The Last Landscape [Paperback]

The remaining corner of an old farm, unclaimed by developers. The brook squeezed between housing plans. Abandoned railroad lines. The stand of woods along an expanded highway. These are the outposts of what was once a larger pattern of forests and farms, the last landscape. According to William H. Whyte, the place to work out the problems of our metropolitan areas is within those areas, not outside them. The age of unchecked expansion without consequence is over, but where there is waste and neglect there is opportunity. Our cities and suburbs are not jammed; they just look that way. There are in fact plenty of ways to use this existing space to the benefit of the community, andThe Last Landscapeprovides a practical and timeless framework for making informed decisions about its use.

Called the best study available on the problems of open space by theNew York Timeswhen it first appeared in 1968,The Last Landscapeintroduced many cornerstone ideas for land conservation, urging all of us to make better use of the land that has survived amid suburban sprawl. Whyte's pioneering work on easements led to the passage of major open space statutes in many states, and his argument for using and linking green spaces, however small the areas may be, is a recommendation that has more currency today than ever before.

Foreword, by Tony Hiss

1. Introduction
2. The Politics of Open Space

THE DEVICES
3. The Police Power
4. The Fee Simple
5. Easements
6. The Tax Approach
7. Defending Open Space

THE PLANS
8. The Year 2000 Plans
9. The Green Belts
10. Linkage
11. The Design of Nature

DEVELOPMENT
12. Cluster Development
13. The New Towns
14. The Project Look
15. Play Areas and Small Spaces

LANDSCAPE ACTION
16. The Plan of the Landscape
17. Scenic Roads
18. Roadsides
19. Townscape

DESIGN AND DENSITY
20. The Case for Crowding
21. The Last Landscape

Biblc<