Strong Towns

Strong Towns PDF Author: Charles L. Marohn, Jr.
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1119564816
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 262

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Book Description
A new way forward for sustainable quality of life in cities of all sizes Strong Towns: A Bottom-Up Revolution to Build American Prosperity is a book of forward-thinking ideas that breaks with modern wisdom to present a new vision of urban development in the United States. Presenting the foundational ideas of the Strong Towns movement he co-founded, Charles Marohn explains why cities of all sizes continue to struggle to meet their basic needs, and reveals the new paradigm that can solve this longstanding problem. Inside, you’ll learn why inducing growth and development has been the conventional response to urban financial struggles—and why it just doesn’t work. New development and high-risk investing don’t generate enough wealth to support itself, and cities continue to struggle. Read this book to find out how cities large and small can focus on bottom-up investments to minimize risk and maximize their ability to strengthen the community financially and improve citizens’ quality of life. Develop in-depth knowledge of the underlying logic behind the “traditional” search for never-ending urban growth Learn practical solutions for ameliorating financial struggles through low-risk investment and a grassroots focus Gain insights and tools that can stop the vicious cycle of budget shortfalls and unexpected downturns Become a part of the Strong Towns revolution by shifting the focus away from top-down growth toward rebuilding American prosperity Strong Towns acknowledges that there is a problem with the American approach to growth and shows community leaders a new way forward. The Strong Towns response is a revolution in how we assemble the places we live.

Strong Towns

Strong Towns PDF Author: Charles L. Marohn, Jr.
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1119564816
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 262

Get Book Here

Book Description
A new way forward for sustainable quality of life in cities of all sizes Strong Towns: A Bottom-Up Revolution to Build American Prosperity is a book of forward-thinking ideas that breaks with modern wisdom to present a new vision of urban development in the United States. Presenting the foundational ideas of the Strong Towns movement he co-founded, Charles Marohn explains why cities of all sizes continue to struggle to meet their basic needs, and reveals the new paradigm that can solve this longstanding problem. Inside, you’ll learn why inducing growth and development has been the conventional response to urban financial struggles—and why it just doesn’t work. New development and high-risk investing don’t generate enough wealth to support itself, and cities continue to struggle. Read this book to find out how cities large and small can focus on bottom-up investments to minimize risk and maximize their ability to strengthen the community financially and improve citizens’ quality of life. Develop in-depth knowledge of the underlying logic behind the “traditional” search for never-ending urban growth Learn practical solutions for ameliorating financial struggles through low-risk investment and a grassroots focus Gain insights and tools that can stop the vicious cycle of budget shortfalls and unexpected downturns Become a part of the Strong Towns revolution by shifting the focus away from top-down growth toward rebuilding American prosperity Strong Towns acknowledges that there is a problem with the American approach to growth and shows community leaders a new way forward. The Strong Towns response is a revolution in how we assemble the places we live.

Blueprint for Greening Affordable Housing

Blueprint for Greening Affordable Housing PDF Author: Global Green USA
Publisher: Island Press
ISBN: 1597267465
Category : Architecture
Languages : en
Pages : 231

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Book Description
Blueprint for Green Affordable Housing is a guide for housing developers, advocates, public agency staff, and the financial community that offers specific guidance on incorporating green building strategies into the design, construction, and operation of affordable housing developments. A completely revised and expanded second edition of the groundbreaking 1999 publication, this new book focuses on topics of specific relevance to affordable housing including: how green building adds value to affordable housing the integrated design process best practices in green design for affordable housing green operations and maintenance innovative funding and finance emerging programs, partnerships, and policies Edited by national green affordable housing expert Walker Wells and featuring a foreword by Matt Petersen, president and chief executive officer of Global Green USA, the book presents 12 case studies of model developments and projects, including rental, home ownership, special needs, senior, self-help, and co-housing from around the United States. Each case study describes the unique green features of the development, discusses how they were successfully incorporated, considers the project's financing and savings associated with the green measures, and outlines lessons learned. Blueprint for Green Affordable Housing is the first book of its kind to present information regarding green building that is specifically tailored to the affordable housing development community.

Open House International

Open House International PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Architecture
Languages : en
Pages : 812

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Book Description


The Affordable City

The Affordable City PDF Author: Shane Phillips
Publisher: Island Press
ISBN: 1642831336
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 282

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Book Description
From Los Angeles to Boston and Chicago to Miami, US cities are struggling to address the twin crises of high housing costs and household instability. Debates over the appropriate course of action have been defined by two poles: building more housing or enacting stronger tenant protections. These options are often treated as mutually exclusive, with support for one implying opposition to the other. Shane Phillips believes that effectively tackling the housing crisis requires that cities support both tenant protections and housing abundance. He offers readers more than 50 policy recommendations, beginning with a set of principles and general recommendations that should apply to all housing policy. The remaining recommendations are organized by what he calls the Three S’s of Supply, Stability, and Subsidy. Phillips makes a moral and economic case for why each is essential and recommendations for making them work together. There is no single solution to the housing crisis—it will require a comprehensive approach backed by strong, diverse coalitions. The Affordable City is an essential tool for professionals and advocates working to improve affordability and increase community resilience through local action.

Grow Home

Grow Home PDF Author: Avi Friedman
Publisher: McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP
ISBN: 0773569081
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 202

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Book Description
With economic restructuring, demographic shifts, and lifestyle changes, the traditional family - working father, stay-at-home mother, two to three children - is no longer the norm and the need for smaller homes at moderate cost has skyrocketed. The first prototype of the Grow Home was built on the campus of McGill University in 1990 and more than one thousand units were built across North America and Europe in the first year alone. In this illustrated guide, Friedman describes the background, conception, and construction of these modest (14" x 36") homes. He details their construction for prospective owners, builders, and architects, showing how past and contemporary precedents have been transformed and how the first versions were adapted by the building industry. Visits to completed Grow Homes shed light on why such homes were purchased and the process by which they "grew." Friedman also shows how the design has been adapted for prefabrication to meet the needs of the developing world. He describes the contribution that small-unit design makes to saving valuable natural resources and shares his experiences in planning communities based on the Grow Home. The Grow Home reveals the development and history of a concept that revolutionizes the home and building industry, has been translated into over 10,000 housing units, and has received, among many accolades, the United Nations World Habitat Award.

Creating Mixed Communities through Housing Policies

Creating Mixed Communities through Housing Policies PDF Author: Anna Maria Santiago
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
ISBN: 1003853447
Category : Architecture
Languages : en
Pages : 163

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Book Description
This book focuses on socially mixed (e.g. by income, tenure, ethnicity or any other characteristic) communities developed through housing renewal and critically examines the policies and practices in view of the growing urban inequality. The volume expands the discussion to the second phase of social mix – “social mix version 2.0” and offers constructive reflections on how social mix can “be better conceived and delivered, with fewer negative side effects” . The chapters in this book cover diverse national contexts and policy backgrounds, and represent the perspectives of many key stakeholders, including national and local governments, services and NGOs, developers and, most importantly, residents. Chapters present diverse case studies from Europe, the Middle East, Africa, India, Australia, and the United States and discuss projects that range in scale from small housing initiatives to neighborhoods and to whole districts. They focus on diverse experiences of social mix: between university students and young professionals and low-income social housing tenants, between older, low-income residents and younger, middle-class residents, between diverse ethnic and social class groups sharing a neighborhood, and between private and public housing residents. Chapters also vary on the tools used to create social mix, from local non-for-profit initiatives, a national policy intervention, and urban policies that aim to enhance social mix. Lastly, the book shows the range of analytical tools researchers have used to understand the diverse appearances of social mix, its underlying goals, and its consequent outcomes. These include comparative analyses of social mix in diverse national and political settings, including the Global East, an evaluation of social mix from the perspective of social justice, a historical analysis of the development of an urban district, and a design analysis of urban renewal projects. The chapters in this book were originally published as a special issue of Journal of Urban Affairs.

Planning the Good Community

Planning the Good Community PDF Author: Jill Grant
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
ISBN: 9780415700757
Category : Cities and towns
Languages : en
Pages : 300

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Book Description
An examination of new urban approaches both in theory and in practice. Taking a critical look at how new urbanism has lived up to its ideals, the author asks whether new urban approaches offer a viable path to creating good communities. With examples drawn principally from North America, Europe and Japan, Planning the Good Community explores new urban approaches in a wide range of settings. It compares the movement for urban renaissance in Europe with the New Urbanism of the United States and Canada, and asks whether the concerns that drive today's planning theory - issues like power, democracy, spatial patterns and globalisation- receive adequate attention in new urban approaches. The issue of aesthetics is also raised, as the author questions whether communities must be more than just attractive in order to be good. With the benefit of twenty years' hindsight and a world-wide perspective, this book offers the reader unparalleled insight as well as a rigorous and considered critical analysis.

Regional Approaches to Affordable Housing

Regional Approaches to Affordable Housing PDF Author: Stuart Meck
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781884829840
Category : City planning
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
Do regional approaches to affordable housing actually result in housing production and, if so, how? Regional Approaches to Affordable Housing answers these critical questions and more. Evaluating 23 programs across the nation, the report begins by tracing the history of regional housing planning in the U.S. and defining contemporary big picture issues on housing affordability. It examines fair-share regional housing planning in three states and one metropolitan area, and follows with an appraisal of regional housing trust funds--a new phenomenon. Also assessed are an incentive program in the Twin Cities region and affordable housing appeals statutes in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut. The study looks at recent private-sector initiatives to promote affordable housing production in the San Francisco Bay area and Chicago. A concluding chapter proposes a set of best and second-best practices. Supplementing the report are appendices containing an extensive annotated bibliography, a research note on housing need forecasting and fair-share allocation formulas, a complete list of state enabling legislation authorizing local housing planning, and two model state acts.

Future Housing

Future Housing PDF Author:
Publisher: BoD – Books on Demand
ISBN: 1837681767
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 186

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Book Description
Global population growth, exposure to climate-driven risks, continuous ongoing economic crises, persistent levels of poverty, migration phenomena, exponential increase in the use of digital technology and consequent digital divide, and the urgent demand for more equal spaces are amongst the major drivers of change within the housing sector. This book seeks to envision some of the future housing scenarios, outlining a series of possible transformations that will affect the global housing models in the coming years. The essays in the book are not intended to provide predictions on housing, but rather to try to grasp how social attitudes, economic values, and technologies employed are changing. The issues addressed range from exploring the potential of green and digital strategies both in regenerating existing building heritage and in new construction within developing countries to addressing the humanitarian challenges of climate change and mitigating social inequality.

Chasing the American Dream

Chasing the American Dream PDF Author: William M. Rohe
Publisher: Cornell University Press
ISBN: 1501731130
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 326

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Book Description
Providing decent, safe, and affordable housing to low- and moderate-income families has been an important public policy goal for more than a century. In recent years there has been a clear shift of emphasis among policymakers from a focus on providing affordable rental units to providing affordable homeownership opportunities. Due in part to programs introduced by the Clinton and Bush administrations, the nation's homeownership rate is currently at an all-time high. Does a house become a home only when it comes with a deed attached? Is participation in the real-estate market a precondition to engaged citizenship or wealth creation? The real estate industry's marketing efforts and government policy initiatives might lead one to believe so. The shift in emphasis from rental subsidies to affordable homeownership opportunities has been justified in many ways. Claims for the benefits of homeownership have been largely accepted without close scrutiny. But is homeownership always beneficial for low-income Americans, or are its benefits undermined by the difficulties caused by unfavorable mortgage terms and by the poor condition or location of the homes bought? Chasing the American Dream provides a critical assessment of affordable homeownership policies and goals. Its contributors represent a variety of disciplinary perspectives and offer a thorough understanding of the economic, social, political, architectural, and cultural effects of homeownership programs, as well as their history. The editors draw together the assessments included in this book to prescribe a plan of action that lays out what must be done to make homeownership policy both effective and equitable.