnb’s decision to drop the lawsuit that it filed against the New York law signed by Governor Andrew M.Cuomo. The settlement in which the new law applies to only hosts and Airbnb will not be fined for the host’s violation takes effect on Monday. This movement is considered as Airbnb’s capitulation to stricter regulations over this online residential rental platform to meet the long-term affordable housing need in the city. Since other cities have watched closely the New York’s case, we can expect their adoption of similar policies and fines on Airbnb’s rentals given this outcome.
While Airbnb continues it global fights with local governments, the company also opens a innovation lab in Japan, called Samara. The lab’s first project is a communal housing project that enable tourists to “soak up the surrounding culture” as well as encourage residents to open their home to visitors. The purpose of this project is revitalizing small town. In Japan, there are a lot of small towns, where most residents are old people since young adults flock to the urban areas seeking a more modern and convenient lifestyle. The money earned from this project will be used to preserve the area’s cultural legacy and future.
This is Airbnb’s initiative in urban planning, in which it hopes to build a more sustainable, livable community while promoting local tourism. Airbnb has stepped out of its online platform and instead of relying on solely the hosts’ resources, it starts making it own assets and contributions to the city’s co-housing community. When this project, once completed, receives positive feedbacks and proves the benefits it brings to the local community, then Airbnb can roll the model out to other cities. Not only the rural areas but also the urban areas can be the potential destinations for this kind of project. Co-housing can reinvigorate urban neighborhoods, thus proposing a new model for urban planning. The members that are on a more vulnerable side of society such as senior, women, and children will be most welcomed in those communal houses since they infuse urban setting with a sense of safety and strong community. This would be an opportunity for Airbnb to defeat people’s perception about the gig economy as a selfish economy.
