Vancouverism


Book Description

Until the 1980s, Vancouver was a typical mid-sized North American city. But between Expo 86 and the Olympic Games in 2010, something extraordinary happened. This otherwise unremarkable city underwent a radical transformation that saw it emerge as an inspiring world-class metropolis celebrated for its livability, sustainability, and competitiveness. City-watchers everywhere took notice and wanted to learn more about this new model of urban growth, and the term “Vancouverism” was born. This book tells the story of Vancouverism and the urban planning philosophy and practice behind it. The author is a former chief planner of the City of Vancouver and was a key player at the heart of the action. Writing from an insider’s perspective, Larry Beasley traces the principles that inspired Vancouverism and the policy framework developed to implement it. The prologue, written by Vancouver journalist Frances Bula, outlines the political and urban history of Vancouver up until the 1980s. The text is also beautifully illustrated by the author with more than 200 colour photographs. Cities everywhere are asking the same question. Shall we shape change or will change shape us? This book shows how one city discovered positive answers, and it offers the principles, tools, and inspiration for others to follow.




The Vancouver Achievement


Book Description

This book examines the development of Vancouver’s unique approach to zoning, planning, and urban design from its inception in the early 1970s to its maturity in the management of urban change at the beginning of the twenty-first century. By the late 1990s, Vancouver had established a reputation in North America for its planning achievement, especially for its creation of a participative, responsive, and design-led approach to urban regeneration and redevelopment. This system has other important features: an innovative approach to megaproject planning, a system of cost and amenity levies on major schemes, a participative CityPlan process to underpin active neighbourhood planning, and a sophisticated panoply of design guidelines. These systems, processes, and their achievements place Vancouver at the forefront of international planning practice. The Vancouver Achievement explains the evolution and evaluates the outcomes of Vancouver’s unique system of discretionary zoning. The introductory chapters set the context for the study: they cover the invention and refinement of this system in the reform movement, its development of policies, guidelines, and control processes, and its translation into official development plans and neighbourhood design in the 1970s. Subsequent chapters focus upon the downtown, waterfront megaprojects, single-family neighbourhoods, the city-wide strategic planning programme (CityPlan), pressures for reform of control processes, and current downtown and inner city developments, especially issues of affordable housing, social exclusion, and multiple deprivation. The concluding chapter summarizes The Vancouver Achievement, explains the keys to its success, and evaluates its design success against internationally accepted criteria. Heavily illustrated with over 160 photos and figures, this book – the first comprehensive account of contemporary planning and urban design practice in any Canadian city – will appeal to academic and professional audiences, as well as the general public




Dream City


Book Description

Located at the edge of a continent and at the corresponding edge of national public consciousness, Vancouver has developed in unique and unanticipated ways. It is now emerging as an experiment in contemporary city-making, with international interest in Vancouver as a model of post-industrial urbanism increasing exponentially. Lance Berelowitz explores the links between the city's seductive natural setting, its turbulent political history and changing civic values, and its planning and design culture. He also makes the startling case that Vancouver is to Canada's imagination what Los Angeles is to the American -- a mythologized place of endless possibilities, while being grounded in an altogether more limited set of socio-economic and environmental limitations. Dream City is richly illustrated with both historical and contemporary photographs of many significant buildings and public spaces, as well as specially commissioned maps that reveal the underlying patterns of growth and change of Canada's youngest metropolis.




Lonely Planet Vancouver


Book Description

Lonely Planet: The world's leading travel guide publisher Lonely Planet Vancouver is your passport to the most relevant, up-to-date advice on what to see and skip, and what hidden discoveries await you. Shop for vintage shoes in quirky Gastown, hit the powdered slopes of Grouse Mountain or sample an Indian Pale Ale in a hidden microbrewery; all with your trusted travel companion. Get to the heart of Vancouver and begin your journey now! Inside Lonely Planet Vancouver Travel Guide: Color maps and images throughout Highlights and itineraries help you tailor your trip to your personal needs and interests Insider tips to save time and money and get around like a local, avoiding crowds and trouble spots Essential info at your fingertips - hours of operation, phone numbers, websites, transit tips, prices Honest reviews for all budgets - eating, sleeping, sight-seeing, going out, shopping, hidden gems that most guidebooks miss Cultural insights give you a richer, more rewarding travel experience - Native culture, multicultural festivals, cuisine, history, wildlife, outdoor activities, arts, shopping Free, convenient pull-out Vancouver map (included in print version), plus over 40 maps Covers West End, Gastown, Chinatown, Granville Island, Whistler, Victoria, the Southern Gulf Islands and more eBook Features: (Best viewed on tablet devices and smartphones) Downloadable PDF and offline maps prevent roaming and data charges Effortlessly navigate and jump between maps and reviews Add notes to personalise your guidebook experience Seamlessly flip between pages Bookmarks and speedy search capabilities get you to key pages in a flash Embedded links to recommendations' websites Zoom-in maps and images Inbuilt dictionary for quick referencing The Perfect Choice: Lonely Planet Vancouver , our most comprehensive guide to Vancouver, is perfect for both exploring top sights and taking roads less traveled. Looking for just the highlights of Vancouver? Check out Pocket Vancouver, a handy-sized guide focused on the can't-miss sights for a quick trip. Looking for more extensive coverage? Check out Lonely Planet British Columbia & the Canadian Rockies guide for a comprehensive look at all the region has to offer. About Lonely Planet: Since 1973, Lonely Planet has become the world's leading travel media company with guidebooks to every destination, an award-winning website, mobile and digital travel products, and a dedicated traveller community. Lonely Planet covers must-see spots but also enables curious travellers to get off beaten paths to understand more of the culture of the places in which they find themselves. The world awaits! Lonely Planet guides have won the TripAdvisor Traveler's Choice Award in 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, and 2016. 'Lonely Planet. It's on everyone's bookshelves; it's in every traveller's hands. It's on mobile phones. It's on the Internet. It's everywhere, and it's telling entire generations of people how to travel the world.' -- Fairfax Media 'Lonely Planet guides are, quite simply, like no other.' - New York Times Important Notice: The digital edition of this book may not contain all of the images found in the physical edition.




Seven Rules for Sustainable Communities


Book Description

Questions of how the design of cities can respond to the challenge of climate change dominate the thoughts of urban planners and designers across the U.S. and Canada. With admirable clarity, Patrick Condon responds to these questions. He addresses transportation, housing equity, job distribution, economic development, and ecological systems issues and synthesizes his knowledge and research into a simple-to-understand set of urban design recommendations. No other book so clearly connects the form of our cities to their ecological, economic, and social consequences. No other book takes on this breadth of complex and contentious issues and distills them down to such convincing and practical solutions.




The Infrastructure of Play


Book Description

Using in-depth case studies, this volume shows how the infrastructure of tourism has transformed cities throughout North America. It makes clear that the modern urban environment is being thoroughly altered to emphasize the growing tourism sector in such areas as renovated waterfronts.




Urban Planning in a Changing World


Book Description

Urban planning in today's world is inextricably linked to the processes of mass urbanization and modernization which have transformed our lives over the last hundred years. Written by leading experts and commentators from around the world, this collection of original essays will form an unprecedented critical survey of the state of urban planning at the end of the millennium.




Nature-First Cities


Book Description

Nature belongs in cities, but how do we put nature first without pushing people aside? Nature-First Cities reveals the false dichotomy of that question by recognizing that people and nature are indivisible. Western urbanization has meant the ongoing expulsion of nature, which is engendering biodiversity loss and inequality, thwarting economic potential, and affecting health. This volume instead applies the science and practice of nature-directed stewardship to cities. Tested through case studies, this methodology for urban ecosystem restoration is uniquely effective at revitalizing our strained cities. Nature is woven into networks, distributed equitably across neighbourhoods, and partnered with the urban density that is essential for addressing the climate crisis. Nature-First Cities offers a practical framework for urban planning that reinforces our place in nature both physically, by ensuring that cities are replete with biodiversity and intact ecosystems, and conceptually, by rebalancing our relationships with the planet and with one another




The Life of North American Suburbs


Book Description

This book chronicles and explains the role of suburbs in North American cities since the mid-twentieth century. Examining fifteen case studies from New York to Vancouver, Atlanta to Chicago, Montreal to Phoenix, The Life of North American Suburbs traces the insightful connection between the evolution of suburbs and the cultural dynamics of modern society. Suburbs are uniquely significant spaces: their creation and evolution reflect the shifting demographics, race relations, modes of production, cultural fabric, and class structures of society at large. The case studies investigate the place of suburbs within their wider metropolitan constellations: the crucial role they play in the cultural, economic, political, and spatial organization of the city. Together, the chapters paint a compelling portrait of North American cities and their dynamic suburban landscapes.