Building for People: Designing Livable, Affordable, Low-Carbon Communities

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Picture a beautiful, green neighborhood where most of your needs could be met by walking, rolling, or accessing transit. There is a diversity of housing types with abundant affordable and middle-income options. Schools, services, and pedestrianized streets make the neighborhood family friendly. As cities turn brownfields into green fields and look to maximize public investment in transit and infrastructure, ecodistricts are the answer. Eliason shows that this type of affordable, climate-adaptive living option is possible anywhere.
In Building for People, architect and ecodistrict planner Michael Eliason makes the case for low-carbon ecodistricts and presents tools for developing these residential and mixed-use quarters or neighborhoods. Drawing from his experience working in Europe and North America, he shows the potential for new climate-adaptive ecodistricts that directly and equitably address our housing shortages while simultaneously planning for climate change. Eliason explains that to create highly livable places with a low carbon impact, ecodistricts must incorporate ample social housing for a good economic and social mix of residents, invest in open space, create infrastructure that can adapt to a changing climate, and offer car-free or car-light realms. He also looks at how public health, livability, climate adaptation, and quality of life are interconnected.
Full-color photos and illustrations show what is possible in ecodistricts around the world, drawing heavily from examples in German cities.
Building for People shows professionals involved in regulating, planning, or designing our communities that high-quality, low-carbon living is within reach.

From the Publisher

From Chapter 3: The Productive District

Figure 3.1 from chapter 3: The Productive District from Michael Eliason’s book, Building for People: Designing Livable, Affordable, Low-Carbon Communities

From Chapter 6: Planning the Ecodistrict

Figure 6.1 from chapter 6: Planning the Ecodistrict from Michael Eliason’s book, Building for People: Designing Livable, Affordable, Low-Carbon Communities

Vienna’s Seestadt Aspern is the result of an international urban planning competition with public dialogue. Planning competitions typically result in higher-quality places. (Credit: Lukasz Karnas)

From Chapter 8: Mobility and the District of Short Distances

Figure 8-6 from chapter 8: Mobility and the District of Short Distances from Michael Eliason’s book, Building for People: Designing Livable, Affordable, Low-Carbon Communities

Mobility hubs can serve as flexible parking garages, with uses that can evolve over time as car ownership and usage decrease. This can include bikeshare and bike repair shops, daycare facilities, community amenities, youth centers, and other symbiotic functions. (Credit: Michael Eliason/Larch Lab)

From Chapter 16: Active Resilience with Passive House

Figure 16.1 from chapter 16: Active Resilience with Passive House from Michael Eliason’s book, Building for People: Designing Livable, Affordable, Low-Carbon Communities

Passive House is a fabric-first approach to energy efficiency, resulting in unparalleled thermal comfort, air quality, and energy efficiency. (Credit: Michael Eliason/Larch Lab)

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Island Press
Publication date ‏ : ‎ December 12, 2024
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Print length ‏ : ‎ 222 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1642833134
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1642833133
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.42 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 8 x 0.5 x 10.5 inches
Best Sellers Rank: #586,795 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #26 in Architectural Codes & Standards #123 in Sustainability & Green Design #163 in Urban & Land Use Planning (Books)
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