Sprawl Solutions Book Selections
go to: Roots of Sprawl Book Selections
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Most of the books listed here can be ordered through independent booksellers. Support this effort by clicking on the logo and searching for titles you may be interested in.
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A Better Place to Live: Reshaping the American Suburb
by Philip Langdon
University of Massachusetts Press, 1994
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Publisher's Summary
"What is it about modern American suburbs that has led to so much dissatisfaction? How has the typical suburban design of the past fifty years exacerbated the stress of daily life, and what better alternatives can be found? With these questions in mind, Philip Langdon crisscrossed the country to see how suburbs are being built and to interview designers, developers, planners, and residents. The first results of his research were published in a 1988 cover story in the Atlantic. Since then, he has broadened his analysis to create this well-illustrated and highly readable book. ... Without ignoring the obstacles to change, Langdon shows how suburbs could be designed much differently than they are today -- with networks of walkable streets, neighborhood stores and gathering places, compact town centers, and more varied and affordable housing."
From the Editor of the PlannersWeb: Philip Langdon's article "New Development, Traditional Patterns," published in the Fall 1999 issue of the Planning Commissioners Journal, condenses several of the key points covered in his book (to read exerpts; also can be ordered and downloaded online).
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Challenging Sprawl: Organizational Responses to a National Problem
Edited by Constance Beaumont
National Trust for Historic Preservation, 1999
For details and ordering information call the National Trust for Historic Preservation at 202-588-6296.
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Publisher's Summary
"This 112 page report features speeches, essays, and articles on the issue of unmanaged development by the heads of national, state, and regional organizations, business executives, religious leaders, academics, and local, state, and federal officials."
From the Editor of the PlannersWeb: Constance Beaumont's article, "Coping With Superstores," was published in the Winter 1995 issue of the Planning Commissioners Journal (read excerpts from article; article can also be ordered & downloaded online).
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Publisher's Summary
"What forces affect the physical form of growth in small towns and rural communities? What can be done to protect and continue a traditional settlement pattern? Above and Beyond answers these questions by comparing contemporary and traditional development patterns in the state of Vermont. It uses these comparisions to demonstrate how today's primary way of developing land -- suburban sprawl -- is forever changing the look of rural America. Using a host of aerial photographs -- many altered through computer simulation to illustrate how landscapes are transformed over time -- Above and Beyond argues for a return to traditional development patterns that produce more compact cities and towns."
From the Editor of the PlannersWeb: This is the best planning-related book I have read in the past year. It includes outstanding illustrations, and insightful observations. Especially valuable for those living in small cities and towns interested in better understanding and visualizing how sprawl occurs. There's an especially good chapter on dealing with cars and parking -- one of the key issues local planners face. Don't let the fact that the book focuses on Vermont communities fool you; it has applicability to cities and towns nationwide. Authors Julie Campoli and Elizabeth Humstone have also prepared an excellent article on Roadway Access Management for the Planning Commissioners Journal. [6/14/02]
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Smart Growth: Form and Consequences
by Edited by Terry S. Szold & Armando Carbonell
Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, 2002
For details and ordering information, go to the Lincoln Institutes's web site; or call , 800-526-3873.
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Publisher's Summary
"Whether one sees smart growth as a slogan, a catch phrase, a call to the barricades or perhaps even the battle flag waved by the enemy, it raises questions that we need to answer:
Have the most important lessons from past development practices been fully absorbed and learned?
In striving to advance alternatives to low-density, haphazard forms of development, are there viable models?
Have practical, ethical, and distribution considerations been appropriately brought to bear on proposed smart growth interventions?
Are the components of what we call smart growth constitutionally permissible?
What consequences may unfold to affect various stakeholders and constituencies?
The chapters in this book are adapted from the presentations at [a symposium in March 2000] that brought together academics, planning and design practicioners and citizen planners."
From the Editor of the PlannersWeb: This is an excellent grouping of essays and short articles. The authors and editors are to be commended for clear and understandable writing. The topics covered are fascinating. You'll find a look back at the historical patterns of suburban development by Dolores Hayden ("What is Suburbia") which opened my eyes to the complexity of suburban development and the fact that it has varied considerably over time. As the author notes: "Suburbia is where most Americans now live. It is the dominant U.S. cultural landscape, combining cherished natural and built environments ... Understanding how existing suburbs have been organized, financed, designed, constructed, marketed and inhabited is central to calculating the prospects for ending sprawl."
Among some of the other fine articles in this 200 page publication: William Mitchell's look at the possible consequences of digital telecommunications (including the Internet and the Web) on development patterns; Arthur Nelson's analysis of just what "smart growth" means (including his criteria for evaluating whether policies and projects promote smart growth); Eran Ben-Joseph's look at the enormous impact that street ROW standards have on the shape of our communities; and two good summaries of legal issues raised by smart growth policies.
The bottom line: this is a terrific collection of short articles, of value both to those familiar with sprawl and "smart growth," and to those relatively new to these topics.
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Once There Were Greenfields: How Urban Sprawl is Undermining America's Environment, Economy and Social Fabric
by F. Kaid Benfield, Matthew D. Raimi, Donald D.T. Chen
Natural Resources Defense Council & Surface Transportation Policy Project, 1999
For details and ordering information, go to the NRDC's web site; or call NRDC Publications Department, 212-727-4486; or e-mail: ereyes@nrdc.org
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Publisher's Summary
"This book meticulously documents the consequences of sprawling growth patterns and proposes guiding principles for a new kind of 'smart' growth that combines economic progress with environmental protection and social goals."
From the Editor of the PlannersWeb: This 215 page publication includes excellent material, especially in terms of summarizing research findings on the various impacts of sprawl (in particular, fiscal, environmental, and transportation-related impacts). Information sources are documented and amply footnoted. It's not a glossy publication, but it should be quite helpful for those of you who need solid information in arguing why combatting sprawl is important.
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Suburban Nation: The Rise of Sprawl and the Decline of the American Dream
by Andres Duany, Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk, & Jeff Speck
North Point Press 2000
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Publisher's Summary
"This book is a lively critical lament, and an entertaining lesson on the distinctions between postwar suburbia -- characterized by housing clusters, strip shopping centers, office parks, and parking lots -- and the traditional neighborhoods that were built as a matter of course until mid-century. it indicts the design and development industries for the fact that America no longer builds towns. Most important, though, it is a book that also offers us solutions.
Founders of the Congress for the New Urbanism, Andres Duany and Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk are at the forefront of this movement, and in Suburban Nation they assess sprawl's costs to society."
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Changing Places: Rebuilding Community in the Age of Sprawl
by Richard Moe & Carter Wilkie
National Trust for Historic Preservation
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Publisher's Summary
"In Changing Places, Richard Moe [President of the National Trust] and Carter Wilkie explore how America's historic communities are confronting sprawl: fragile towns throughout New England and the Midwest are defending themselves from corporate giants like Wal-Mart stores; community activists are building pride and hope in distressed neighborhoods in Pittsburgh and New Orleans by using preservation as a tool for revitalization; and, in the same way, cities such as Denver, Memphis, and Portland, Oregon, are breathing life back into their historic downtowns."
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City Comforts: How to Build an Urban Village
by David Sucher
City Comforts Press, 1995
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Publisher's Summary
"The book shows examples of small things -- city comforts -- that make urban life pleasant: places where people can meet, methods to tame cars and to make buildings good neighbors, art that infuses personality into locations and makes them into places. Many of these small details are so obvious as to be invisible. Sucher draws on this experiences in Seattle as an award-winning real estate developer, urban planner, and Seattle Planning Commissioner to fashion a hands-on practical approach which shows (not just tells) with pictures and clear, direct language."
From the Editor of the PlannersWeb: Those interested in Sucher's book might also want to take a look at Ray Oldenburg's article, "Our Vanishing "Third Places", published in the Winter 1997 issue of the Planning Commissioners Journal (to read excerpts; article can also be ordered and downloaded online).
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Conservation Design for Subdivisions: A Practical Guide to Creating Open Space Networks
by Randall Arendt
Island Press, 1996
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Publisher's Summary
"This book presents a simple, practical step-by-step approach to designing subdivisions around the central principle of conserving open space, and shows how communities can adopt new standards in their plans and ordinances to ensure that future developments follow these design principles in a way that will ultimately produce an interconnected network of conservations lands."
From the Editor of the PlannersWeb: Arendt has also authored "Growing Greener: Conservation Subdivision Design" in the Winter 1999 issue of the Planning Commissioners Journal (to read excerpts; article can also be ordered and downloaded online), and "Open Space" Zoning: What It Is & Why It Works, from the July/August 1992 issue of the Planning Commissioners Journal.
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Alternative Techniques for Managing Growth
by Irving Schiffman
University of California, Institute of Governmental Studies, 1999
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Publisher's Summary
"In this uniquely useful book, Irving Schiffman introduces local government officials, planning commissioners, students, scholars, and interested citizens to a wide range of alternative techniques available to implement community planning objectives. Many are new; some have been in use for years. All are presented in a clear, comprehensive fashion."
From the Editor of the PlannersWeb: The book offers an excellent overview of thirty techniques, including ones such as cluster development; fiscal impact analysis; performance zoning; urban growth boundaries; agricultural buffers; and conditional zoning. For each technique, Schiffman includes a definition; an explanation of how it works; potential benefits; limitations; experience with the technique; and references to articles providing additional information.
Schiffman, who teaches at California State University, Chico, has also authored The Property Rights Challenge: What's A Planner To Do? (read excerpts; article can also be ordered & downloaded online) in the Winter 1996 issue of the Planning Commissioners Journal. He is a member of the Journal's editorial advisory board.
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Better NOT Bigger
by Eben Fodor
New Society Publishers 1998
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Publisher's Summary
"If you have had enough of endless growth, and want to do something about it, then Better NOT Bigger: How to Take Control of Urban Growth and Improve Your Community is the resource you've been searching for. Exploding the myth that growth is good for us, this book clearly and convincingly shows how urban growth can, in fact, leave our communities permanently scarred, and saddled with very high costs. Lively, accessible, and packed with insights, ideas, tools, and resources, Better NOT Bigger is for both the professional planner and the ordinary citizen."
From the Editor of the PlannersWeb: Fodor has also authored "Bringing Sprawl to a Crawl" in the Winter 2000 issue of the Planning Commissioners Journal (to read excerpts; article can also be ordered and downloaded online), and "The Three Myths of Growth" in PCJ #21, Winter 1996
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Inside Game, Outside Game: Winning Strategies for Saving Urban America
by David Rusk
Brookings Institution Press, March 1999
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Publisher's Summary
"For the past three decades, the federal government has targeted the poorest areas of American cities with a succession of antipoverty initiatives, yet these urban neighborhoods continue to decline. According to David Rusk, focusing on programs aimed at improving inner-city neighborhoods -- playing the "inside game" -- is a losing strategy. Achieving real improvement requires matching the "inside game" with a strong "outside game" of regional strategies to overcome growing fiscal disparities, concentrated poverty, and urban sprawl. State government action, Rusk argues, is particularly critical where regions are highly fragmented by many competing city, village, and township governments. He provides vivid success stories that demonstrate best practices for these regional strategies along with recommendations for building effective regional coalitions."
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Saved by Development: Preserving Environmental Areas, Farmland and Historic Landmarks With Transfer Of Development Rights
by Rick Pruetz
Arje Press, 1999
For information on ordering Saved By Development, contact Arje Press, at: 310-305-3568; email: arje@ibm.net.
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Publisher's Summary
"The book includes case studies of 107 communities that have used TDR to achieve their land use goals. ... Also included is a step by step process for preparing a land use plan that can be implemented by TDR. A separate chapter by attorney Donald Berger reviews legal issues involved with using transfer of development rights."
From the Editor of the PlannersWeb: This is the most comprehensive book available on TDRs. A good summary of key points raised in the book is available in the author's article, "Putting Growth in its Place with Transfer of Development Rights" in Planning Commissioners Journal #31, Summer 1998 (to read excerpts from the article; the article can also be ordered and downloaded online).
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Slam-Dunking Wal-Mart! How You Can Stop Superstore Sprawl in Your Hometown
by Al Norman
Raphel Marketing, November 1999
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Publisher's Summary
"Wal-Mart! is written in two parts. The first part describes why Wal-Mart, Home Depot and their kin are a threat to small community life in America. The second part gives you a game plan to stop Wal-Mart and other big-box retailers in your hometown, much the way Al Norman and other concerned citizens kept Wal-Mart out of author Al Norman's hometown of Greenfield, Massachusetts.
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Publisher's Summary
"State policies can support or undermine efforts of local citizens to preserve communities & fight sprawl. This book lays out a menu of state policy options including:
- state preservation tax incentives
- state transportation policies
- state executive orders directing agencies to locate dowtown
- state funding programs for historic preservation & rural preservation
- property rights issues affecting historic preservaon
- land use planning & other growth management tools
- state education department policies to avoid "school sprawl"
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