Sustaining Rural Place: Rethinking Design Principles for Social Sustainability in Rural America

Although the population of Rural America is declining, we will likely never live in a country that does not need rural communities to sustain our natural resources. The field of urban design has developed great strategies for creating livable communities, but they are not universal strategies. The design of rural towns and community places has been neglected from the conversation of urban design principles as they are not directly applicable because of Rural America\u27s lack of density which also results in an alternate social system. Through analysis of urban design principles and rural place making case studies, this thesis bridges the gap and finds that maximizing systems and prioritizing efficiency are the common elements of successful place making. In an effort to make these findings tangible to rural community leaders and design professionals working in rural communities, the conclusion presents a booklet describing Four Focuses of Attention to Sustain Rural Place. The four focuses are representation, agency, access, and centralization which should be given priority when applying design principles to communities of Rural America upon new construction, renovation, or revitalization