UA Offers Community Development Lecture by Author, City Planner

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — The University of Alabama Honors College and Center for Ethics and Social Responsibility will host a lecture by author Jeff Speck at 6:30 p.m. Monday, Nov. 4, at the Dinah Washington Cultural Arts Center.

Speck, an internationally known city planner and architectural designer, will be discussing the importance of walkability to a downtown community.

The lecture is free and open to the public.

Speck most recently wrote “Walkable City: How Downtown Can Save America One Step at a Time.” He also co-wrote “Suburban Nation: The Rise of Sprawl and the Decline of the American Dream” and “The Smart Growth Manual.”

Through his writing and lectures, Speck is an international advocate for smart growth and sustainable design. He has worked on hundreds of city plans, including Baton Rouge, La., and Rosemary Beach, Fla.

He serves on the Sustainability Task Force for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and as a contributing editor to Metropolis Magazine. He previously served as the director of design for the National Endowment for the Arts, where he oversaw the Mayor’s Institute on City Design and created the Governor’s Institute on Community Design, a federal program that helps state governors fight suburban sprawl.

The Dinah Washington Cultural Arts Center is at Seventh Street and Greensboro Avenue in downtown Tuscaloosa.