Customer Reviews

Fortress America: Gated Communities in the United States

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Blakely and Snyders's FORTRESS AMERICA was a very interesting look at the growing trend of gated communities. The book was very well organized and presented. It was written in a clear and understandable manner, and based on solid research. The book indentifies types of gated communities, the reasons behind them, and the problems associated with them. The authors exaime the pros and cons and myths and realities of the gated community in America. It makes an excellent research tool or an interseting read for anyone interested in urban geography/ sociology, or city planning.

I found this book to be of some interest, as I served on the board of my HOA for many years. Many of the conversations covered in the book brought back familiar stories that I encountered: Few homeowners participate, communications problems amongst board members, and a general lack of enthusiasm by the community for interaction. But I did not find the book to be a great book, by far. I would recommend "Privatopia," by Even McKenzie every day of the week over it. There, you will find a much more thorough coverage of the history of common interest developments in the the U.S. and Britain. And there, you will find much more insight into the hows and whys of the growth of the industry. In the "Fortress America" book, what starts out well seems to just fizzle in the second half of the book, as if everything has already been said. What neither book covers well is the "industry" that surrounds these gated communities and/or the politics at the local, state or national level concerning the current and future laws for gated communities. Maybe the whole subject has become "old hat," but I think that there could still be a fascinating coverage of the industry, certainly done better than in "Fortress America." There is a classic overview of the first Sun City in Arizona in a book called "Prime Time," by Marc Freedman.

This is a response to Irving, Texas. The book contains plenty of crime statistic, in fact the best ones available. Perhaps the reviewr is talking about a diferent book.

The Authors

The authors of "Fortress America" had the resources and effort to put together a very good book on the subject of gated communities. Unfortunately they also had such a strong desire to prove their point that they fail to include the most relevant information... crime statistics.

One wonders what else wasn't mentioned.

I've studied the "Gated Community" debates for years, professionally, and this book hasn't a single original idea in it--the research is rehash, the conclusions tepid, and the writing itself is sallow at best, and sophmoric otherwise. One suspects this project was designed for Ivory Tower purposes, as the authors give no indication of ever having been involved in Urban Planning in any way--a necessary prerequisite for a monograph such as this, I'm afraid.

... MY suggestion to the potential reader is to simply relfect on the obvious issues at stake in any discussion of Gated Communities, and *think*--for the present volume is sorely lacking in intellectual rigor as well.