The Death and Life of the Single-Family House: Lessons from Vancouver on Building a Livable City

by Nathanael Lauster

Overview

Vancouver today is recognized as one of the most livable cities in the world as well as an international model for sustainability and urbanism. Single-family homes in this city are “a dying breed.” Most people live in the various low-rise and high-rise urban alternatives throughout the metropolitan area.

The Death and Life of the Single-Family House explains how residents in Vancouver attempt to make themselves at home without a house. Local sociologist Nathanael Lauster has painstakingly studied the city’s dramatic transformation to curb sprawl. He tracks the history of housing and interviews residents about the cultural importance of the house as well as the urban problems it once appeared to solve.

Although Vancouver’s built environment is unique, Lauster argues that it was never predestined by geography or demography. Instead, regulatory transformations enabled the city to renovate, build over, and build around the house. Moreover, he insists, there are lessons here for the rest of North America. We can start building our cities differently, and without sacrificing their livability.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781439913949
Publisher:	Temple University Press
Publication date:	11/02/2016
Series:	Urban Life, Landscape and Policy
Edition description:	1
Pages:	262
Sales rank:	887,182
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Nathanael Lauster is an Associate Professor of Sociology at University of British Columbia. He is the co-editor (with Graham Allan) of The End of Children?  Changing Trends in Childbearing and Childhood.

Table of Contents

List of Figures and Tables ix

Acknowledgments xi

Introduction 1

1 What's a House? 12

2 What's the Problem? 40

3 Bringing the House to Life in Vancouver 57

4 The Death of the House in Vancouver? 87

5 Inhabiting the Greenest City 123

6 What Do Houses Do Best? 149

7 At Home in the City 175

8 Habitat for Diversity 199

Appendix: Data and Methods 215

References 221

Index 239