How a cornfield became New Daleville: A case study of housing on the exurban frontier

Witold Rybczynski, Martin & Margy Meyerson Professor of Urbanism in the School of Design and Professor in the Wharton School.

Dr. Rybczynski describes the creation of a residential subdivision in Pennsylvania's rural Chester County---from acquiring land, designing infrastructure, planning lot size, selecting builders, to the day the homeowners move in. This talk will thread together the causes of sprawl and exurban growth, the influence of zoning and community standards, and the reasons behind the dimensions of our kitchens and placement of our picket fences.

In addition to Last Harvest, Professor Rybczynski is the author of a dozen other highly acclaimed books. He contributes regularly onarchitecture and urbanism to the New York Times and is architecture critic for the on-line magazine Slate. He is also the founding co-editor of the Wharton Real Estate Review.

The luncheon is at 12:00 noon on Tuesday, April 27, 2010, in the Lenape Room of the University Club.