Published Books

Title:	Placemaking On A Budget
Subtitle:	Improving Small Towns, Neighborhoods, and Downtowns Without Spending A Lot Of Money
Author(s):	Susan Jackson Harden, RBF Consulting Al Zelinka, RBF Consulting
Year Published:	December, 2005
Publisher:	The American Planning Association www.planning.org
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About the Book:
For more than five decades, the art of making places in our communities special and important to the people who live there has been tossed aside in favor of mass-produced, auto-dominated and "formula-style" Anywhere, USA development. As a country, we have been so focused on growing and building that engaging and involving community members in public and private projects also has been ill considered or deemed unnecessary. As a result, we are now faced with an expanse of communities that are not nurturing us * in many instances we have exchanged important pieces of our history, culture, and natural resources for cold and lifeless places with no heart or local identity.

Placemaking on a Budget is centered on two very important premises and written as an easy-to-use tool for people interested in adding meaning to their community's public spaces. The first premise is that through the public realm it is possible to enhance community identity and increase connections between people and between people and place. The second premise is that the old adage "time is money" also works in reverse * that the time invested in the careful identification of placemaking projects and the active involvement of people will result in money and other resources needed to bring ideas to life.

For the purposes of this publication, placemaking means: the process of adding value and meaning to the public realm through community-based revitalization projects rooted in local values, history, culture, and natural environment. "Placemaking" and "on a Budget" have been combined to not only articulate a process for redefining and rethinking about the places in which we live, but also for doing so in a way that is affordable and realistically attainable by communities with limited resources. Placemaking on a Budget: Improving Small Towns, Neighborhoods, and Downtowns Without Spending A Lot of Money is intended to provide planners, designers and citizens alike with a practical publication that can be readily used to realize placemaking efforts that make a difference in communities.

Title:	SafeScape
Subtitle:	Creating Safer, More Liveable Communities Through Planning and Design
Author(s):	Al Zelinka, RBF Consulting Dean Brennan, City of Phoenix
Year Published:	2001
Publisher:	The American Planning Association www.planning.org
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About the Book:
The built environment has a tremendous impact on public safety. Zelinka and Brennan's SafeScape principles challenge planners and citizens alike to create vibrant, integrated, self-policing, and sustainable communities.

The co-authors examine aspects of the urban environment that influence crime and the fear of crime and recommend strategies for building—or rebuilding—communities where residents feel safe and are safe. SafeScape communities empower citizens and offer many and varied opportunities for positive action. Their inherently safer design makes them easier and less costly to keep safe. Zelinka and Brennan focus on planning and design solutions that minimize opportunities for criminal and victim to come together. Throughout, they stress that these efforts will succeed only if they engage citizens, embrace diversity, and enhance a sense of community.

Personal observations, case studies, and hundreds of photographs from communities across America make SAFESCAPE an interesting, practical, and inspiring guide to safer, livelier, and more inviting communities. This is compelling reading for planners, designers, public safety professionals, and elected officials.