The planning of the modern city, a review of the principles governing city planning 1923

Front matter

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Preface To Second Edition

Since this volume was first issued much history has been made in the city planning field. There has, however, been little change in the general principles governing the theory or the practice of city planning, so that the statements with respect to these have required little revision. An effort has been made to bring down to date the record of the most important accomplishments, but this has been difficult, and in some places impossible, in case of the countries most seriously affected by the great war.

In the United States the zoning idea has made quite extraordinary progress during the last few years and the former chapter on “ Restrictions”’ has been expanded both in name and matter to cover this important phase of city planning. Fortunately, also, there is a marked tendency to consider larger units in planning studies, or to do regional planning, and the chapter on “‘ Progress and Methods ”’ has been largely rewritten in order to cover this new development.

The illustrations remain as in the first edition, except in a few cases where more timely or better plans or views have been substituted. The index has been enlarged and improved.

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Contents

PAGE ote ePiGURES AND DIAGRAMS IN TEXT % . . 6 «© «© «© « 6 «© Vii petee fr SUG]ECIS ALLUSTRATED, BY PEATES;, «© «0 «6 6 «le + «Xd RENCE eye ae eee 8s be Se ete! ew el ee) XV CHAPTER PEMMBCOIINC TOR Vial Ahr. 0) ella Jig tle ey) bid Som ple 8 ewe ce FOE memo eOrry PLANNING MOVEMENT 2.0) e ees ok et ew ew 8 meetert CC OBRECTION OF MISTAKES. 0 40 S20 ge ek A Ae 1 827 PECAN NT STOR TA LOILY) DEAN oA atte hte few ay eh awe te eo Ad Petes E RANGPORTATION SYSTEM 9 id 4 AE a ae de Url S84 METRE TTA MES VG RIM * 5. eager fo Sn Pee Sogo ne eee rw) gt eh) wt OO VII. Parks AND RECREATION FACILITIES Bp NIL Rae roel at ra ee OE ar eae ae. ee erOBEIC BUILDINGS AND Civic CENTERS «2... 2 « {0 « + 149 Pome CONOMIC( VALUE-OF A-CiTY PLAN .-). 6005). TS Papieee NDUSTRIAT; TOWN OR DISTRICT.) . 40 8 ee oe oe 186 SpE EAPLRAR RIC (oS ee gt ew ha eer get enw 1200 XII. StREET DETAILS—UTILITY AND ADORNMENT . .... . . 220 XIII. Tue Raitroap In 1Ts RELATION TO THE STREET SYSTEM . . . 247 (XIV. REsTRICTIONS—ZONING ... . eas fetes st Pe Maree 7 om 200 Reese NVIRONS OF THE CITY “5. 6 ts) ee oe ee ae es 296 Ee NUOT CLES yo aly ee Weta co Ta OS enh Sak AS. fos Vive ae Lees ee $300 Peete ity. PLANNING LEGISUNTION: 2°... bh) ge oe ea 4 330 MeeEROGEESS AND) METHODS. 51.45 2) ef is Pe ee ce a a we B48 EEG ANICING A GIUTYIPEAN Myc. | YO) Wid Ben ote ge eek ls 307 XX. MunicrpAt LAND POLICIES Pe MEL ery Pa’ he Wie me niet eo SO7. XXI. THE OPPORTUNITIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE MUNICIPAL FENGINBER® 2) a) ret en hE NM Ms pete tanta ies Sat to AES APPENDIX A. CONTROL OF PROPERTY SUBDIVISION . .. . . .«. « 423 APPENDIX B. THE NEw YorK ZONING REGULATION . ... . . © 426 ren ere cere OR iter te i. Sere ia Be the ee le gag vii

FIGURE I.

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

I

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15. 16.

The skyline of lower Manhattan rela New York, at four different xili

PAGE periods, 12 . Views showing tall buildings and narrow streets of New York 13 . Plan of the Strand-to-Holborn Improvement, London . ‘ 42 . General features of the plan for the new Indian capital at Delhi . 43 . The Pittsburgh “ Hump ” (upper); a portion of the harbor of Noe ~ (lower) ah ke : : 58 . The harbor of Duisburg- Rann Rees Plan ee he improvement fe Jamaica Bay, New York (lower) . : : 59 . Two views of the waterfront of Rio de Janeiro : 66 . Grand Central Station, New York, and its underground connections 67 . The New York Connecting Railroad and the Hell Gate Bridge 74 Two views of the elevated rapid-transit railroad in Queens Boulevard, New York TR MEDS! Tou Us sue Sane: Aa Wi iba, =) The railway terminals of Berlin (upper); Lower Brosdee New York, under which a four-track rapid-transit subway is being Pierre without interference with the street traffic (lower) . 79 Two views showing the construction of a double-deck anes railroad under a busy street 82 A double-deck, four-track, rapid-transit area" as a al a 83 View of William street, New York, under which a double-track rapid-transit subway is being built . : 86 Plan for Canberra, the proposed capital city of te : OY A typical section of the plan of Paris, showing the arrangement of streets and boulevards (upper); Plan showing the over-intensive use of land in Charlottenburg (lower) OE Three examples of curved streets Elise athe: A depressed central heating plant, using the chimney of an adjacent church (upper); View of the site of Canberra (lower) . 4132 Pianrorthe parks and parkways of Kansas City 2... 0.. 86) +133 auseapovlevard system of San: Francisco): (4s: ej, "5 "6 6 ee 58 't38 xiv Subjects Illustrated by Plates ee Ee ee re

PLATE B PAGE

. Washington Bridge, New York

The system of parks and connecting parkways in the Bs a! of The

. Park Avenue, New York, looking north from the Grand Central e I55 . The Forty-second street font of re ‘Grane eaaot Station, ‘New

‘Ferminalio 4) suka

VORA oo ee «> eae ae

. The Union Railway Satiouk in Washington oppen re Union ae

Stationin St. Louis (ower): 2)... =... ‘ 3

. The Municipal Office Building, New York, with street passing andes iio . The Municipal Office Building and the Woolworth Building, New York, Sha te. Pa +02 . Proposed hexagonal courthouse for New York (upper); The civic center at as each is seen from the other

Bronx, New York ‘ «ee . Prospect Park, Brooklyn, and the Beran eee fe it . 140 . Two views in Toronto’s wild park . - ie . The Kensico Dam in New York’s water supply system . 140 . Two typical views of the Bronx River, New York <, <2

. Views of the Charles River waterfront, Boston, before and see the creation of the Charles River Basin . ° 150

. The proposed grouping of public buildings in Washington, view lookin CAS UH. ue aes . . I50

. The proposed grouping of eae phages in s Wasiierom view isshine west along the Mall es 151

. The Monroe Palace in Rio de Janeiro aan A the offee building and freight house at Albany, New York (lower) eee . The New York Public Library at night and detail showing fountain 6 £54. . Grand Central Terminal in New York in 1906 when operated by steam . 154

. Two views of the Grand Central Terminal, New York, in 1915, after reconstruction and the abandonment of steam operation 155

159 162

Springfield, Mass. (lower) . oe ere « The. Clevelandgroup plant fy) (sec «oe . View of San Francisco’s civic center ye An old aqueduct in Rio de

Janeiro (lower) . os 6 JR2t66 . Two examples of high-school hashes in N ew York 3 eer . A “ bungalow ”’ fire-engine house in Portland, Ore. (top); Entrance to

the Santa Fe Railroad Station at San Diego, Cal. (middle); Railroad

station at Barstow, Cal. (bottom) . se eee «| hes . Plaza at main entrance to Prospect Park, Brooklyn . Par . General plan of Fairmount Parkway, Philadelphia . o> = See . The Cambridge Bridge over the Charles River at Boston . . . . . 174 . High Bridge, New York ee cS,

Subjects Illustrated by Plates ea ma ae

PLATE PAGE 48. Waterfront of Rio de Janeiro with sewage pumping station (upper); A

sewage treatment plant at Essen-Nord (lower) Hw EIS 49. Aerating fountains at the Ashokan Reservoir in New York’s water

supply system a a ar ee ae ot Pa eae a (£0) 50. Concrete bridge over a ravine at the upper end of the reine Reservoir. 190 51. Plan of an industrial town near Duluth uP Was tee STG 52. Workmen’s houses in the industrial town near Duluth Gat cottages

in Colony Gewerkschaft, Emscher-Lippe (lower) . . 196 53. Cottages in Colony Altenhof, Essen ce yidameersnct ts W167 54. Typical houses for workmen in Colony Aliredshof, Essen . 204

65. 66.

73+

Plan of Colony Gewerkschaft, Emscher-Lippe (upper); Plan of Coléay Alfredshof, Essen (lower)

Plans showing the tramway system and Ge ne routes of ee London MaMa ere tmnt err sc hy imc PN A WO, Parking automobiles on one side of a street in Seattle (upper); Unsymmetrical arrangement of a street in Essen (lower)

Another example of the treatment of streets in ek (upper); A wide sewer inlet in Pasadena (lower) . » 222 Fifth Avenue, New York, on Easter Sunday Shee Meo = hos Examples of effective street lighting and ornamental lamp standards 242 Some examples of lamp standards to be found in towns on the Pacific Coast . ‘ 243 Views showing the lighting of Fifth avenue re He high office builgs of lower Manhattan, New York : 244 The Boston State House at night and the battery of lights Be ee it is illuminated ; 245 Two examples of the flood inne. of public bates: Public en in Lynn, Mass. (upper); City Hall in Waterbury, Conn. (lower) e240 Examples of the illumination of towers Soteie Se ote arm's Decal ten ey Two views showing the effect of placing trees on the street line instead of the curb line Si Aah ein teen ed eke eo wll, Hin RED Two details showing the character of development at Forest Hills Gardens, New York RRO ay Te a 25t Entrances to a suburban development near San F rancisce ~ 252 meeences to two of the St. Louis “places” . . 2. ./. . 253 Entrance to and view of Hortense Place, St. Louis . Be eth io. DEA Arcade along the Rue de Rivoli, Paris (left); Front is in Berlin (right) ; 258 A well-shaded street in Redlands, Cal, Piaaee Reais in a street in ee PeEMares CI WEN IE olen a he et ht oh ee . 258

The Stockton Street Tunnel, San Francisco. . . . .

» 259 xvl Subjects Illustrated by Plates en eee

PLATE PAGE

-4. Bronze base of one of the flagstaffs in front of the New York Public Library (upper); A bridge carrying a railroad over a street in Philadelphia (lower). 5 ss ob 8 8 7s. Views showing the elimination of a grade one by raising the railroad

and lowerin® the street» .-. .- <)> = %; s a 3 76. Views showing the elimination of a grade crossing i elevating the rail-

road and retaining the street level . . . . «. «© «© «= «. » 268 77. Views showing the elimination of a blind grade crossing by straightening

the highway... *e . sett ee 78. Two railroad bridges across Queens Boulevard, New York | 2.5 = eee 79. Views showing encroachments upon Broadway, New York, and the

improvement caused by theirremoval . . . . « «© « «+ «+ 271 80. Examples of the obstruction of public streets in Vienna . 3 See 81. Two views along the Columbia Highway in Oregon. . . . . . . 305 82. Views along the Columbia Highway . . . . ... =. =. .- . 308 83. A water-way developed on only one side (upper); Aeroplane view of lower

Manhattan Island (lower). . . . . . 300) 84. Publishing plant of Doubleday, Page & Coe at Garden City, New

York: eee . oe ee ee SS re 85. Plans of two typical English frien ChHES cm Ghee os rs 86. Views of “ Station Place,” Forest Hills Gardens, New York . . . . 324

87. Plan of, and view showing cottages erected at, Billerica Garden Suburb . 325

TABLE . Rate of increase of urban and rural population in the United States

List OF TABLES

PAGE

Re OOM ee earch eb eee en. 20 II. Increase in population of typical German and American cities from 1880 to 1910 2% III. Estimated cost of constructing double-track railroads of various types under, upon or above the surface of city streets under different conditions . ees ae 85 IV. Relative cost of development of the same area under different methods [SCD C62 1 aa SS eae ek a A a Be eae on 120 fee oer statistics of various cities . . . . . -. .: <1 132 VI. Distribution of parks in New York according to Boroughs . Bas ev VII. Number of licenses issued by the London Metropolitan Police for cabs, omnibuses and tram cars from 1903 to 1912, inclusive . 208 VIII. Relative obstruction caused by different vehicles, as estimated in London . SLB, Pa} IX. Fatal accidents in streets of the six largest cities during the year 1911 . 211 X. Total fatal accidents caused by motor vehicles other than motorcycles in cities of the United States having more than 500,000 population in 1920 and comparison with similar accidents in 1915 213 XI. Areas and dates of the several additions to Los Angeles . . 304 XII. Some statistics of English garden cities. aces XIII. Increase in land values in New York, from 1899 to 1913 Pay Nie

XVli

CHAPTER I INTRODUCTORY r there any occasion for another book on the general subject

of City Planning? A number of volumes devoted to this subject have been published under various titles, while many reports dealing with specific conditions and localities afford excellent illustrations of the manner in which city planning problems may be approached and solved. These reports often contain more valuable suggestions than are to be found in books which attempt to cover the entire field and to lay down fundamental principles rather than deal with concrete examples. This being the case it may be asked: ‘‘ Why make another contribution to a field so fully covered?’ The answer is that the present volume is to be devoted almost entirely to the engineering aspects of city planning, or to city planning as an engineering problem or group of problems. It is the hope of the author that municipal engineers will find the following pages of some value in bringing to them a somewhat keener realization of their part in, and responsibility for, the constructive work of city planning as well as city building. Most of the literature of this subject has been contributed either by architects, who emphasize its architectural or artistic side and appear to consider it an architectural problem, or by students of city government, who seem to regard it as an administrative problem. This volume is just as frankly written with the idea that the fundamental problems of city planning are, and from their very nature must be, engineering problems.

2 The Planning of the Modern Ctiy

Subjects will be discussed that are not generally considered as falling within the scope of the engineer’s activities, but they are all subjects with which one who is responsible for the development of the city plan should be familiar. Perhaps the most. important characteristic of any design should be its adaptability to altered conditions. If this be true with respect to a building, an industrial plant, a railway or shipping terminal which can be enlarged or replaced or even moved to another location, it is much more important in the case of the ground plan of a city, which cannot be rearranged or transferred to another place. There is no undertaking, therefore, which demands more careful study of what has happened elsewhere, what is likely to happen ina particular place, and the development of tendencies which are sure to result in changes in the methods of living and conducting business, than the working out of the general plan for a city or for the successive additions to an existing city.

The books and periodicals devoted to city planning are not only agreeable reading, but are instructive and valuable contributions to the literature of the subject. They are profusely illustrated with plans of ancient cities and pictures indicating how they must have appeared in their day, and with numerous views of many of the world’s greatest and best-known buildings or groups of buildings, some of which have done duty in nearly every book yet published upon this subject. Such illustrations will be very sparingly used in this volume, or will be conspicuous by their absence. Photographs will be used, not because they are attractive pictures which would add interest to a book of travel, but in order to illustrate the effect of a certain plan, treatment or policy discussed in the text. The preference will on the other hand be given to diagrams and plans which, while they may not make as strong an appeal to the casual reader who turns the pages, will indicate what has more recently been done and what is being planned and executed at the present time, and which will make more clear the purpose of the author and speak more convincingly to those whom he is most desirous of reaching. The accomplishments of those who built ancient

Introductory 3

Palmyra, Cyrene, Athens and Rome are well worthy of admiration and may be an inspiration to the municipal engineer who is responsible for modern city planning, but he will make a mistake if he uses them as models. In many of the cities of antiquity there were superb buildings, or groups of buildings, or impressively beautiful and dignified approaches to or connections between them adorned with colonnades and arches which were masterpieces of architectural design, but the plans of the cities themselves were rigidly rectangular, with exceedingly narrow streets, and are examples of the very thing we are now trying to avoid in city planning. The forums of these cities were excellent examples of the effective grouping of temples and public buildings; they were the show places of the city; each was a small unit of the city plan and as such they were admirable. They were not connected with each other, and each seems to have been located without regard to the general city plan, but rather to have been designed to emphasize the power and glory of a particular period or individual. The model of Imperial Rome in the fourth century, exhibited at the Salon des Artistes Frangaises in 1913 by M. Bigot, was much admired and was undoubtedly of great architectural and archeological value and interest, but it illustrates very forcibly the fact that these units were put down wherever a place could be found for them, and that they were not parts of a general plan for the entire city and could not, therefore, be called good examples of city planning in the modern sense.

Interesting as may be these old plans and their restoration on paper, and profitable as their study may be to the architect, they offer little valuable suggestion to modern city planners unless it be a caution against a concentration of effort to produce a grand climax at the expense of the rest of the city. The conspicuous feature of the twentieth century city and its organization is the consideration given to provision for the health, comfort, convenience and recreation of all of the citizens, the rich and the poor, the dweller in the finest residential district and the denizen of the slum, although it is conceded that the modern city should have no slums. In the ancient cities the plans of which are most studied, the number of free citizens whose interests were deemed worthy of consideration was very small in comparison with the slaves who made up the great bulk of the population, but who had no rights and were thought to be entitled to little regard; yet art and architecture flourished. The members of the smaller ruling class thought nothing too fine for their city, and we, in our admiration of the masterpieces they created, forget how the submerged ninetenths lived and the small consideration shown for them. In view of the vastly different conditions which exist to-day, when the welfare of the submerged fraction, be it large or small, is one of the chief concerns in city planning and administration, it is obviously unwise to look to the alleged restorations of these ancient cities for illustrations of the fundamental or constructive work of city planning or the work which would naturally be done by the engineer.

Other sources quite generally drawn upon by writers on city planning are the medieval cities of Europe, more particularly those of Germany, France and northern Italy, the chief buildings of which, castles, churches and town halls, are often so effectively grouped about squares or “ places ”’ which are now considered masterpieces of city planning. Mr. Raymond Unwin observes that the charm of these old towns is not due to the better plan of their streets, but to the dignity and individuality of the buildings. The object seemed to be to do work well and that it should look well when done. Time has mellowed the colors and sagging beams have relieved the angularity. Compared with the modern suburb with its freedom to do as each likes, and with the obvious lack of serious effort to adapt each building to its site and surroundings, these old towns are beautiful. But the social conditions prevailing in such towns at the time these much admired “places” or groups were created, while far better than those in the cities of antiquity, were very different from those which must be provided to-day. It is true that efficient administration has effected an adaptation of

Introductory 5 these old plans to modern social conditions, has preserved the old and has made the new conform with it to such a degree as to preserve the character of the town and the local color without impairing or curtailing the rights or the enjoyment of the masses other than to such a degree as is necessary to prevent abuse of or injury to public or private property, a lesson which it appears very difficult to impress upon those for the betterment of whose condition most writers on city planning appear to be chiefly concerned. This is conspicuously the case in the United States, where citizens of foreign birth and descent, who have some knowledge of the municipal administrative methods and accomplishments in the Old World, are insistent in their demands that the same things be done in American cities, but are at the same time indignantly resentful of the restrictions upon the use of private property or even the improper use and occupation of public streets, parks and buildings, which are so rigidly enforced in the cities of their native lands and upon the enforcement of which the attainment of these results are in large degree dependent.

While some of the illustiations of the subjects discussed have been drawn from European and South American cities, most of them are taken from those of the United States, and it may be thought that New York and other eastern cities are given undue prominence. This does not mean that conspicuous progress in the solution of city planning problems has not been made in other cities. In fact, some of the most notable undertakings and accomplishments of this kind have ‘been in the smaller towns of the interior, where the people appear to be more ready to appreciate a new idea, to realize a change in conditions and to adopt and carry out plans for readjustment than is the case in the more conservative towns along the Atlantic Coast. While most of the literature of the subject, even that produced by American writers, abounds in references to and illustrations of the cities of the Old World, and while some of these writers appear to believe them to be the only models worthy of being followed and that American cities can best be used as examples

6 The Planning of the Modern City of what should be avoided, the author is convinced that the cities and towns of the Western World afford very many examples of sane and reasonable planning as well as of the things that should not be done. Perhaps more of the text and illustrations would have been devoted to the cities of Europe had it not been for the interruptions in the execution of new projects and the difficulty of securing complete data due to the recent war. It was a great loss to the world when countries which had contributed so much that is admirable and worthy of imitation in city planning and especially in city administration, abandoned their constructive work to engage in one of destruction, with the result that so many of the public squares which had been so much praised and so freely drawn upon for illustrations were, together with the imposing buildings, churches, libraries, universities and town halls, reduced to ruins. France and Belgium particularly have been confronted with difficult problems of reconstruction and have made great strides in rebuilding not only public squares and buildings but whole towns which had been almost entirely demolished. Advantage has in many cases been taken of the opportunity to avoid some of the congestion and inconveniences resulting from the old plans, while the picturesque effects which have added so much to the charm of those countries has been maintained. A large part of Europe is still suffering from the effects of over four years of upheaval and devastation, and is now facing economic problems rendering difficult the resumption of progress. The city planning methods which will follow the restoration of favorable conditions should result in better adaptation to modern methods of living and doing business. While it would be unfair and misleading to say that much which has been written on the subject of city planning is inaccurate, it is true that much has been presented on hearsay, and statistics have frequently been given that are obviously incorrect or at least misleading. They were undoubtedly thought to be entirely trustworthy and to verify them would have involved much time and trouble, a fact of which the writer of these pages has been made painfully aware. Some writers

Introductory zi have indulged in savage criticism of what they have observed or been told about conditions in other countries or cities, much of which is due to misunderstanding or misinformation, and they appear to derive more satisfaction from denunciation than from commendation, yet some of these conditions and practices, while at variance with the ideas of the critic, may be fully justified by the circumstances.

Much information must be secured at second hand or by correspondence. When inquiries are addressed to foreign cities either they or the replies to them are frequently misunderstood, but, after making an effort to secure pertinent information, the temptation to use such as may be obtained, even though not entirely satisfied as to its complete accuracy, is very strong. It is not improbable that in some cases the data given in the following chapters may be found to be somewhat incomplete or defective, but the author has made every effort to insure their accuracy, and, where believed to be doubtful, statistics which it was desired to include have been omitted. An effort has been made to distinguish between facts and opinions, and, where opinions are given, they are not presented as conclusions which settle questions under discussion. Where the opinions or conclusions of others or data compiled from them are used, the authority for them has been stated, but in going over the literature of any subject it frequently may happen that such opinions or conclusions coincide with those which one has already formed, and the expression of them may conform so closely with the language used by others that the reader may think that they have been appropriated without credit. In some cases the opinions of leading authorities may have been so often quoted and accepted that one comes to believe that they were his own from the beginning. If such instances occur in this volume it is the hope of the author that they will be attributed to the influence which the master exercises upon the student, and of which the latter is sometimes unconscious, and not to a disposition to appropriate the ideas of others and put them forward as his own.

CHAPTER II ae wide interest in city planning which has lately mani-

fested itself all over Europe and America indicates quite clearly that it is a subject in which the people generally are interested; not only those who live in large cities, which may undertake some costly and pretentious schemes of improvement, but dwellers in the small towns and even villages are eager for information upon the subject and are ready to devote their time and energy to the study of plans to make their communities more orderly and attractive. Conferences and exhibits are frequent and largely attended whether in Europe or America, books and magazine articles upon the subject appear at short intervals, and one quarterly publication is devoted exclusively to. the subject of “‘ Town Planning.”” The National Conference on City Planning of the United States holds annual meetings which bring together large numbers of those interested in the subject, while the professional city planners forming such groups as the American City Planning Institute and the Town Planning Institutes of Great Britain and Canada give more intensive study to the technical problems: involved, the two last named publishing a journal at regular intervals. A great international town planning conference was held in London in 1910 and others, less international in character, have been held in Berlin and Leipzig. At the Congress of Cities in Ghent, in 1913, much attention was given to the subject, and a special exhibition of town planning, organized by Professor Patrick Geddes, of Edinburgh, was a conspicuous feature of the exposition held