Sprawl Kills r eveals what land developers and home builders don't want you, the 'average' American, to hear, and corrupt politicians don't want you to know. It debunks the 'American Dream' where success means piloting gas-guzzling SUV's to oozing honeycombs in blandburbs developed by greedy developers under the guise of a better life- meaning a large house in which to mollify yourself that a thirty-minute drive to the grocery store is a sane trade-off. Sprawl is more than subdivisions- it is a culture of super-sized homes for super-sized people- it is automobile apartheid- it is a mindset of social isolation. Worst of all, sprawl is causing a phenomena known as Sedentary Death Syndrome that is killing 400,000 Americans yearly.

Sprawl Kills is a hard-hitting book with a new market approach for replacing sprawl with Healthy Places- mixed-use communities that promote active living. It explains why America is balanced precariously on the edge of a cliff, teetering as it looks at two distinct futures. One where citizens are empowered as consumers and voters get real housing, community and transportation choices for leading healthier, physically active lives, while the other is fraught with obesity, exclusion, worsening traffic, and disappearing greenspace. You will learn how to fight corrupt sprawl politics, identify sprawl shills, and kill sprawl before it kills you.


What they are saying:
"With the insight gained from his years observing the nation's State Governors, Dr. Hirschhorn dissects the influence of what he calls the ‘sprawl lobby’ like few writers have. Whether you like sprawl or hate it, you'll certainly wonder whether the back-room perversion of local land markets that Dr. Hirschhorn describes is the best way to shape our communities or help families achieve the American dream." 
--Don Chen, Executive Director Smart Growth America

"A brash, hard-hitting account of the forces that encourage sprawl and their impact on human health and well-being."
--Dr. Howard Frumkin, Professor of Medicine, Emory Medical School

“We all know how sprawl devours our landscape and wastes our cultural, natural and economic resources, but there is plenty of convincing, and alarming, evidence that poorly planned, car-focused development poses a very real threat to our health and the quality of our lives. Joel Hirschhorn’s passionately presented insights on the workings of the “sprawl industry” prove insightful and useful to everyone who wants communities that are truly livable.” 
--Richard Moe, President, National Trust for Historic Preservation

"This book will help Americans understand the price of development and think more holistically about their neighbors and communities."
--Fred Kent, President, Project for Public Spaces