Happy City (2014)
— Charles Montgomery
By Vancouver author Charles Montgomery, this book covers his urban experiences and experiments to figure out what makes for the most positive city life, as well as serving as a compendium of interviews with other people in the field.
Walkable City (2013)
— Jeff Speck
Why cities need to be walkable, and how to get there. One of the most important books on this subject.
The Sprawl Repair Manual (2010)
— Galina Tachieva
The definitive guide on how to densify and rejuvenate existing suburban sprawl.
Headwaters Project (2000)
— Patrick Condon (James Taylor Chair)
The East Clayton neighbourhood was developed as a sustainable community, in partnership between the City of Surrey, the UBC James Taylor Chair, and the Pacific Resources Centre.
The Wealth Of Cities (1999)
— John Norquist
John Norquist shares his experience as mayor of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, streamlining city bureaucracy and saving parts of the city being harmed by suburban zoning codes.
A Better Place to Live (1997)
— Philip Langdon
This was one of the first books to really address the issues with suburban planning and advocate for more traditional walkable communities.
Additional Recommended Books
Urban Design
-
A Pattern Language - Christopher Alexander (1977)
A seminal work on designing spaces that work for people at every scale -
The Death and Life of Great American Cities - Jane Jacobs (1961)
The classic critique of mid-century urban renewal and a powerful case for mixed-use, human-scale neighbourhoods -
Suburban Nation - Andres Duany, Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk, Jeff Speck (2000)
A critical examination of suburban sprawl and its consequences -
The High Cost of Free Parking - Donald Shoup (2005)
A comprehensive analysis of how parking policies shape our cities
Transportation
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Street Fight: Handbook for an Urban Revolution - Janette Sadik-Khan (2016)
Former NYC Transportation Commissioner's account of transforming New York's streets -
Straphanger - Taras Grescoe (2012)
A global tour of successful public transit systems and how they transform cities -
Bikenomics - Elly Blue (2013)
How bicycles can save the economy -
Human Transit - Jarrett Walker (2011)
A clear-eyed analysis of transit planning and policy
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