List number one: Principles for Livable Communities

In yesterday's Baltimore Sun, Gordon Ingerson writes in "Let's start building a better Baltimore," about the principles of a livable communitiy based on the American Institute of Architects "Principles for Livable Communities," which are focused on the neighborhood level of planning and building.

1. Design on a human scale: Compact, pedestrian-friendly communities should be promoted.

2. Provide choices: A city thrives on variety in housing, shopping, recreation, transportation and employment.

3. Encourage mixed-use development: Integrating different land uses and varied building types allows people to work and play near where they live.

4. Preserve urban centers: Restore, revitalize and "infill" areas where the city's heart beats.

5. Provide various transportation options: Give people the opportunity to walk, bike or use transit.

6. Build vibrant public spaces: Public places should be welcoming and well-defined.

7. Create a neighborhood identity: A unique character makes a neighborhood stronger.

8. Protect environmental resources: The needs of nature and development should be balanced.

9. Conserve landscapes: Open space and wildlife habitat should be accommodated and preserved.

10. Design matters: Communities result from a series of intentional design decisions; therefore, each decision matters.
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I think ordering matters. I would have changed the ordering quite a bit:

4. Preserve urban centers: Restore, revitalize and "infill" areas where the city's heart beats.

2. Provide choices: A city thrives on variety in housing, shopping, recreation, transportation and employment.

5. Provide various transportation options: Give people the opportunity to walk, bike or use transit.

10. Design matters: Communities result from a series of intentional design decisions; therefore, each decision matters.

1. Design on a human scale: Compact, pedestrian-friendly communities should be promoted.

6. Build vibrant public spaces: Public places should be welcoming and well-defined.

7. Create a neighborhood identity: A unique character makes a neighborhood stronger. [I would change the wording here to: Maintain and strengthen neighborhood identity.]

3. Encourage mixed-use development: Integrating different land uses and varied building types allows people to work and play near where they live.

8. Protect environmental resources: The needs of nature and development should be balanced.

9. Conserve landscapes: Open space and wildlife habitat should be accommodated and preserved.