The New Urbanism is the only distinctly American architectural movement of the 20th Century that systemically critiqued the conventional urban planning patterns of the post-war period. The University of Miami Libraries Architecture Research Center Archives is the sole repository for collecting and housing materials documenting this movement that impacted the discourse on urbanization theories and town planning. The principles of the movement were articulated in 1994 in the Charter of the Congress for The New Urbanism. The Congress for the New Urbanism, an organization that promotes walkable, mixed-use neighborhood development and sustainable communities was recognized by the New York Times as "…the most important phenomenon to emerge in American Architecture in the post-Cold-War era."
The New Urbanism movement, which signaled a turning point from the segregated planning and architecture of post-war America to a return to historic principles of traditional town planning, became the focus of a series of contested dialogues not just among architects, planners and developers, but among historians, environmentalists and policy makers as well. The movement continues to influence the principles of town planning and design, and spark debate among its advocates and critics as evidenced in the public fora thirty years following its inception.
This collection includes drawings, project folios, books and manuscripts, periodicals, article clippings, correspondence, videos, CDs, DVDs, audio cassettes and other materials related to New Urbanism theory, writing, and design.