Barnett Jonathan. - Ecodesign for Cities and Suburbs

In one place, at least, an improved growth model started with a very simple idea: to bring homes and workplaces closer together. Back in the 1980s in Vancouver, on Canadas west coast, in a delta crisscrossed by branches of its river and by many inlets from the sea, there was a big worry about huge costs for new roads and bridges. Civic leaders decided it would be cheaper and easier to cluster population growth into a few dense town centers than pay for the expensive infrastructure needed to support sprawl. They believed that this was especially relevant in the inner city where most jobs were located. This inner city sits on a large peninsula, and it had lots of room to grow by replacing obsolete rail yards and industrial areas. The idea took off and morphed into a rich and full vision of a fresh way to live in North America, adding progressive notions about livability, environmental compatibility, fiscal management, entrepreneurial governance, and inclusive public engagement as well as an emphasis on elegant urban design. Then, in the early 1990s, an influx of new investment turned these ideas into action, and the whole inner city was quickly and dramatically transformed, creating what has been popularly dubbed Vancouverism.

The results are now there for all to see (figure ).

In Vancouvers inner city, there is an emphasis on amenity: attractive architecture and landscape, protected views of mountains and water, shelter from the weather, cultural and community facilities, nightlife, a vivacious sidewalk culture, and a domestic feel in neighborhoods (figure ). Almost all the cost of this commonwealth of amenities is secured from new projects as developer contributions, and almost no capital funds have had to be drawn from the tax base or public borrowing.

Shorelines in Vancouver have been reconstructed to regenerate marine life. The local landscape now hosts urban wildlife. Waste recycling is pervasive. District energy plants are being expanded. One neighborhood, the former Athletes Village for the 2010 Olympics, has a LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Platinum Neighborhood certification because of advanced systems for managing waste, water, and energy. Prime agriculture land is protected throughout the region, and the overall prevailing density of the region is about twice that of Seattle, Washington, a similar-sized U.S. city nearby. Vancouvers core city is as close to carbon neutral as any place in North America.

Hundreds of thousands of people were involved in designing the overall plan and the area plans for Vancouvers inner city, but the city government has taken the leadership role and facilitated a widely supported vision. The whole place is carefully and comprehensively planned, and the entire structure of regulations has been reinvented. In this new kind of regulatory regime, there are few fixed rules for Vancouvers development management, although the urban design intentions for the core city are among the most articulated and codified in the world. Regulations are flexible and offer incentive opportunities. Development is seen as a privilege rather than a right, and decisions are negotiated. There is peer review and public review of all proposals, and all specific development approvals are made in public outside the political context of the city council. The politicians adopt the plans and policies and audit the processes, but day-to-day decisions on development applications are made by experienced professionals with careful input of citizens, peers, and proponents.