From Sprawl to Sustainability

Smart Growth, New Urbanism, Green Development, And Renewable Energy

Robert H. Freilich, Robert J. Sitkowski and Seth D. Mennillo
American Bar Association, Section of State and Local Government Law,
June 2010, 368 pages

Ednote: New Urbanism is all the rage in today’s city planning environment, from reducing air emissions from gridlocked traffic, to creating community pride as a mechanism of reducing crime. This book gives a “zoning” perspective from a qualified source that actually works in the field with major cities.

From Sprawl to Sustainability explains how umbrella sustainable growth systems comprising the spokes of smart growth, new urbanism, green development and renewable energy have been devised in the past and how they can be planned and implemented in the present and future to improve the quality of life, revitalizing neighborhoods, conserving agricultural and sensitive environmental lands, combating climate change and reducing air pollution and energy use.

The authors of this book have pulled together a refreshingly new and compelling argument for planning and building a sustainable urban and suburban future in the era of climate change, a challenging future and a degraded natural environment. The book is filled with practical examples and references of local, regional, state and federal solutions developed by Dr. Freilich and others for over 200 cities, counties, regions and states. This is a call to action for cities, counties, regions, planners, policy makers, environmental groups, industry, elected officials, architects, builders, lawyers and informed citizens.

This book will be the talk of the town. It is a must read for everyone desiring to create more sustainable communities. As the authors point out, many of the solutions have been around for a long time, while others reflect Dr. Freilich’s ingenuity in piecing together transportation and land use plans to reduce sprawl, lessen greenhouse gas emissions, vehicle miles traveled, incorporate green design and improvement standards, construct new urban mixed use walkable communities around transit stations and infill sites, monetize construction of solar, wind and water conservation systems from energy and water utility rate savings and implement a host of other basic techniques. The book offers a “how to” approach, using illustrative and graphic examples and incorporating state-of-the-art concepts in an easy to read style.

If you are involved in land use and the environment and don’t read this book you will be left behind and out of the excitement of solving the problems of the 21st century.

The book can be ordered at www.ababooks.org, inquiring at Book Publishing, ABA Publishing, 321 North Clark Street, Chicago, Illinois, 60654-7598, or calling at 800-285-2221. Discounts are available for books ordered in bulk or for ABA section members.

Green InSight readers can obtain a discount price of $75.95 if they state in their order that they are a subscriber to the Green InSight newsletter.