Zoned in the USA: The Origins and Implications of American Land-Use Regulation Contributor(s): Hirt, Sonia A. (Author) |
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ISBN: 0801453054 ISBN-13: 9780801453052 Publisher: Cornell University Press OUR PRICE: $128.70 Product Type: Hardcover - Other Formats Published: December 2014 |
Additional Information |
BISAC Categories: - Political Science | Public Policy - City Planning & Urban Development - Architecture | Urban & Land Use Planning - Law | Real Estate |
Dewey: 333.771 |
LCCN: 2014022378 |
Physical Information: 0.9" H x 6.2" W x 9.3" (1.05 lbs) 256 pages |
Themes: - Demographic Orientation - Urban |
Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
Publisher Description: Why are American cities, suburbs, and towns so distinct? Compared to European cities, those in the United States are characterized by lower densities and greater distances; neat, geometric layouts; an abundance of green space; a greater level of social segregation reflected in space; and--perhaps most noticeably--a greater share of individual, single-family detached housing. In Zoned in the USA, Sonia A. Hirt argues that zoning laws are among the important but understudied reasons for the cross-continental differences.Hirt shows that rather than being imported from Europe, U.S. municipal zoning law was in fact an institution that quickly developed its own, distinctly American profile. A distinct spatial culture of individualism--founded on an ideal of separate, single-family residences apart from the dirt and turmoil of industrial and agricultural production--has driven much of municipal regulation, defined land-use, and, ultimately, shaped American life. Hirt explores municipal zoning from a comparative and international perspective, drawing on archival resources and contemporary land-use laws from England, Germany, France, Australia, Russia, Canada, and Japan to challenge assumptions about American cities and the laws that guide them. |