City: Rediscovering the Center

William H. Whyte

Published by University of Pennsylvania Press 2009

City

Rediscovering the Center

William H. Whyte
With contributions by: Paco Underhill

https://doi.org/10.9783/9780812208344

Overview
Contents

About this book

In a challenging and provocative book, William Whyte, author of the classic The Organization Man, observes the influence public spaces have on the people who use them. In this exploration of pedestrian behavior and urban dynamics, he calls on city planners to provide functional, pleasant places to live and work.

Author / Editor information

William H. Whyte (1917-1999), author of the bestselling Organization Man, also available from the University of Pennsylvania Press, was born in Pennsylvania and educated at Princeton. Paco Underhill, founder, CEO, and president of Envirosell, is the author of Why We Buy: The Science of Shopping and Call of the Mall: The Geography of Shopping.

Reviews

"City punctures commonplace assumptions about urban life in virtually every chapter. . . . There is genuine brilliance here."—New York Times

"Informal, spontaneous interactions give the modern city its vitality, so Whyte's enemies are urban planners who evince disregard and even contempt for street life. Part meditation, part design manual, this marvelously observant tour of cities will please anyone who cares about urban livability."—Publishers Weekly

"City is written in clear, straightforward, and vivid prose. . . . Whyte bubbles over with data. . . . He is an authentic visionary."—Los Angeles Times

"We who hug the city to us by instinct are grateful to Whyte for providing us with a hundred—a thousand—arguments for doing so."—New Yorker

"Whyte's Street Life Project studied the use of urban spaces for 16 years. This follow-up to The Social Life of Small Urban Spaces is an engaging look at the variety of human interactions which make 'downtown' vibrant. Whyte looks at such diverse topics as pedestrian movement, concourses and skyways, sunlight and its effects—all from the perspective of a confirmed city-lover. His observations and recommendations can be read with profit and pleasure by professional planners and readers interested in what makes a city tick."—Library Journal

Topics

Frontmatter Publicly Available Download PDF	i
CONTENTS Publicly Available Download PDF	ix
Foreword Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	xi
1. Introduction Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	1
2. The Social Life of the Streets Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	8
3. Street People Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	25
4. The Skilled Pedestrian Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	56
5. The Physical Street Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	68
6. The Sensory Street Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	79
7. The Design of Spaces Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	103
8. Water, Wind, Trees, and Light Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	132
9. The Management of Spaces Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	141
10. The Undesirables Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	156
11. Carrying Capacity Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	165
12. Steps and Entrances Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	174
13. Concourses and Skyways Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	193
14. Megastructures Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	206
15. Blank Walls Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	222
16. The Rise and Fall of Incentive Zoning Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	229
17. Sun and Shadow Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	256
18. Bounce Light Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	267
19. Sun Easements Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	276
20. The Corporate Exodus Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	284
21. The Semi-Cities Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	298
22. How to Dullify Downtown Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	310
23. Tightening Up Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	317
24. The Case for Gentrification Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	325
25. Return to the Agora Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	331
Appendix A. Digest of Open-Space Zoning Provisions in New York City Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	343
Appendix B. Mandating of Retailing at Street Level Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	348
Notes Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	350
Bibliography Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	367
Index Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	378
Acknowledgments Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	387

(Deutsch)

Language: English
Publisher: University of Pennsylvania Press
Audience: College/higher education;
Pages
- Main content: 408
Illustrations
- Other: 95 illus.
Keywords: Sociology; Urban Studies

eBook

Published: September 10, 2012
ISBN: 9780812208344