
This Land
The Battle over Sprawl and the Future of America
Anthony Flint(Author)
Johns Hopkins University Press
Published on 5. July 2006
Book
Hardback
312 pages
978-0-8018-8419-1 (ISBN)
Description
Despite a modest revival in city living, Americans are spreading out more than ever-into "exurbs" and "boomburbs" miles from anywhere, in big houses in big subdivisions. We cling to the notion of safer neighborhoods and better schools, but what we get, argues Anthony Flint, is long commutes, crushing gas prices and higher taxes-and a landscape of strip malls and office parks badly in need of a makeover. This Land tells the untold story of development in America-how the landscape is shaped by a furious clash of political, economic and cultural forces. It is the story of burgeoning anti-sprawl movement, a 1960s-style revolution of New Urbanism, smart growth, and green building. And it is the story of landowners fighting back on the basis of property rights, with free-market libertarians, homebuilders, road pavers, financial institutions, and even the lawn-care industry right alongside them. The subdivisions and extra-wide roadways are encroaching into the wetlands of Florida, ranchlands in Texas, and the desert outside Phoenix and Las Vegas. But with up to 120 million more people in the country by 2050, will the spread-out pattern cave in on itself?
Could Americans embrace a new approach to development if it made sense for them? A veteran journalist who covered planning, development, and housing for the Boston Globe for sixteen years and a visiting scholar in 2005 at the Harvard Design School, Flint reveals some surprising truths about the future and how we live in This Land.
Could Americans embrace a new approach to development if it made sense for them? A veteran journalist who covered planning, development, and housing for the Boston Globe for sixteen years and a visiting scholar in 2005 at the Harvard Design School, Flint reveals some surprising truths about the future and how we live in This Land.
Reviews / Votes
Engaging, vivid and provocative work. Written with analytical rigor but also a crafty journalistic eye for the human-interest story that crystallizes an abstract theme, this book merits inclusion in any library. Library Journal 2006 A panoramic and extraordinarily up-to-date account of the struggle over how America builds. -- Philip Langdon New Urban News 2006 This Land offers a provocative and insightful overview of the challenges of sprawl. Boston Globe 2006 Those who truly hate sprawl and want to fight back would be well advised to read this book. Audubon 2007 Well researched, well written... very personable and readable. Recommended for all readers. -- S. O'M Northeastern Naturalist 2006 Flint provides a historical perspective on how we became a suburban nation... with the easy-flowing, narrative skill of a journalist. -- Lawrence Bluestone Architecture Boston 2008More details
Language
English
Place of publication
Baltimore, MD
United States
Product notice
sewn/stitched
Paper over boards
With dust jacket
Illustrations
24 s/w Photographien bzw. Rasterbilder
24 Halftones, black and white
Dimensions
Height: 236 mm
Width: 160 mm
Thickness: 28 mm
Weight
590 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-8018-8419-1 (9780801884191)
DOI
10.1353/book.16340
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

Book
11/2012
Johns Hopkins University Press
€30.00
Article not available at the moment

E-Book
07/2006
Johns Hopkins University Press
€20.99
Available for download
Person
Anthony Flint has been a journalist for twenty years, primarily for the Boston Globe, covering transportation, land use, planning and development, smart growth, and sprawl. His articles have also appeared in the Boston Sunday Globe Magazine, Planning, and Landscape Architecture.
Content
Introduction: Developing America
1. Grids and Greenfields
2. Suburbia's Promise, and Curse
3. New Paradigm: New Urbanism
4. The Smart Growth Revolution
5. Walk Daily, Buy Local, Build Green
6. Hands Off My Land
7. Dream Defenders and Sprawl Inc.
8. Pitched Battles
9. The Density Dilemma
10. Smart, and Fair
11. Planning and Disaster
Conclusion: Six Healthy Habits for Sensible Growth
Notes
Bibliographical Essay
Acknowledgments
Index
1. Grids and Greenfields
2. Suburbia's Promise, and Curse
3. New Paradigm: New Urbanism
4. The Smart Growth Revolution
5. Walk Daily, Buy Local, Build Green
6. Hands Off My Land
7. Dream Defenders and Sprawl Inc.
8. Pitched Battles
9. The Density Dilemma
10. Smart, and Fair
11. Planning and Disaster
Conclusion: Six Healthy Habits for Sensible Growth
Notes
Bibliographical Essay
Acknowledgments
Index