Westerners who are fed up with polluted water and
air, strip malls that eat up open space, and automobile-dependent
lifestyles can look to a new book by the Natural Resources Defense
Council for guidance on how to counter the poorly planned patterns
of growth we now know as urban sprawl.
In a
series of 35 detailed case studies, Solving
Sprawl describes how creative developers and designers
collaborated to plan energy-efficient, close-knit cities and
suburbs. Each study lists the major players involved and the
“smart-growth” features of these communities: vibrant downtown
centers, varied housing and transportation options, and amenities
for people of all social stations.
One example
highlighted in the book is the 19th-century Denver Dry Goods
Building. Once a wreck, the rejuvenated brick building now houses
popular retailers, the Visitors Bureau, affordable apartments, and
posh condominiums.
The opening chapter identifies
a common thread that unites the successful communities celebrated
in the book; they share “a vision of where they want to go and of
what things they value in their community.” Solving
Sprawl reaffirms that with compassion and careful
planning, we can restore both fragmented lands and
people.
Check out Solving
Sprawl online at www.nrdc.org or call 212/727-4486 to
order the 200-page book for $20.
You may also
order the book on-line at
www.islandpress.org/books/detail.tpl?command=search&db=IslandPress.db&SKU=1-893340-33-3.
This article appeared in the print edition of the magazine with the headline A blueprint for better communities.
Republish our articles for free, online or in print, under a Creative Commons license.
