This open access book focuses on the formation and later socio-spatial trajectories of large housing estates in the Baltic countriesEstonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. It also explores claims that a distinctly westward-looking orientation in their design produced housing estates that were superior in design to those produced elsewhere in the Soviet Union (between 1944 and 1991, Estonia was a member republic of the USSR). The first two parts of the book provide contextual material to help readers understand the vision behind housing estates in Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. These sections present the background of housing estates in the Baltic Republics as well as challenges and debates concerning their formation, evolution, and present condition and importance. Subsequent parts of the book consist of:

• demographic analyses of the socioeconomic characteristics and ethnicity of housing estate residents (pastand present) in the three Baltic capital cities,
• case studies of people and places related to housing estates in the Baltic countries, and
• chapters exploring relevant special topics and themes.
  This book will be of interest to students, scholars, and advocates interested in understanding the past, present, and future importance of housing estates in the Baltic countries.

Explores the differences in large housing estates in socialist and capitalist Europe Quantifies historical and evolving socioeconomic integration and ethnic separation in housing estates Explores the uniqueness of housing estates in the Baltic countriesEstonia, Latvia, and Lithuania Outlines the future of housing estates

Autorentext
Daniel Baldwin Hess is a Professor and Chairperson of the Department of Urban and Regional Planning in the School of Architecture and Planning at the University at Buffalo, State University of New York. He is a former Visiting Scholar and Director of the Centre for Migration and Urban Studies at the University of Tartu, Estonia, where he was a Marie Skodowska-Curie International Fellow funded by the European Commission. His research develops new pathways for understanding the complex socio-economic and ethnic landscapes of cities and related spatial inequalities. He is co-editor of the journal Town Planning Review (Liverpool University Press) and co-editor of the book Housing Estates in Europe: Poverty, Ethnic Segregation, and Policy Challenges (Springer Publishing 2018).

Tiit Tammaru is a Professor at the Centre for Migration and Studies at the University of Tartu, Estonia. Tammaru is also the Head of the Centre for Estonian Diaspora Studies and has received both the Estonian Science Award in the Social Sciences (2010) and the Natural Sciences Award (2011). His fields of interest include socio-spatial inequalities, geographical changes in urban regions, governing urban diversity, and social mobility.

Inhalt
Prologue-A Place to Live, Work, and Play: Housing Demand and Urbanization in the Baltic Countries.- Turbulent Political History and the Legacy of State Socialism in the Baltic Countries.- Soviet-Era Housing Systems Explained: Constructing and Inhabiting Socialist Housing Estates in the Baltics.- Freedom and Constraints: Ideals Transferred but Eclipsed by Industrialised Housing Production.- Mass Housing and 'Extensive Urbanism' in Eastern Europe: A Comparative Overview.- The Ethnic and Social Landscape of Residents in Tallinn's Socialist Housing Estates.- Residential Change and Socio-Demographic Challenges for Large Housing Estates: Exploring Post-Soviet Riga.- Soviet Housing Estates and their Residents in Vilnius.- Living in a Large Housing Estate: An Insiders' Perspective from Lithuania.- Innovation Inside and Outside The System: Revisiting the Role of Architects in Planning Socialist-Era Residential Districts in Estonia.- Evolution of Award-Winning Microrayons and Housing Estates in the Baltics.- Aspirations versus Reality in the Formation of Mikrorayon Commercial Centers in Lithuania.- Forms of Governing Parking in Housing Estates in Tallinn, Estonia.- State-Subsidized Renovation of Socialist Apartment Blocks in Estonia.- Large Housing Estates in Latvia: Origin and Future Challenges.- Possibilities for Energy-Efficient and Sustainable Renovation of Socialist Residential Space: Smart City Redevelopment in Tartu, Estonia