New York Neighborhoods ─ Addressing Sustainable City Principles

This book examines the neighborhoods of New York City to determine to what extent planning in New York addresses Sustainable City Principles (SCPs). Part I looks at the background to planning urban areas in the face of global urban changes. These changes (i.e. population movements and densification of cities) are placing pressures on cities worldwide. Chapter 1 provides a background to these global pressures (i.e. population growth) and their implications. Chapter 2 looks closer at New York planning and introduces Sustainable City Principles (SCPs). Part II introduces nine selected neighborhoods within Manhattan and examines to what extent planning of these neighborhoods addresses the SCPs. For each chapter a neighborhood background is provided and results of the author’s field survey are reviewed. Part III examines the selected neighborhoods within Brooklyn to determine to what extent planning of those neighborhoods addresses the SCPs. Part IV examines the last three neighborhoods (in Queens) and addresses the SCPs. Part V examines conclusions reached from examining the nine neighborhoods. These conclusions are used to determine the extent that the City Council (and the community) are addressing SCPs in planning neighborhoods. Finally, lessons learned from these conclusions are assessed for their relevance to planning neighborhoods anywhere in the world.

?Dr. Raymond Charles Rauscher is a conjoint lecturer at the University of Newcastle, Australia, and a director of Habitat Association for Arts and Environment Inc. Delving into the subject of sustainable urban planning (SUP), Ray completed a PhD (2009) at the University of Newcastle. Ray has at various times lived and worked within the three Greater Sydney Districts that the book focuses on – Sydney Inner West, Greater Parramatta, and St George. Being born in Brooklyn, New York City (1943), he graduated from the City College of New York (Bachelor of Engineering, Civil, 1966). Later, he completed a master’s degree (commencing) at the University of Michigan (research submission on Detroit entitled A Solution to the Urban Crisis: Proposal for the Creation of Region Serving New Cities (unpublished 1969). A Masters of Town and Country Planning was completed at Sydney University (1971) with a thesis Community Response to a Redevelopment Proposal (University of Sydney Library Microfilm Dept.). The thesis covered planning conflicts in Erskineville and Newtown (Sydney), and measures to resolve these.3 Ray has been a member of the Australian based Social Developers Network (SDN). The Network commenced at the time (late) PM Gough Whitlam (1972-1975) and (late) Tom Uren (Minister for Planning and Regional Development under the PM). Both of these renowned Australians introduced environmental and social bases to urban planning (Ray worked in a Federal program at the time). A number of those Whitlam government planning initiatives have proven pivotal to development of all three districts that the book addresses.