I think having a modern version of this would be kind of cool. Something that’s managed with laws and isn’t a slum. I’d imagine having everything you need in an enclosed space would be appealing to some people.
Also IIRC there's a settlement in Alaska or Canada that's just one apartment building, population of 200-something. Personally I wouldn't be able to live there, with everyone knowing who's sleeping with whom.
Secondly, I don't know how enclosed you want the space, but in many European cities, you get everything you need and most of what you want in a rather short walking distance―instead of having to drive. Plus you get sun and fresh air, as opposed to what was there in Kowloon.
I agree with the 200 person complex, that’s too small. It needs to be something big enough and containing enough people that it feels like a small city, not a small school.
https://www.google.com.au/maps/@22.3080235,114.1927302,348m/...
I take it you never lived in a large college dorm?
I live in one, it's very convenient, and I could probably avoid ever leaving if I wanted to,* but I don't think it bears much similarity to a leaking, lightless slum. And it couldn't while being managed by laws (specifically, building codes).
* I work from home, but there's plenty of employment to be found within the complex too, including a few office buildings.
I guess I had something like that in mind but minus the subway so things are in a smaller radius.
Remember those weird giant buildings from Sim City 2000? Those were arcologies. Other examples would be Peach Trees, the mega-skyscraper setting of Judge Dredd, and the Cairo arcology from Deus Ex 2
The OG Kowloon Walled City became itself because of lawlessness and self-sustaining. With law and regulation in place it’s hard to build anything close to it.
Bonus points if they built in a pneumatic delivery tube system for getting food from the restaurants to any of the homes/offices quickly.
Some of these might need to be ground floor so that they can leverage the foot traffic in the neighborhood, but it might be possible to build the lowest few floors in a mall style around a 3-4 story central atrium so that the retail locations can be visible to anyone who walks in, sort of similar to the Berlin Hauptbahnhof that has pharmacies, food, retail, grocery, et c: all visible when you walk inside.
You'll know you've got it when a particularly indoorsy type could live inside the single structure for months to a year without leaving the building.
The big difference between urban villages in the mainland top-tier cities and Kowloon Walled City is exactly that they are managed with laws. Although these villages are considered by middle class people as sketchy areas full of black society (mainland version of triads), in reality it's mostly just migrant workers trying to make a living. Plus, because mainland China, police (and informants) are everywhere, so it's relatively safe compared to the actual sketchy areas in low-tier cities.
The good things about living in an urban village are that there is very cheap food, the people are very friendly and you can walk downstairs to get everything that you need without having to visit a chain store.
The bad thing is that these areas are seen by the government as a necessary evil, and as soon as the surrounding areas get rich enough, they just clear the whole place out. Like, full on demolition bye bye. Because the vast majority of people living in urban villages are migrant workers, they have very few rights in the city (public schooling, healthcare, housing etc), so evicting them is easy.
If you're interested in this kind of living a great blog to follow is Shenzhen Noted: https://shenzhennoted.com/
Of course, you can also find a similar lifestyle in European cities, where most buildings are walking distance from a fruit shop, a kebab joint, a bakery and a pub. North American condo living is a totally different thing because it's dominated by shopping malls and chain stores. Even the working class towers in North America have fast food chains downstairs. The kind of local/community lifestyle we have here is something i really wish i could transport to the North American cities. It's so much better, imo.
It's a silly click/wait game with no substance to it, but it's sort of fascinating to imagine a real building like that.