Pre-publication Critical Praise for
Envisioning Better CommunitiesPre-publication Critical Praise forEnvisioning Better Communities
"Few activities affect more powerfully the quality of life than the elementary design of our communities, and the way they are blended with the natural environment. Randall Arendt has provided the rules to combine this vision with attainable goals."
--Edward O. Wilson, Pellegrino University Research Professor, Emeritus, Harvard University, author of Biophilia, Naturalist, Sociobiology, On Human Nature, and The Future of Life
"Envisioning Better Communities reminds me of a technicolor version of Christopher Alexander’s Pattern Language, and I believe is a reference equal to that work. Because the procedures, logic, and graphics are well constructed, this book will appeal to a wide audience by virtue of its easily understood principles and reasoning. This book has real value in its graphic examples and diverse location references. I can imagine many schools of planning and design flocking to have this text in their libraries and the faculty using this text in their studios."
--Prof. Jon Rodiek, Texas A&M University, and Editor of Landscape & Urban Planning
"This is precisely the kind of tool local planners need. Most of us know in our gut what kind of communities we'd like to live in; this helps make it clearer what needs to happen for those wishes to come true."
--Bill McKibben, author of Deep Economy, The End of Nature, and Earth: Making a Life on a Tough New Planet
"Local officials and planners, in addition to developers and interested citizens, will find a true cornucopia of practical ideas for helping their communities grow with sense and grace. With its numerous color illustrations and reader-friendly text, this book will become an extremely useful ready-reference to practitioners in towns and counties on both sides of the metro-edge, whether dealing with new sites or infill and redevelopment situations."
--Judy Corbett, Executive Director, Local Government Commission, Sacramento CA, author, co-developer of the Village Homes sustainable community in Davis CA, and former CNU Board Member