Chatham Village; located in the heart of Pittsburgh; is an urban oasis that combines Georgian colonial revival architecture with generous greenspaces; recreation facilities; surrounding woodlands; and many other elements that make living there a unique experience. Founded in 1932; it has gained international recognition as an outstanding example of the American Garden City planning movement and was named a National Historic Landmark in 2005. Chatham Village was the brainchild of Charles F. Lewis; then director of the Buhl Foundation; a Pittsburgh-based charitable trust. Lewis sought an alternative to the substandard housing that plagued low-income families in the city. He hired the New Yorkndash;based team of Clarence S. Stein and Henry Wright; followers of Ebenezer Howardrsquo;s utopian Garden City movement; which sought to combine the best of urban and suburban living environments by connecting individuals to each other and to nature. Angelique Bamberg provides the first book-length study of Chatham Village; in which she establishes its historical significance to urban planning and reveals the complex development process; social significance; and breakthrough construction and landscaping techniques that shaped this idyllic community. She also relates the design of Chatham Village to the work of other pioneers in urban planning; including Frederick Law Olmsted Sr.; landscape architect John Nolen; and the Regional Planning Association of America; and considers the different ways that Chatham Village and the later New Urbanist movement address a common set of issues. Above all; Bamberg finds that Chatham Villagersquo;s continued viability and vibrance confirms its distinction as a model for planned housing and urban-based community living.
#2476282 in eBooks 2007-05-10 2014-09-03File Name: B00N9TGOKE
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Fascinating travelogueBy GlobalChangeSupercenter5A great read; a good and considered defense of the pros and cons of new urbanism style living from a Vancouver activist. The ideas and reactions are all debatable; but the reflectiveness and honesty of Matt Herns writing are commendable in an era of jeremiads and clipping pasting. In the course of such fine writing; there will be some minor errors and some logical inconsistencies - they really do not detract from such a worthwhile sociology. For me; the footnotes was an especially lively section; but in one aside; the ravings of Kabbalah Madonna come in for some scorn; while the author himself posits in another scetion; talking about the state of the world; that "God himself" may not even be able to "sort this all out." One God-believer calling another God-believer a wacko - strange stuff.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. ... is an urban planner and thought this was very goodBy CustomerMy son in law is an urban planner and thought this was very good0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. ... to get this for class but it is a good collection of essays and expands your knowledgeBy nwellerI had to get this for class but it is a good collection of essays and expands your knowledge.
