Perhaps Andrew Batay-Csorba should have taken a walk down Melbourne Avenue, where these homes were built, on a summer's evening. The porches are full of people, having dinner, a drink, chatting with their neighbours. To claim that people don't want porches anymore is simply inane.

Unlike many of my neighbours, I like the design of these homes, but they could have profited from public-facing space that is not hidden behind a grid. Porches  are essential for safer, more social neighbourhoods.