In some cities, there is less control over the design and construction of new homes and office buildings. People can build in whatever style they like. Do you think the advantages outweigh the disadvantages?

In many cities, individuals and companies are allowed the freedom to design and construct houses and office buildings in the way they want, without too much government intervention. In my opinion, although such a free way of design and construction can meet various needs of individuals and companies, it will easily lead to the disappearance of the local culture and present safety risks. Advantages to imposing no restriction on the way of designing and constructing new buildings are that it improves the quality of life and the profitability of companies. With regard to the former, rather than living in a house built according to the government regulations, those people who possess creativity and expertise in design can make the house more personalized in terms of colours and appearances. In addition, if property developers are allowed to erect an office building freely, they will construct as many floors as possible, which will definitely produce far more profits. However, lack of certain standards of constructing new buildings is detrimental to the protection of the local culture. This is because people in today’s world are significantly influenced by fashion trends on the media, which means that they are likely to build their houses in the way that is recommended by influential designers or websites. As a result, the unique style of local buildings will be endangered and finally become extinct, which is an unfortunate loss of richness and diversity. Worse still, another possible consequence of the free style of building design is the risk that it presents. More specifically, if the government had no control over how a new building is designed and constructed, there would be serious fire risks or the inability for residents to survive a devastating earthquake. This is the reason why so many cities impose a limit on the number of floors of apartment and office buildings.