Urban Coding And Planning: Annotated Bibliography

Annotative Bibliography
Marshall, S. (Ed.). (2011). Urban Coding and Planning. Abingdon: Routledge.
The author and the contributors: The book consists of 12 chapters authored by ten different people, put in together by the editor, Stephen Marshall. First of all, Nick green wrote about the rebuilding of the city of London after various fires. In the next chapter, Mc Kean talks about the use of codes in context of various leaseholders over time. Jean-François lejeune addresses the use of coding exercise in the making of the cities of Latin America. Next is, Vibhuti Sachdev explaining the Vastu Vidya practice in India. In the chapter 6, Qinghai Guo address the inter-relationship of coding and planning in historical background in the city of Beijing.

Well-grounded, the book utilises the commonalities and differences illustrated in the comparative studies of British and American theory and practice of urban design and planning.
The book envisions to educate the professionals about the common communal spaces as how important they are and how they can be efficiently designed. The author explains the importance of three dimensional principles of urban design to address planning issues to further effectively envisage place-making. The book simply focusses on improving town planning practice and implementation of ideas. Also, the idea of form-based codes is discussed intensely in the chapters of this book. Another highlight of the book is when the author quotes “Codes must focus on form, not use.” which gives an idea of the comparison between conventional zoning and form–based coding. The author tries to explain that “Even the best master plans are of little use without regulations”. He focuses on the fact that Use-Based Zoning does not consider the built form and every element is a function of use and thus, fail to address the newer developments and no consideration given to how it feels to inhabit these places hampering the effective growth of any

As described by the author “the book is an attack on current city planning and rebuilding.” Through this intense piece of work, Jacobs tries to establish grounds for orientation on the current condition of the cities, especially which were aloof of urban renewal. She firmly advocates the fact that diversity is essential in keep cities alive and safe. She has quoted all her life experiences while she moved across the streets whether in a posh area or a ghetto. This book is an alarm for the urban planners to understand the functionality of the city, most importantly from the sociological point of view. Also, how cities are failing in the endeavour of better urban life, where the life is actually missing in the whole picture. It is also a critical slaughter of democratic processes and public engagement. The most valuable element of this work is that this book is recommended read for all, be it decision makers, professional, planners, architects or simply,