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Image credit: Mia Lehrer + Associates, Civitas, Inc., Wenk
Associates, Tetra Tech, Inc. Copyright City of Los Angeles, Los
Angeles River Revitalization Master Plan (2007)
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Urban development should be guided by a comprehensive planning and management vision that includes interconnected green space, a multi-modal transportation system, and mixed-use development. Diverse public and private partnerships should be used to create livable communities that protect historic, cultural, and environmental resources. In addition, policymakers, regulators and developers should support sustainable site planning and construction techniques that reduce pollution and create a balance between built and natural systems.
Other Resource Guides in this Series:
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Sustainable Residential Design Resource Guides:
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U.S. Organizations
Center for Sustainable Urban Development, The Earth Institute, Columbia University
Institute for Sustainable Cities, CUNYSmarter Cities, Natural Resources Defense CouncilSustainable CitiesSustainable Cities CollectiveUSC Center for Sustainable CitiesInternational Organizations UN-Habitat, Sustainable Urban Development Network World Bank: Ecological Cities as Economic Cities (Eco2Cities)
Sustainable Urban Development Plans
"Building a Better City," City of Vancouver Sustainability Plan
"Leading to a Greener London: An Environmental Program for the Capitol." Greater London Authority, July 2009
PlaNYC 2030, New York City Government
Research
“Green Cities," Living Cities, 2009
“Smart Growth Policies: An Evaluation of Programs and Outcomes,” Land Policy Institute of Michigan State University, Mary 2009
“Improving Informal Settlements: Ideas from Latin America,” John Beardsley and Christian Werthmann, Harvard Design Magazine, Harvard Design Magazine, Spring/Summer 2008
“Sustainable Urban Development in the U.S.,” Dr. Marc A. Weiss, Global Urban Development, December 2007
Fighting Sprawl
Development patterns that result in sprawl are not in the long-term interest of cities, small towns, rural communities, and agricultural lands. As communities plan for growth and change, in-fill and redevelopment should utilize existing infrastructure. Public agencies should promote and facilitate processes for remediation of urban sites to relieve pressure to develop at the urban fringe. Plans should identify open lands that can be sustainably developed if the need for growth cannot be met by in-fill and redevelopment.
The application of land-use based zoning, real-estate tax laws, and highway design regulations, has created automobile-dominated sprawl conditions where cars are required for almost all activities, leading to ever-increasing congestion and longer commute times. Decentralized suburban or exurban expansion has created developments with no sense of place, which consume exorbitant amounts of land, necessitating huge infrastructure commitments, and often contribute to the deterioration of urban centers.
Alternative planning initiatives argue for responsible growth and development strategies that are broader in vision and more regional in scale. There are a range of sustainable growth strategies. For instance, urban in-fill, suburban redevelopment, and open-land development can all lead to more diverse housing styles and multi-modal transit. As there is no such thing as a “one-size-fits-all” solution for every community, appropriate principles must be developed for each. Responsible and innovative development strategies at the federal, state and local levels are needed to guide private development.
Organizations
Active Living by Design
Embarq, Center for Sustainable Transport, World Resources Institue: Urban Sprawl
Natural Resources Defense Council: Smart Growth Resources
Smart Growth Online
Smart Growth America
Research
"Retrofitting Suburbia: Urban Design Solutions for Redesigning Suburbs," Ellen Dunham-Jones and June Williamson, Wiley & Sons, 2008
"Retrofitting Suburbs: Instant Cities, Instant Architecture, and Incremental Metropolitanism," Ellen Dunham-Jones and June Williamson, Harvard Design Review, Spring/Summer 2008
"Energy Benefits of Urban Infill, Brownfields, and Sustainable Urban Redevelopment," Evans Paull, Northeast-Midwest Institute, April 2008
Sustainable Zoning
The replacement of conventional zoning codes that control land use with those that control physical form can benefit growth and development. Implementing form-based codes can result in communities that fit their place and time, have a mix of uses that are appropriately scaled, enjoy pedestrian friendly well-defined public realms, and are generally more sustainable.
Research
Creating a Regulatory Footprint for Healthy Community Design, Smart Growth Network
Growing Smart, American Planning Association
“Positive Development: From Vicious Circles to Virtuous Cycles Through Built Environment Design.” Janis Birkeland. Earthscan Publications, 2008
"Saving the World through Zoning," Chris Duerksen, American Planning Association, January 2008
Smart Growth Codes, American Planning Association
Reusing Brownfields
The redevelopment of “brownfield” sites enables communities to reuse abandoned areas that are often located in urban centers with existing infrastructure. Communities should take advantage of programs which focus on facilitating the cleanup and reuse of these areas by awarding grants, capitalizing loan funds, providing technical assistance and training, and absolving innocent prospective and contiguous landowners of liability.
Research
Creating Community-based Brownfield Redevelopment Strategies, American Planning Association
“The Cleanup War Chest: State Bond Financing for Environmental Initiatives and Brownfields Redevelopment,” Greg Lewis, Northeast-Midwest Institute, March 2009
“Potential Application of Renewable Energy on Brownfield Sites: A Case Study of Michigan,” Soji Adelaja, Judy Shaw, Wayne Beyea, and Charles McKeown, Land Policy Institute, January 2009
Projects
Charleston Waterfront Park, Sasaki Associates, Inc.
ChonGae Canal Source Park: Sunken Stone Garden, Mikyoung Kim Design
Port Lands Estuary: Reinventing the Don River as an Agent of Urbanism, Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates, Inc.
Los Angeles River Revitalization Master Plan, Los Angeles, Mia Lehrer + Associates/ Civitas, Inc./ Wenk Associates, Los Angeles, CA
Investing in Downtowns
Encouraging businesses, non-profits, governments, and cultural institutions to locate their offices and other facilities within the urban core as opposed to suburban or fringe locations can support sustainable urban development. Moving to an urban core can help support urban core revitalization efforts, and attract and retain businesses and services. Often, tax credits or other incentives are needed to encourage the preservation or rehabilitation of historic properties or green spaces within the urban core.
Research
Downtown Revitalization Resources, USDA
Projects
Buffalo Bayou Promenade, Houston, Texas, SWA Group
Penn Connects: A Vision for the Future, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Sasaki Associates
Spadina Wavedeck, Toronto, West 8 and DTAH and Ht0, Toronto, Janet Rosenberg + Associates, Claude Cormier Architects, and Hariri Pontarini Architects
Open Spaces
Communities should take advantage of government and private initiatives, such as conservation districts and open land trusts, to preserve open space. Open space can help curb scattered development, protect watersheds and natural habitat, maintain historic and cultural assets, and provide diverse recreational opportunities.
Emphasis should be placed upon the creation of a diverse mix of uses and housing options within communities, such as an infill redevelopment, or new development within open-lands. New offerings should provide a variety of commercial, institutional, educational uses as well as housing styles, sizes and prices. The provision of sidewalks, trails, and private streets, connected to transit stops and an interconnected street network within these mixed use developments provides mobility options and helps reduce pollution by reducing vehicle trips. Walking, bicycling, and other mobility options should be encouraged throughout the urban mixed-use core and mixed-use neighborhoods with easily accessed and well-defined centers and edges.
Organizations
Developing an Open Space Strategy, Sustainable Cities, UK
National Recreation and Park Association
Project for Public Spaces
The Trust for Public Land
Research
“On Common Ground,” National Association of Realtors, 2009
“How Much Value Does the City of Philadelphia Receive from its Park and Recreation System?” The Trust for Public Land’s Center for City Park Excellence, June 2008
“The Cognitive Benefits of Interacting with Nature,” Marc G. Berman, John Jonides, and Stephen Kaplan, University of Michigan, 2008
“Green Visions Plan for 21st Century Southern California. 14. Park and Open Space Resources in the Green Visions Plan Area,” University of Southern California GIS Research Laboratory and Center for Sustainable Cities, Los Angeles, California, 2007
Projects
The Lurie Garden, Millennium Park, Chicago, Gustafson Guthrie Nichol Ltd
Orange County Great Park Comprehensive Master Plan, “A Vision of the Great Park for the 21st Century,” Ken Smith Workshop West and Mia Lehrer Associates
Open Space Seattle 2100: Envisioning Seattle’s Green Infrastructure for the Next Century, University of Washington, Open Space Seattle 2100 Coalition
Sustainable Urban Design
Siting buildings to maximize passive heating / cooling; using energy-efficient building technologies, including green or cool roofs; providing space for urban agriculture; decreasing impervious pavement areas; providing abundant (usable) interconnected greenways and open space; implementing sustainable stormwater techniques; and planting or preserving vegetation will all help mitigate C02 emissions, while enhancing or protecting the health, safety, and welfare of urban residents.
Communities should also move toward energy conservation and non-oil and coal based alternatives, such as solar, wind, thermal, and biomass, which can reduce dependency on non-renewable resources, as well as minimize air, water, and thermal pollution.
Organizations
National Renewable Energy Laboratory
Sustainable Sites Initiative
U.S. Department of Energy: Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
USGBC / LEED
Research
“Unlocking Energy Efficiency in the U.S. Economy,” McKinsey and Company, July, 2009
Whole Building Design: Sustainable
“By-Law to Require and Govern the Construction of Green Roofs in Toronto,” Chief Building Official and Executive Director, Toronto Building and Chief Planner and Executive Director, City Planning, March 2009
“Green Roof Systems: A Guide to the Planning, Design, and Construction of Landscapes Over Structure.” Susan Weiler, and Katrin Scholz-Barth. Wiley, 2009
“Urban Heat Island Mitigation Can Improve New York City’s Environment: Research on Impacts of Mitigation Strategies,” Sustainable South Bronx, October 2008
“Can Good Design Advance Urban Development: On the Harvard Design Magazine Symposium “Can Design Improve Life in Cities? The Cases of Los Angeles, London, and Chicago,” Tim Love, Harvard Design Magazine, Summer/Spring 2008
“When Does Green Infrastructure Make Sense? Comparing Conventional Systems with Green Infrastructure,” Water Environment Research Foundation, June 2007
Projects
California Academy of Sciences, San Francisco, SWA Group
Geos Net Zero Energy Neighborhood, David Kahn Studio
If you know of useful resources we've missed, please send your recommendations to:
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