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Image credit: A Civic Vision and Action Plan for the Central
Delaware River, Philadelphia, PA
Wallace Roberts & Todd, LLC, Philadelphia, PA
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Communities are more livable when they respect ecological and cultural systems, promote economic development, strive for social equity, and provide places for positive social interaction. While planning for growth and change, all communities should aim to be more sustainable and resource-efficient, and provide more options for housing, employment, and recreation. Both individuals and community leaders need to work collaboratively with the goal of improving quality of life through sound and creative planning, design, and management of the natural and built environment. A broad range of policies, practices, and development incentives are needed to encourage the creation of more ecologically sustainable and economically vibrant communities.
Other Resource Guides in this Series:
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Sustainability Toolkit:
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Sustainable Residential Design Resource Guides:
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Organizations
Active Living By Design
American Institute of Architects (AIA) Communities by Design
Center for Local Communities, Local Government Commission
Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Active Community Environments (ACES)
Complete Streets
LEED-Neighborhood Development (ND)
Natural Resources Defense Council Smart Growth Resources
Partners for Livable Communities
Smart Growth America
Sustainable Sites Initiative
Urban Land Institute
Walk Score
Research
"Healthy Community Design Expert Workshop Report," Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2009
"Walking the Walk: How Walkability Raises Home Values in U.S. Cities," Joe Cortright, CEOs for Cities, 2009
“Active Transportation for America: The Case for Increased Federal Investment in Bicycling and Walking,” Rails-to-Trails Conservancy
“Creating Livable Communities: Housing and Transit Policy in the 21st Century,” Robert Puentes, Senior Fellow, Metropolitan Policy Program, Brookings Institution, March 2009
“Creating Livable Cities for All Ages: Intergenerational Strategies and Initiatives,” Willem van Vliet, University of Colorado / UN-Habitat, 2008
“Footloose and Fancy Free: A Field Survey of Walkable Urban Places in the Top 30 Metropolitan Areas,” Christopher B. Leinberger, Metropolitan Policy Program, Brookings Institution, 2007
“Creating Great Neighborhoods: Density in Your Community,” Local Government Commission / EPA, 2003
Projects
Geos Net Zero Energy Neighborhood, Arvada, CO
David Kahn Studio, Eldorado Springs, CO
Michael Tavel Architects, Denver, Colorado
Porchscapes: An Affordable LEED Neighborhood Development
University of Arkansas Community Design Center, Fayetteville, Arkansas
Trinity River Corridor Design Guidelines, Dallas, Texas
Wallace Roberts and Todd, LLC.
Sustainable Land Use
Land consumption caused by the growth of metropolitan regions often results in the permanent loss of rural areas, farm, and forest lands, along with the pollution of watersheds. As suburbs grow, there is often a corresponding decline in inner-city economies. Urban air and water quality often deteriorates with increased traffic congestion and the development of automobile transportation infrastructure. The adoption of land use practices can help lessen the impacts of growth on natural resources and result in a better quality of life for all citizens.
Research / Resources
Introduction to Sustainable Land-Use Planning, Smart Communities Network
Livable Community Resources, Sierra Club
“Land-Use Planning for Sustainable Development,” Jane Silberstein and Chris Maser. CRC, 2000
Smart Growth: More Efficient Land Use, Victoria Transport Research Institute
Projects
A Civic Vision and Action Plan for the Central Delaware River, Philadelphia, PA
Wallace Roberts and Todd, LLC.
Greensburg Sustainable Comprehensive Master Plan, Greensburg, Kansas
BNIM
Place making
Communities should be beautiful places, reflecting the time-honored tradition of civic commitment to high quality and lasting public works. Communities should protect and enhance natural, cultural, and scenic resources, and avoid environmental degradation by respecting existing ecological systems and the landscape’s character.
Organizations
Project for Public Spaces
Research
“OLIN: Placemaking,” Laurie Olin, Dennis C. McGlade, Robert J. Bedell, Lucinda R. Sanders, Susan K. Weiler, David A. Rubin. The Monicelli Press, 2008
Projects
New Orleans Riverfront: Reinventing the Crescent, New Orleans, Louisiana
Hargreaves Associates, Cambridge, Massachusetts
The Red Ribbon - Tanghe River Park, Qinhuangdao City, Hebei Province, China
Turenscape (Beijing Turen Design Institute) and Peking University Graduate School of Landscape Architecture, Beijing, China
Teardrop Park, New York, NY
Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates, Inc., New York, NY
Green Schools
Schools should contribute to neighborhoods, making the campus an indoor and outdoor learning environment. Educational facilities should be available for community activities and recreation, and well-connected to communities by sidewalks, bike trails, transit service, and roadways.
Organizations
Build Green Schools, U.S. Green Building Council
Green Schools Alliance
Green Schools Initiative
National Center for Safe Routes to School
Research
“Healthier, Wealthier, Wiser: A Report on National Green Schools,” Global Green USA,
Projects
Boston Children’s Museum Plaza, Boston, Massachusetts
Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates, Inc., Landscape Architects, Cambridge, Massachusetts
James Clarkson Environmental Discovery Center, White Lake Township, Michigan
MSI Design, Columbus, Ohio
Lagoon Park: Living at the Edge of Wilderness, Santa Barbara, California
Van Atta Associates, Inc., Santa Barbara, California
Mount Tabor Middle School Rain Garden, Portland, Oregon
Kevin Robert Perry, ASLA, Portland, Oregon
Sidwell Friends School, Washington, D.C.
Sustainable Housing
Housing should be mixed with other land uses so residents can live, learn, work, shop, and play in a healthy, affordable, and walkable setting. Housing should be closely linked to existing urban assets and carefully designed to preserve and enhance community resources, pride, and a unique sense of place. High-density housing should be located and designed to promote active and secure pedestrian environments supported by transit service.
Organizations
AIA Committee on the Environment
Center for New Urbanism
Reconnecting America: Center for Transit-Oriented Development
USGBC – LEED
Research
“Green Affordable Housing Initiative Case Study: SOLARA,” Global Green USA. April, 2009
“Effects of TOD on Housing, Parking, and Travel,” Robert Cevero, Center for Transit Oriented Development, Urban Land Institute, August 2008
“Preserving Opportunities: Saving Affordable Homes Near Transit,” Reconnecting America and the National Housing Trust, February, 2008
“Affordable Housing and Smart Growth: Making the Connection,” Danielle Arigoni, National Neighborhood Coalition, Smart Growth Network, 2001
Projects
AIA Committee on the Environment (COTE) Top 10 Projects
Sustainable Employment Growth
Offices, manufacturing facilities, institutions, and other places of employment should be located to reduce travel distances between work, home, shopping, personal services, entertainment, and other activities. Places of employment should be designed to enhance energy conservation, and to support ecological and human health.
Research
“Green Cities: How Urban Sustainability Efforts Can and Must Drive America’s Climate Change Policies,” Living Cities, May 2009
“Job Sprawl Revisited: The Changing Geography of Metropolitan Employment,” Elizabeth Kneebone, Metropolitan Policy Program, Brookings Institution, April 2009
Health, Safety and Security
Communities should be designed to be attractive, safe, and accessible. The design and management of each community should advance energy conservation, healthy air, and clean water, and minimize noise pollution. Communities should invest in public landscapes that promote ecological and human health and emotional well-being.
Organizations
Active Living Research
Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Designing and Building Healthy Places
Scorecard
Research
“Restorative Commons: Creating Health and Well-Being through Urban Landscapes,” Lindsay Campbell and Anne Wiesen, Editors, U.S. Forest Service, January 2009
“Healing Spaces: The Science of Place and Well-Being,” Esther M. Sternberg, MD, Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2009
"The Built Environment: Designing Communities to Promote Physical Activity in Children," American Academy of Pediatrics, June 2009
“Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center Case Study Compendium,” January 2009
“One More Broken Window: The Impact of the Physical Environment on Schools,” Perpetuity Group, December 2008
“Neighborhood Greenness and 2-Year Changes in Body Mass Index of Children and Youth,” Janice Bell, et al., American Journal of Preventive Medecine, 2008
“Urban Sprawl and Public Health: Designing, Planning, and Building for Healthy Communities,” Howard Frumkin, Lawrence Frank, Richard Joseph Jackson. Island Press, 2004
“Creating a Healthy Environment: The Impact of the Built Environment on Public Health,” Richard Jackson and Chris Kochtitzky, Center for Disease Control and Prevention
"What Olmsted Knew," Richard Joseph Jackson, MD, MPH, Director, National Center for Environmental Health, Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 2001
If you know of useful resources we've missed, please email your recommendations to:
info@asla.org
