Alexander Garvin, former vice president for planning, design and development for the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation, says "At long last we have a great book on public participation in the planning process. Designing Public Consensus presents examples of the interaction between architects, planners, landscape designers, engineers, and the public. More important, Barbara Faga presents situations when that interaction has worked, when it has not, and why. She is able to extract, from what she has dubbed "civic theater," practical recommendations for professionals who practice in a democracy that requires such interaction."

Jay Williams, Mayor of Youngstown, Ohio, comments that it's "full of lessons and perspectives of significant benefit... I very much intend to 'preach the gospel' as communicated in (the) book."

"This is a serious effort, very well researched and written and handsomely presented," says Leon S. Eplan, FAICP, a planner and educator at Emory University. "I was particularly impressed by the wide variety of case studies presented."

Thomas D. Galloway, Dean and Professor of the Georgia Institute of Technology's College of Architecture, calls the book "a much needed addition to the professional literature... should be mandatory reading for planners, urban designers, architects, landscape architects, and engineers who are concerned with the built environment and interacting with their respective public constituents."