Designing Sustainable Communities: Learning From Village Homes

by Michael Corbett, Michael N. Corbett, Robert L. Thayer (Foreword)

The movement toward creating more sustainable communities has been growing for decades, and in recent years has gained new prominence with the increasing visibility of planning approaches such as the New Urbanism. Yet there are few examples of successful and time-tested sustainable communities. Village Homes outside of Davis, California offers one such example. Built between 1975 and 1981 on 60 acres of land, it offers unique features including extensive common areas and green space; community gardens, orchards, and vineyards; narrow streets; pedestrian and bike paths; solar homes; and an innovative ecological drainage system. Authors Judy and Michael Corbett were intimately involved with the design, development, and building of Village Homes, and have resided there since 1977. In Designing Sustainable Communities , they examine the history of the sustainable community movement and discuss how Village Homes fits into the context of that movement. They offer an inside look at the development of the project from start to finish, describing how the project came about, obstacles that needed to be overcome, design approaches they took, problems that were encountered and how those problems were solved, and changes that have occurred over the years. In addition, they compare Village Homes with other communities and developments across the country, and discuss the future prospects for the continued growth of the sustainable communities movement. The book offers detailed information on a holistic approach to designing and building successful communities. It represents an invaluable guide for professionals and students involved with planning, architecture, development, and landscape architecture, and for anyone interested increating more sustainable communities.

Genres: Urban Design, Design

254 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 1999

Reviews

[Sabastian Hunt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Synopsis/Summary:
The author uses the Garden City model to describe her approach to sustainable development, drawing from her experience in Village Homes, a 60-acre garden village community in Davis, CA. The book details the planning, property acquisition, design principles, and final layout, while addressing broader concepts such as water management and the incorporation of mixed-use spaces.

Why I chose to read the book:
I wanted to read this as part of my education for the Agrihood design series I’m hosting.

What I liked about the book:
The book offered practical insights into the planning and development process for sustainable communities, using real-world examples. I appreciated the author's first-hand account of Village Homes and how it illustrated the application of Garden City principles to a functioning community.

What I disliked about the book:
At times, the book felt overly prescriptive, as the author appeared deeply embedded in California liberal ideals, which made the solutions seem less flexible or applicable to broader contexts. It seems like a big Socialist Calculation Problem to me.

Concepts/Ideas Introduced:
- Garden City model adapted for mixed-use developments
- Garden Village/Neighborhood
- Constructed Wetlands
- Water management strategies and sustainable urban design
- Transfer fees for home sales as a financial model for maintaining community resources

Interesting Anecdotes:
- The City of Schaumburg, IL created a development plan and sold the development rights, requiring developers to adhere to the city's vision.
- The use of transfer fees in home sales can serve to fund various community needs, a model also referenced in Village Homes.
- The green spaces of some of the pocket neighborhoods within Village Homes are collectively managed by pocket neighborhood residents.

Things this book made me understand better/deeper:
I gained a deeper understanding and appreciation for onsite water management and the numerous ways it can be integrated into a community's design and just how difficult it can be to work with Planning.

Opinions updated/changed/Disconfirmation:
My previous understanding of Garden City developments was expanded by seeing how they can be adapted to allow for mixed-use areas, including light industrial and manufacturing, near residential zones.

Ideas I got while reading:
Surprisingly no new ideas just obvious ways for how to adapt some of the ideas in this book to a project I’m working on.

Memorable quotes:

A lot of our problems are caused by solutions- John Norquist

Where physical barriers do not provide enough privacy, social barriers develop as substitutes.

The designer must be able to arrange spaces to evoke a desired feeling just as the poet arranges words to evoke a desired feeling - paraphrase.


Taking Action:
The book has made me think more deeply about how to incorporate water management strategies into my own Agrihood designs and consider alternative financial models for sustaining long-term community health.

Chewing on/Food for thought:
What would Jane Jacobs think? The author agrees with and quotes Jacobs who was highly critical of the Garden City model. It's interesting to consider how Jacobs' ideas on urban vitality could be merged with the sustainable ideals of Village Homes.

Readings referenced (ones that come to mind):
- Jane Jacobs' works on urbanism and her critique of the Garden City model
- The Ahwahnee Principles
- Several others that I didn’t write down

6 month+ rating:


Note: I took unstructured notes and had ChatGPT organize the notes into the above standard format above.

[Sierra Luce · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a mixed bag for me. I knew basically nothing about this topic, and really liked learning about all the different ways that urban planners can design communities in ways that are ecologically responsible. I wish they had focused more on economic justice issues, and I am really curious how a lot of the ideas they use change physical accessibility. There were some assumptions that they made about what’s good for a community and the design of a community that I didn’t agree with or that weren’t explained, and I wish there was more context for those. Overall, I liked it though and learned a lot! And want to visit Village homes :)

[Annette Dunham · Rating 4 out of 5]

Visiting friends in California and we are going to visit this 60 acre village. I can't wait to experience what I read about. Wish we had more places like Village homes around us.