Other Resources

To practice sustainable urbanism, The Urban Collaborative team participates in cutting edge research as well as learning valuable lessons from the past. While there are countless books and resources available for planners and designers, this resource page features a curated list of foundational documents on making better places for people and the planet.

YearTitleAgency/PublicationAuthor
1987A New Theory of Urban DesignOxford University PressChristopher Alexander, Hajo Neis, Artemis Anninou, and Ingrid King
1977A Pattern LanguageOxford University PressChristopher Alexander
2001Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American CommunitySimon & SchusterRobert D. Putman
1973Defensible Space; Crime Prevention Through Urban DesignMacmillan PublishingOscar Newmann
2008Form Based Codes: A Guide for Planners, Urban Designers, Municipalities, and DevelopersWileyDaniel G. Parolek, Karen Parolek, Paul C. Crawford
1993Great StreetsMIT PressAllan B. Jacobs
2011Life Between Buildings: Using Public SpaceIsland PressJan Gehl
1982Livable StreetsUniversity of California PressDonald Appleyard, M. Sue Gerson, and Mark Lintell
2001New American Urbanism: Re-forming the Suburban MetropolisSkiraJohn A. Dutton
2008Retrofitting Suburbia: Urban Design Solutions for Redesigning SuburbsWileyEllen Dunham-Jones and June Williamson
2010Suburban Nation: The Rise of Sprawl and the Decline of the American DreamNorth Point PressAndres Duany, Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk, Jeff Speck
2001The Boulevard Book: History, Evolution, Design of Multiway BoulevardsMIT PressElizabeth MacDonald, Allan B. Jacobs, and Yodan Rofe
2005The City Assembled: The Elements of Urban Form Through HistoryThames & HudsonGreg Castillo
1999The City Shaped: Urban Patterns and Meanings Through HistoryThames & HudsonSpiro Kostof
1961The Concise TownscapeRoutledgeGordon Cullen
1961The Death and Life of Great American CitiesPenguin Random HoseJane Jacobs
1999The Great Good Place: Cafes, Coffee Shops, Bookstores, Bars, Hair Salons, and Other Hangouts at the Heart of a CommunityMarlowe & CompanyRay Oldenburg
1960The Image of the CityMIT PressKevin Lynch
1997The Next American Metropolis: Ecology, Community, and the American DreamPrinceton Architectural PressPeter Calthorpe
1980The Social Life of Small Urban SpacesProject for Public SpacesWilliam H.
White
2004Urban Sprawl and Public Health: Designing, Planning, and Building for Healthy CommunitiesIsland PressHoward Frumkin, Lawrence Frank, and Richard J. Jackson