This work surveys the practical legal tools and administrative practices used to shape urban development, focusing on municipal acquisition of land, methods of distributing improvement costs, and the regulatory powers available to cities. It compares variations in state statutes and local practice, draws on questionnaires, code reviews, and on-site studies of multiple municipalities, and treats eminent domain, assessment and taxation, plan commissions, and building regulation as interrelated elements of implementing urban designs. Appendices collect significant statutes and cases and the narrative highlights how differing legal mechanisms aid or impede the realization of comprehensive urban improvements.