PNCA and the Architecture Foundation of Oregon welcomed author Roberta Brandes Gratz for a reading from her new book, The Battle for Gotham: New York in the Shadow of Robert Moses and Jane Jacobs. In his introduction, PNCA faculty and writer-in-residence Barry Sanders, states, “In The Battle for Gotham, Roberta Gratz argues for creating more diverse and vibrant cities by resuscitating the kind of person who can take on city hall – and, I think, Capital Hill – and who at the same time comes to love every left hook and right cross of the great urban brawl.” Following the reading, Sanders moderates a conversation on the fight for humane and sustainable cities.

Roberta Brandes Gratz is an award-winning journalist and urban critic, lecturer, and author of three books. She is widely credited for coining the term “Urban Husbandry” and illustrating how urban regeneration works in actuality, rather than just in theory. She is a native and resident of New York City.