Planning & Urban Design

Australian Planner recently published a great review of Spatial Planning and Climate Change by Elizabeth Wilson and Jake Piper, describing it as "timely and thorough" and "essential reading for anyone interested in the nexus between spatial planning and climate change."

After forty years of thinking about and working with NEPA and the EIS process, Michael Greenberg decided to conduct his own evaluation from the perspective of a person trained in science who focuses on environmental and environmental health policies. This book of carefully chosen real case studies goes beyond the familiar checklists of what to do, and shows students and practitioners alike what really happens during the creation and implementation of an EIS.
 

Exploring critical planning issues facing Latino communities in relation to urban design and land development, the authors investigate how Latino communities collectively engage in placemaking, and look at strategies to build more sustainable and effective working relationships between Latino communities and planning professionals. The book's focus is on planning and placemaking efforts throughout the United States, and demonstrates how professionals can enhance – or inhibit – placemaking that serves the interests of Latino communities.
 

Americans are committing "country-cide" - converting farms into suburban yards and channeling streams that once provided flood control, water purification, habitats, and recreational opportunities. But rather than rail against overdevelopment, this book celebrates communities succeeding in preservation. Pruetz brings a planner’s-eye view of the practices behind their achievements. His detailed reports of creative preservation solutions mark the trail for planners, commissioners, and citizens who seek to preserve the green legacy in their own backyards.

A systematic approach is used to cover the many facets of terraced and townhouses – a style of building which has been in use since the Roman era and is still useful today. The whole range of this style of housing is covered from interior design and construction methods, to more social factors like the issues of parking and street configurations. Alongside over 150 diagrams and 80 photos, Friedman creates a book which will be a valuable resource for all those involved in the planning, design and creation of terraced and town houses.
 

Peter Bishop and Lesley Williams explore the growing interest among practitioners at the cutting edge of architecture, urban design and regeneration, in temporary, interim, ‘pop-up’ or ‘meanwhile’ uses for land and buildings in our urban areas. They explore the origins and the social, economic and technological drivers behind this phenomenon, and its place within modern planning theory and practice. Using sixty-eight diverse case studies from Europe and North America, it challenges our preoccupation with long-term strategies and masterplans and questions our ability to achieve these in the face of increasing resource constraints and political and economic uncertainty.
 

The Natural and Built Environment Series is essential reading for undergraduate and postgraduate students. Ideal for core learning, each book provides a comprehensive account of a key area in planning and environmental sustainability.

The book launch for Systemic Architecture: Operating Manual for the Self Organizing City by Marco Poletto and Claudia Pasquero takes place tomorrow evening at 6:30pm at the Architectural Association (AA) Bookshop in London (36-37 Bedford Square, Greater London, WC1B 3ES). We hope to see you there!

Justin Hollander, author of Sunburnt Cities: The Great Recession, Depopulation and Urban Planning in the American Sunbelt, has a fascinating new article on vacant housing stock

The Temporary City has received another very positive review on internet blog, The Pop-Up City, who describe Peter Bishop and Lesley Williams' new book as "a decent and thorough-full document that combines inspiring examples with interesting academic reflections."
 

On Wednesday 15th February 2012, Routledge attended the Urban Design Group (UDG) Awards in London, held at the prestigious 61 Whitehall in London. Routledge were very proud to be one of the sponsers for this event, with awards presented for Best Student, Best Public Sector Project, Best Publisher, Best Practice and Lifetime Achievement. We are delighted to announce that Responsive Environments was awarded this year's Lifetime Achievement Award, presented by the Chair of the Urban Design Group, Amanda Reynolds, and our congratulations go to the authors, Alan Alcock, Paul Murrain, Sue McGlynn and Graham Smith, and editor Ian Bently.