Conscious Choice: New Urbanism In Depth

April 2001

New Urbanism In Depth

by Brandi Homan

Dig deeper into the ideas and principles that underpin New Urbanism with this book list as your guide. You can also find a wealth of information online. Try Congress for the New Urbanism or go to google.com and search for "New Urbanism."

City and Suburb

The Next American Metropolis: Ecology, Community, and the American Dream, by Peter Calthorpe (Princeton Architectural Press, 1993)
For anyone interested in cities or urban growth, Calthorpe provides alternatives to the methods of city planning in place today. He presents twenty-four specific examples that illustrate his ultimate goal of making cities more resident-friendly. These changes would allow residents to abandon their cars in favor of alternative methods of commuting. Hoping to stunt suburban sprawl, architect Calthorpe advocates building more compact and environmentally-conscious towns in this beautifully illustrated book.

The New Urbanism: Toward an Architecture of Community, by Peter Katz (The McGraw Hill Companies, 1993)
Peter Katz provides a complete overview of the New Urbanism movement by drawing on the work of the movement’s most influential people, including Andres Duany, Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk, and Peter Calthorpe. New Urbanism’s focus on community functionality is achieved by placing priority on public places, by increasing transportation options, and by combining housing, shops, and workplaces in the same areas. In The New Urbanism, Katz explores as support several communities in which the principles of New Urbanism have been implemented. These case studies and a precise definition of New Urbanism make The New Urbanism an invaluable resource to its readers.

The Regional City: New Urbanism and the End of Sprawl, by Peter Calthorpe and Bill Fulton (Island Press, 2001)
The Regional City highlights the fact that most Americans are no longer living in isolated communities. Our towns have blended into communities not defined by specific boundaries. They are instead joint combinations of cities and suburbs that together function as loci of economic and civic responsibility — a function that used to belong to specific towns. Calthorpe and Fulton delineate how more communities can take advantage of the combined resources of these new "regional cities." They describe the policies and design principles needed to construct more of these cities, and provide examples of successful regional communities.

Suburban Nation: The Rise of Sprawl and the Decline of the American Dream, by Andres Duany, Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk, and Jeff Speck (North Point Press, 2001)
This book is a blatant call for action. By focusing on the segregation implicit within the suburbs, the authors propose that urban planners simply return to the basic principles of civic design in efforts to stop suburban sprawl. Incorporating these forgotten principles would result in "mixed-used, pedestrian-friendly" communities, where all types of people live, work, and play in the same area. The authors discuss the detrimental effects of life in suburbia on the American psyche, using numerous examples to support the argument, and the result is a compelling argument for designing new, efficient neighborhoods.

Changing Places: Rebuilding Community in the Age of Sprawl, by Richard Moe and Carter Wilkie (Holt, Henry, and Company, 1999)
Local downtown areas and city centers are precious, according to authors Moe and Wilkie. Moe, president of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, and ex-White House speechwriter Wilkie argue that priority needs to be placed on preserving these centers as a method of community revitalization. They assert that there are numerous causes for the degradation of these areas, including white flight, business relocation, and the work of urban planner Robert Moses, who is well-known for his automobile-friendly designs.

City Comforts: How to Build an Urban Village, by David Sucher and Kevin Kane (City Comforts Press, 1994)
Sucher and Kane look at urban planning from a different angle — the citizen’s. In this reader-friendly book, the authors explore practical ways to make life in the city more comfortable for everyday people. The book covers issues like meeting others, making sense of the confusion of cities, safety, transportation, and children in cities. City Comforts still covers basic architectural ideas, however, and has been called "an ideal reference for neighborhood planners, architects, and urban designers."

Sustainability and Cities: Overcoming Automobile Dependence, by Peter Newman and Jeffrey Kenworthy (Island Press, 1999)
The interrelation between automobiles and sustainability is presented in depth in Sustainability and Cities. The only way for American cities to practice sustainability is to reduce dependence on automobiles for transportation, according to Newman and Kenworthy. People value their cars, however, and make a big fuss whenever restrictions are placed on any aspect of the independence that accompanies owning a car. This may be changing, due to the increasing importance of sustainability. People are starting to realize the necessity of protecting the environment, which may allow lawmakers to regulate automobile use more easily.

The Death and Life of Great American Cities, by Jane Jacobs (Vintage Books, 1993)
Although it was published in 1961, Jacobs’ work is no less relevant today. This direct critique of urban planning was written by a non-expert and Jacobs was highly criticized for this reason. However, her work still stands as one of the earliest exposés of the relationship between the projected results of city planning and the actual results. Jacobs cites the fallacy of bureaucratic expertise as one of the main reasons for the negative impact of the supposedly beneficial urban designs at that time. The Death and Life of Great American Cities has been, and will continue to be, a highly influential text.

Housing

How Buildings Learn: What Happens After They’re Built, by Stewart Brand (Viking Penguin, 1995)
Brand, founder of The Whole Earth Catalog and CoEvolution Quarterly, developed this book out of a university course that he taught. How Buildings Learn explores the notion that buildings are best utilized when they’re constantly readapted to their tenants’ needs. By examining the different layers of buildings (their sites, structures, space plans, etc.), Brand provides a plan for capitalizing on the "forever metamorphic" qualities of structures, despite possible hindrances. How Buildings Learn, while being easily accessible, is well-researched, well-photographed, and highly entertaining.

The Not So Big House: A Blueprint for the Way We Really Live, by Sarah Susanka and Kira Obolensky (Taunton Press, 1998)
The old debate over quantity versus quality is at play in The Not So Big House. The authors provide tips for making smaller houses express the personality of the occupants, focusing on the quality of the house instead of its size. Not so big houses aren’t defined by a specific square footage limit. They are simply not as big as what could or would have been built without these principles. The book offers ideas on such topics as creativity, budgeting, specific needs for specific families, and houses of the future. Photographs and floor plans are provided to illustrate ways of making homes as comfortable and efficient as they can be.

Creating the Not So Big House: Insights and Ideas for the New American Home, by Sarah Susanka and Grey Crawford (Taunton Press, 2000)
Continuing the principles outlined in The Not So Big House, this followup profiles twenty-five distinct house designs that offer solutions for making smaller spaces feel more spacious. The ideas suggested here are transferable to all types of homes, in all types of climates, for all types of families. Susanka proposes that homes be more personal, and offers tips toward that end. For example, those building new homes should consider eliminating formal, seldom-used spaces and use the money instead for decorative touches that will make the home feel more personal. This point of view emphasizes the pleasure received from the house by the occupants. Building not so big doesn’t necessarily reduce the construction budget; it makes available more dollars per square foot that can be spent on those personal touches.

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