The article emphasizes the necessity of preserving spiritual values in the process of sustainable development of cities and urban communities. Harmonization of the architectural environment is considered as the ultimate goal and the defining condition for sustainable development of settlements. Basing on the basic priciples of urban synergetic, it is proposed to use internal reserves as well as the self-organization potential of the population and urban planning in order to effectively redistribute resources and reserves. The article deals with the main provisions of the architectural environment harmonization theory with the consideration of different ideas of harmony, the importance of achieving correspondence between a person’s world-view and his environment, expediency of taking into account interpersonal interactions between members of society. The strategic directions of penitentiary environment improvement at all organizational levels are outlined. Approaches to the formation of multi-level public spaces in the central districts of historic cities have been characterized in order to provide optimal conditions for leisure, recreation, and communication among residents in areas that lack free space. Ways of using products made of secondary raw materials for construction of buildings and structures, improvement of urban areas, manufacturing of urban equipment are outlined.