Larry Beasley

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Larry Beasley, CM (born 12 May 1948) is an internationally known urban planner. [1] Formerly Co-director of Planning for the City Of Vancouver in British Columbia, Canada, [2] he is largely credited with the transformation of its downtown core along New Urbanism lines, known as Vancouverism or "The Vancouver Model". [3]

Contents

Career

Beasley moved to Vancouver in 1968. [4] He worked as a neighbourhood planner, overseeing large developments in the 1990s and 2000s. [5]

In 2004, he was made a Member of the Order of Canada in recognition for having "played a leading role in transforming" Vancouver's "downtown core into a vibrant, livable urban community". [6] Since retiring from public service, Beasley has been engaged in community initiatives, including the Institute for Canadian Citizenship, an organization created by former Governor General Adrienne Clarkson following her term of office. At that time he became chair of the National Capital Commission's advisory committee on planning, design and realty in Ottawa, and held that position until 2016. [7]

In September 2009 Larry Beasley was invited to Rotterdam as a guest urban critic by the Van der Leeuwkring, a group of Rotterdam-based project developers aiming to make public life benefit from their private investments. Beasley gives talks internationally about the urban planning, [8] and has also provided planning advice to the Abu Dhabi government. [9]

With Jonathan Barnett he co-authored the book Ecodesign for Cities and Suburbs published in 2015 by Island Press. [10]

Beasley was a professor at University of British Columbia's School of Community and Regional Planning. [11]

In 2017 Beasley was hired by the city of Brampton, Ontario, to develop a plan for future development of the sprawling metropolis. [12] A year later, he published a 100-page document describing his vision of Brampton in 2040. [1]

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References

  1. 1 2 "This is what Brampton could look like in 2040". Toronto Star, By Fatima Syed, May 7, 2018
  2. "Don’t Let the City and Development Endanger Vancouver’s Mountain Views". The Tyee, Sandy James 24 Jul 2018
  3. "After Vancouverism: a conversation with Larry Beasley at the Gwerk Salon". Jordan Yerman, Vancouver Observer, Apr 18th, 2014
  4. "Walk this way: Vancouver urbanist Larry Beasley leads city tour". Vancouver Courier, Naoibh O’Connor, May 4, 2017
  5. "Critics say new Vancouver policy will change city skyline ‘as we know it’". Frances Bula, VANCOUVER, The Globe and Mail, February 27, 2018
  6. Order of Canada citation
  7. "Exit interview: NCC adviser Larry Beasley on surviving the Harper government". Ottawa Citizen, Don Butler, March 27, 2016
  8. "Larry Beasley’s Simple Plan". Vancouver Magazine, December 1, 2008
  9. George-Cosh, David (April 13, 2008). "The man who built Vancouver has a grand plan for Abu Dhabi". The Province. Archived from the original on November 4, 2012. Retrieved 2008-04-15.
  10. "Ecodesign for Cities and Suburb". Island Press. Island Press. Retrieved 22 October 2015.
  11. "'Stark choices' for Vancouver if housing models don't change, expert says". CBC News · Mar 21, 2017
  12. searching for new vision after hire of urban planner". Toronto Star, By Fatima Syed, June 26, 2017