[audiobook] The Option of Urbanism: Investing in a New American Dream by Christopher B. Leinberger at Arts-Photography

Review

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful. A fair treatment of urbanism and suburbanismBy Jason StokesIve drank the urbanist Kool-Aid. for sure. However. I was very pleased that this book presents both sides of the argument between walkable urbanism and driveable suburbanism. The author. who is a real estate developer and expert. goes through the benefits and drawbacks of each with some fairness. though he seems to prefer the urbanism argument.I particularly liked his framing of the situation in terms of demographics. social policy. and long term effects. and how he posits that perhaps weve gone too far down the suburban path and need to swing back toward walkable urbanism. His arguments describe how Wall Street. large developers. and government policy lead us toward suburban development. and why urban areas are so expensive (longer term building timelines. more expensive land. and most of all. lack of supply.)I highly recommend this for anyone unfamiliar with walkable urbanism. or who might be interested in why our built environment is the way it is. Its a pretty short book but well written and researched. and certainly more even-handed than Kunstler or Kotkin.5 of 5 people found the following review helpful. A New turn for the OldBy Ravi MadhavanChristopher B. Leinbergers book put a name to a desire I have had in my search to find a new home. I wanted a place where my family had the option of walking to most of the day to day places we tend to visit - school. post office. drug store. grocery store. barber. dry cleaning. coffee shop. bookstore. etc. It turns out the name for this is "walkable urbanism" - its a return to an older time (pre-car) neighborhood. in terms of property value it has a premium compared to drivable suburbanism and there is a small movement making it more popular.This book from a real estate professional offers a logical and positive view of "walkable urbanism" without bashing drivable suburbanism that has dominated the landscape for the past fifty years. It provides a historical context to how we got to where we are and why the next phase will be a return to "walkable urbanism". The benefits to mitigating climate change and eliminating dependence on foreign oil are obvious. However the additional benefits of personal health and feeling a part of a community are also just as appealing.1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Visionary!By Pierre GauthierThis book could very well be the `Death and Life of Great American Cities of the 21st century!The author. a specialist in real estate development and not in urban planning. explains how government policies and standardized real estate products have supported the growth of drivable suburbia over the past decades.He demonstrates with refreshing arguments that `walkable urbanism is actually favoured by a large portion of the population and challenges the market and governments to respond accordingly.This concise. well-written eye-opener is light-years away from the rehashed New Urbanism discourses and should absolutely be read by all concerned with the future of our cities!