Visioning and Visualization – People, Pixels, and Plans

This book will assist urban professionals, public sector leaders, and the public to navigate two complex and evolving fields: public involvement and digital visualization as applied to planning. It suggests ways that digital visualization tools can be integrated in a public process to present participants with clear choices and help them make informed planning decisions. Based on the authors’ experiences in developing sophisticated public involvement processes and applying 3D GIS-based simulation and visualization tools to planning and design, the book features more than 100 color illustrations and case studies of four communities: Santa Fe, Houston, Kona (Hawaii), and Baltimore. 

About the Author :
Michael Kwartler, an architect, planner, urban designer, and educator, is the founding director of the Environmental Simulation Center (ESC) in New York City, a nonprofit research laboratory created to develop innovative applications of information technology for community planning, design, and decision making.
Gianni Longo is an architect and founding principal of ACP–Visioning & Planning in New York City. For the past two decades, he has pioneered the development of programs designed to involve citizens in the planning and decision-making process. 

Review :
“The authors focus on the use of visualization software packages in enhancing public participation in urban design and redesign—not just in 'visioning,' but in actual planning, design, implementation, and subsequent fine-tuning...Especially for those not yet deeply involved with these technologies, this book will serve as a useful introduction.” “This book is aptly rife with large, color images that help convey the authors’ main idea: visuals are essential to planning with the community. When aided by the effective use of visualization tools, public participants are also more effectively responsive, simply because the information is straightforward and manipulatable. Visioning and Visualization is an excellent guide on how such potential can be attained through current technologies.” “We have come a long way since ‘planning by crayon’ and ‘planning by edict.’ This book richly illustrates state-of-the-art planning tools for public involvement, visualization, and simulation that truly are best practices.” “Finally, a coherent approach to community visioning that will serve as a valuable tool in building consensus across multiple stakeholders. This book will aid neighborhood leaders in demystifying the complex issues of urban planning and the built environment. It is a practical and adaptable set of methods to formulate and then visualize a set of strategies to inform equitable revitalization and redevelopment.” “Visioning and Visualization knits together several heretofore separately documented strands on the leading edge of today’s successful planning. Community-based participatory planning is presented as a core method, not just an add-on activity, as the “who” strand. Vision-driven strategic planning is the ‘what’ strand; and the new visualizing tools and technologies provide the ‘how’ strand. Underlying these is a whole-system, world view of the future in a values matrix, framing the ‘why’ strand of planning. The result is a thoughtful, creative, and hopeful vision for our democratic commons supported by an empowering, accessible new technology. In short, this clearly written beautifully produced book presents a whole tapestry of public planning the way it should be, can be, and sometimes actually is.”