cities that work for man -- victory ahead

8/9/2019 Cities that work for man -- Victory Ahead

1/12

C I T I E S

THAT WORK

FOR

MAN

-

VI CTORY AHEAD

An Addr ess

by

J ames

w

At

The

Li ons

I nt er nat i on/ Uni ver s i t y

eurto

R i c o

y mp o s u m

on The

Ci t y

of

an

c

Oct ober 18

1967


2/12

Nearly

one

-hal f of al l the

peope

i n

theUnted

States i n

the

year

2000

wl l l ive i n

dwel l ing

unts that have not

yet

been starter

adon land

that

has not

yet

been broken (and

the

year

2000

s not

so far

away

--as

close

i n

our future as

the

year

l ')4

i n

our

past).

Every

month i n the

Unted

States

e

are

addng roughy

300,000

people,

a

city

the size

of Toedo.

Every

year

we

adda new

Phladelpha.

n 20

years

we wll doubin the

size of Los

Angeles

and theSan

Fr,ncisco

Bay

area.

W

wll

add 6,000,000

people

to

the

New

York

regon

i n

the

sam

period.

Since

1940

Bal timore

has added

to

i ts

popuation

a

city

larger

than

Mlwaukee.

n

thenext 20

years

i t

wl l

addanother

city

about the size

of Mam. And

i n

the sam

period

of

tim

Wshngton,

35

mles

away,

wll

be

addng

a

city nearl y

as

large

as Bal timore.

Such

are

the

dynamcs

of our

urban

growh.

t

has

been

said that

i n

the

reminder

of

ths

century

we wll

buld,

new

i n

our cities, the

equvaler

.

of

al l that has

been

bu lt

since

Plymouth

Rock.

Wat

opportunty

ths represents

Opportunty

for business,

for

jobs,

for the

developmnt

of newand better

insti tutions

to

serveour

peope.

And

opportunty

to

pan

and

develop

ths

new

one-hal f of our Amrican

citi es

free of

themstakes

of

the

past; responsive

to

the needs of the

future.

Howarewe

handing

ths

opportunty?

How

are

we

shaping

the

growh

of our

ci ti es? Not

very

wel l

.

Our citi es

grow

by sheer chance--by

accident,

by

whmof

the

private

developer

nd

pub ic anencies

.

A

farm

sod

and

begns

raising houses

instead

of

potatoes--then another farm Forests are cut;

val leys

are fi l led; stream

are

buried

i n

storm

sewers.

Kids

overflowthe schoos

-

-a

new

schoo

i s

bi ' t. Churches com

up

out o the basemnts.

Thenmore schons rTiore

churches. Traffic

grnws

roads arewdened

-front

yards

cut back. Service

stations,

Tastee

-Freez,

hamburger

stands

pockmrk

the

od

hgh'av.

Traf'.:

s

stranged

;

an

expressway

i s hacked

through

the

landscape;

then

a

clover-

1,a' -

-a regonal

shopping

center

-office

bu ldngs,

hgh-rise

apartmnts--

andso

i t

goes.

Thus, the t s and

peces

of a

city

are splattered across

the

landscape.

By

ths i rrational

process,

noncommunties are

born

--formess

places

wthout

order,

beauty

or

reason

wth

no visib e

respect

for

people

or the

land

.

Thousands

o

smll

separate decisions mde wth l i ttle

or

no

relationshp

to

one another, nor

to their cc-inosite

imact,

produce

a

mjor

decision

about the futu-e of our citi es

and

our

civi l izati on--a decisionwe have

cone

to label suburban

spraw

Wat nonsense

ths is

Wat

reckless,

i rresponsibe

dssipation

of

nature's endowmnt and

of

mns

hope

for

dgnty, be-uty

growh


3/12

Spraw

i s

inefficient

t

stretches

out

the dstances

people

must trave

to

work to

shop

to

worshp

to

play.

t fai l s

to

relate

these activi ties

i n

ways

that

strengthen

each

and thus i t

suppresses

values

that

orderly

relationsh ps

and

concentration

of uses woud

stimuate.

Spraw

i s

ugy

oppressive mssively

dul

. t

squanders

the resources of

nature forests

stream

h l l sides

and

produces

vast mnotonous armes

of

housi ng

and

graceless

tasteless clutter

.

But

worst

of

al l

spraw

s

inhumn

. t

i s

anti humn

.

The

vast

formess

spread

of

housing pierced by

the unrelated

spotting

of schoos churches

stores creates areas so

huge

and

i rrational

that

they

areout

of

scale

wth

people beyond

their

grasp

and

comrehension too bg

for

people

to

fee a

part

of

responsibe

for

imortant

i n.

Andwe knowhowto do i t so much better. We knowthe

rough

masuremnts of

the future

growh

of

every

mtropo i tan

area

i n

the

country

.

We

know

about how

mny people

we must

provide

for how

mny

houses and

apartmnts

how

mny

schoos

how

mny

churches how

mny

stores we

must

buld.

We

know

that we

must buld the sewer

l ines

water

l ines

roads and

hghways

to

serve ths

growh.

Andwe

know

howto relate

houses

churches

schoos

stores

emloymnt

centers

to one

another

i n

heal thy

humn

rational

communities

that

respect

both

mn and nature and

i n

wh chbusiness can

prosper

.

Vet

i t i s

fai r

to

say

that not one

singe mtropo i tan

area

i n

the United

States has a

comrehensi ve plan

for i ts future

growh

and

developmnt

that

wl l

accommdate the

growh

i t knows wll occur i n communities that wll

provide

what

i t

knows

ought

to be We

imrovise

franti cal ly

and

imusively

wth each new

thrust

of

growh

s

i f

i t were

a

gnantic

surprise beyond

our

capacity

to

pred ct

or

to

mnage

.

s there

any

other

aspect

of

Amrican

l i fe

i n wh ch

the

gap

i s so

wde between our

knowedge

andour

performnce

as

i n

the

growh

of

the

Amrican

ci ty?

We can

plan

to visi t the mon;

develop

new

technoogy

to

carry out the

plan;

advance

the

technoogy

to

the

real i ty

of

fl ight

i n

space.

Andcoon

we

wl l

put

mn on the mon. Vet so far we have been unabe or

unwl l ing

to

put

to

effective

use

the

knowedge

that s

connorplace amng

us to

shape

the

orderl y growh

of

our citi es

into

communities

that

are

i n

scale wth

people;

responsive

to

their needs

and

yearnings

and

sensi tive to

the

landscape

we

invade.

Why

s ths

so?

Why

dowe

as

a nati on wth

such

proven

capacity

for

systemtical l y organizing

a

production

task

persist

i n

ths

dsorderly

unsystemtic

inefficient

buldng

of ci ties?

There are several

reasons

and

they

must be

understood

i f

the

ci ty

of the future i s to

provide

a better

l i fe

for

i ts

people

than

the

city

of

the

pest

.

There

i s

the

state of

mnd

about

the

Amrican

city.

We

have

l ived so

long

wth

gri m

congested

wornout

Inner ci ti es and

sprawing

cluttered

outer citi es that we have com

subconsciousl y

to

accept

them

as inevi tabe

and unavodabe

.

Deep

down

i n our

national heart

s

a lack of conviction

that ci ties can be beauti fu humneand

truy

responsive

to

the

needs

and

yearnings

of

our

people.


4/12


5/12

-4-

Our

system

of

private property

ri ghts

and

chopped

-up

owner

-

shi p

of

l and

makes

i t

impossibl e

to assemble

under

singl

e

ownership

the l and

requ red

for

comprehensive

communi ty plannin

g

r i

devel opment

.

2

Even

i f

i t

were possibl e

to buy the

l and, i t woud

be

impossibl e

to

find

fi nancing

for

i ts

acqu si ti on

and

devel opment

.

This

woud

take

ml l i ons

of

dol l ars

.

No

onei s

wl l i ng

to

put

that

ki nd of

dough

.

3

Even

I f

you

coud

buy

the l and

and

rai se

the

money

to

pa

y

for

i t

and

develop

I t,

you

coud

never

get

the

zoni ng.

Local

peop e

and

pol i ti cians

wl l

cl obber

you

when

you

try.

4 And

i f

you

are

l ucky enough

to

get

the

l and, the

financing,

an

d

the

zoni ng, you

wl l

go

broke

trying

to

bu ld

a

real l y

fi n

e

commni ty

.

The

ari thmeti c

won' t work

.

The cost

providin

g

a

good

community

wl l

eat

you

up

.

People

won' t

pay

for

i t

This, then, i s

themood

wth which we face

the

bu lding

of a

new

America over

the

next three

decades.

Rght

nowwe r c

pounding

the

mstakes

of the

past

as

we

bui l d

l arge

parts

of

our nation

i nto

an

i nfi ni te Los

Angeles:

Aon

g

the

East Coast, i n

the

North

Central

regi on,

on

theWst

Coast, and

i n

part

s

of

the

South and

Southwest, ci ti es

spraw

out towards one another

i n

formess,

cluttered

growh

that

has been l abel ed

megalopol i s

.

Thi s

omnous word carrie

s

wth

i t

threatening

overtones that

people,

faml ies,

and al l

hope

for rati onal

and humane

community

wl l be l ost i n

massive, monotonous

spraw

.

Against

thi s

background, may

I

report

to

you

on an

experience

i n

ci ty bu lding

that

i s

exploding

some of the

mths

that

have

trapped

our state

of

mnd about

the

ci ty.

I t i s

the

story

of Columbia--a

new

ci ty

mdway

between

Bal timore

and

Wshington

.

Our

busi ness i s

mortgage

banking

and real estate

devel opment

.

Across

th

e

Uni ted

States

our

company

finances

apartments,

shopping

centers,

offi ce an

d

i ndustri al

bu ldings. .ai l t

by

hundreds

of

real

estate

developers

.

Aso,

a

s

developer,

we bui l d,

own and

manage

such

perties

for

our

own

account

.

Thus

,

we

have

been

elaboratel y

i nvol ved

i n

the

bi t and

pieces approach

to

ci ty

bui l di ng

.

Perceiving

from

thi s

platform

the

damage

and

defi ci ts

of discordere

d

growh

and

observing

al so the

i mpor t ni

n

onvenience,

community

l i f e

and

economc

value that occur

when the rtar

of

ci ty

are

arranged

i n

con-

structive

rel ationship

to one

another,

we

began

to ask

ourselves

question

s

such

as:

Wy

not bui l d a

whole new

ci ty?

Couldn t

houses

and

apartments,

school

s

and-churches,

busi ness

and

i ndustry,

be

arranged

i n rel ationship

to

on

e

another

that

each woud

give strength

and

l ue

to the other?

Coudn' t

al l

of thi s be

fi t on the l and,

to

digni fy

and ennobl e

i t,

i nstead

of

to

destroy

i t? Coul dn t

hi l l s and forests

and

streamval l eys

be

respected

and

used to

give

shape,

separation.

c

i denti ty

to

communities

wthin the

ci ty?


6/12

5-

Coudnt

such

a

city

be

not

ony

mre

beauti fu and

mre

humn

but also

mre

profi table

to

buld?''

Prodded

by

the

answers toour own

questions,

we

bui l t a

hypothetical

mdel

of

a

compete

sml l

city.

W found that

i t

mde sense. So

we focused

on the

area

mdway

between

Wshington

and

Baltimore to

see

i f

i t coud be

mde

real.

Our

target

was a

city

of

100,000. I t would

take

14,000 acres of land-

probable

land cost

20-25

mll ion

.

Ths

was

far

beyond

our avai lable

resources and

probably

toomuch

for

any

develooer

i n

Amrica. Thus, we

appealed

to

a

great

financial insti tution

whichwe had

represented

for 20

years

as

mrtgage

loan

correspondent--The

Connecticut General Life Insurance

Company

We

bel ieved then

and

now

that therewas a

special

compatibi l i ty

between

publ ic

purpose

and

private

profit

i n

producing

a

well -p anned

new

city.

But

never,

to

our

knowedge,

hada

mjor

life insurance

company

entered

the

city-bu ldng

process

at ths

earl y

stage

and

on the

scale and

i n

the

mnner ths

requred.

We asked Connecticut General to

provide

the funds

to

acqu re

the

land

and to

participate

wth

us i n

the

ventureas a

co

-owner of

the

project

.

W

agreed

to

suppy

the funds for

pannng

and

ore-developmnt

admnstration

.

I n

a

remrkable,

perhaps

hstori c, act of

financial

statesmnshp,

Connecticut

General

joined

us

i n

the

venture

.

They

commtted

what

proved

to be

25

mll ion

for the

purchase

and

earl y carrying charges

on

15600

acres of land.

I n

February,

963

we commncedour

acqusi tionprogram

By

October, 1963

we had

competed

the

purchase

of 14,000 acres and

appeared

before

the

County

Commssioners

of

Howard

County

to

dsclcce

our

acqusition

and

our

purpose

to bui ld

a

city.

W commnced

pannng

i n

the fal l of

1963

amdst

great skepticism

and

anxiety

amng

our

neighbors

i n

the

County.

Our

ony

reas

.urance to themcoudbe

that we

were

at

their

mrcy.

Uness we

produced

aHarwhich

they

found

better than the

prospect

of scattered,

sprawing

growh,

protected by

half-

acre

zonng,

they

woud

reject

our

proposal

and

deny

us

zonng.

Thus,

i t was

up

to us to

prove

that

e

coud

pan

a

city

that would

consti tute,

i n

fact,

a

better alternative

to

spraw.

W

set

four

min

objectives

i n our

pannng

:

To bu lda real

city

-not just

a better suburb

but

a

compete

new

cit

y

There

wl l be

business

and

industry

to establ ish

a

sound

economc base,

roughy

30,000

Jobs

andhouses

and

apartmnts

at rents and

prices

to

mtch the

incom of all who

work

there,

from

company jantor

to

company

executive. Provision

has beenmde for schools and churches,

for

l ibraries,

college,

hosp tal , concert

hal ls,

theatres, restaurants,

hotels, offices, and

departmnt

stores

.

Like

any

real

city

of

100,000,

Columia

wll be

economcal ly

dverse,

polycu tural ,

multi-fai th, and interracial


7/12

-6-

To

respect

the

l and On set s

of

t ransparent

overl ays

we recorded

the

topography,

t he str eam

val l eys,

the

f orests,

the

hi st ori c

bu l di ngs,

the

speci al

vi stas,

the

qu et

tree- l i ned l anes.

W i nvi ted the l and

tc

i cupos

i t se f as a

di sci p i ne

on the

f ormof

the

communi t y

.

Co umb a

wl l

provi de

3, 200

acres

of

open

spaces,

parks,

recreat i on

areas, fi ve sml l

newl akes. The

t hree

mj or

stream

val l eys

wl l

be

presrved

al ona

wth

3, 000 acres

of f orests. These

green

acres

wl

l

i nterl ace

the

ent i re

communi t y

separat i ng

and

connecti ng

-i r

vi l l ages

and

l eadi ng

i nto

the

heart of downt own,

whi ch wl l

50

ace

f orest on one

si de

and a l ake on

another.

3

To

' rovi de the

best

possi b e

envi ronmnt f or the

growh

of

peop e

.

Here

i s

the heart

of the

p anni ng

process- - to p an

out f romthe needs

and

yearni ngs

of

peop e

to

the ki nd

of

communi t y

t hat wl l

best serve and

nouri sh

thei r

growh

.

But howto

do i t?

I f

you

want

to

know

about

the

needs of

peop e

- about

what seem to work wel l for

peop e.

or

badl y

-

- where

do

you

go?

Womdo

you

ask? Archi t ect s,

eng neers,

p anners,

bankers, and

devel opers

are not

the

peop e

who work

i nti mtel y

wth

peop e. Wy

not go

to t eachers

and mni sters and

doctors,

to

psychi at ri st s, psycho ogi st s

and

soci al

sci enti st s

to

p an

a

ci t y?

W

are an

extensi vel y

examned

soci et y.

There

i s

enormous

knowedge

about

our

growh

and devel oomnt

as

peop e,

of

our

success and f ai l ure,

our

hopes

and f ears; and

yet

i t

i s

knowedge

that

i s

al most never

brought

to

bear

I n

the

process

of

communi t y

p anni ng

.

There

I s

no

d al ogue

between the

peop e engaged

i n urban

desi gn

and

devel opmnt

and t he

behavi oral

sci ences

.

Wy

not?

Wy

not

bri ng t oget her

a

group

of

peop e

who wou d

knowabout

peop e

f rom

a

vari et y

of

backgrounds

md

experi ences

to

vi ew the

prospect

of a

new

ci ty

and

shed

l i ght

on how

I t

mght

be mde

to

work

best

f or

the

peop e

who

wou d l i ke

there?

Thus,

we

convened

a work

group"

of

f ourt een

mn and

womn

f"r

tht

purpose:

an eni nert

soci al sci ent i st; a

psychi at ri st

f ror t' e

Depart mnt

of

Pub i c

Heal t h at J ohns

Hopki ns;

a

soci o ogi st

who

worked

f or two

years

f t

Levi t t own,

New

J ersey;

a

psycho ogi st

f rom

the

Uni versi ty

of

Mchi gan

wth a ri ch

u arenass

of t' a art of

communi cat i on

and

i ts

roadb ocks: a ci ty

Manager;

a commssi oner

of recreati on;

a

soci o ogi st

I n consuner

behavi or research f rom

t he General

E ectri c

Company;

a

wornar

concerned

wth the

status

of

womn;

a

po i ti cal

sci enti st

;

an

economst; an

educator and others. W m:

together- - th

work

group

and

our

archi t ects

and

p anners-

- every

two

weeks

f or t wo

days

and a

ni ght,

frsr

si x

mor t

-

W

weren' t

seeki ng

a

b uepri nt for a

Ut opi an

soci ety.

W di dn' t i t

a

report,

a recommndati on, or even

agreemnt

W want ed conversati on

i n

death about

mn,

hi s

f aml y

ari

hi s i nsti tuti ons

.

W

want ed

to

al l ow t hese

I nsi ghts

pbout

peop e

to i nf l uence the

physi cal

p an

and to

cu de us i n

sti mu at i ng

wthi n

the

communi t y

the ki nds

of

program

i n schoo , church, heal th,

cu ture, recreat i on, and

work

that

wou d

support

the

growh

of

peop e

.

W sai d to

our work

group

and oursel ves: ' Let' s

examne

the

opt i mum.

Wat

wou d

be

the

best

possi b e

schoo

syst em

i n

a

ci ty

of

100, 000- -

the

best heal t h

system

How

mght

rel i gi on

be mde most ef f ect i ve

i n

the

growh

of

peop e?

Wth

short er

work

weeks

and

i ncreasi ng

wages,


8/12

-7

what

opport un t i es

can be

mde

avai l abl e

for

bet t er use of

l ei sure

ti me?

How

can

musi c, art ,

threat re, adu t educat i on,

physi cal

recreat i on be

mde

avai l abl e

most

usef u l y

to

the

peop e

i n

the

ci ty?

Can the

rel ati onshi p

of

home school ,

church, and

commun t y

be such

that t here i s

some al t ernat i ve

to

l onel i ness,

rel i ef f rom

f ear, and

growh

f romhat e?

I n

what si ze

neghborhoods

do

peop e

fee

most

comort abl e? I n what ki nd of

commun t y

the most

ef f ecti vel y

chal l enged?

The

most

creati ve? Wat about

homogenei t y

and

het erogenei t y?

Wat

woul d al l t hese

quest i ons

and these

anwers

say

about the

p an

for a

new

ci ty?

Don t

worry

f or t he

moment about

f easi bi l i ty.

it

wl l

compromse

use

soon

enough.

Let s

l ook at

what

mght

be

and

be

i nvi gorated

by

i t.

I t

was a

thri l l i ng

and

product i ve process.

A l of us

w o

are

worki ng

on

Col umi a

fee enri ched and

st rengt hened

by

i t.

By

seeki ng

out

the best

we

cou d

concei ve f or

peop e

and

by open ng

our mnds to

t hose

possi bi l i t i es,

we

l eaped

over

mny

roadbl ocks

whi ch coventl onal

wsdom had decl ared

to be unn oj bl e.

4. To

mke

a

prof i t

Thi s

was no

resi dual

goal

-

-not

somethi ng

j ust

t o be

hoped

for

as a

possi bi l i t y

.

I t was and

i s

a

pri me

obj ect i ve

The

prof i t purpose

was

al i ve

and

creat i ve

t hroughout

the

p ann ng

process

.

I t

was

usi ng

the mrket

p ace

to

cast vot es f or

what

peop e real l y

want and care about

enough

to

pay

for. I t

recogn zed

the

dynamcs

of

the mrket

system

as

bei ng

f undamental

to

the democrati c

process,

for

i t i s

through

the mrket

p ace

that a f ree

peop e

can best

mke

the

compl ex

j udgment s

of how

where

and

when

they

w sh

to

spend

the r

earn ngs.

A

cont i nu ng

examnat i on of

prof i tabi l i ty

i s

si mp y

a

responsi bl e

att empt

to

percei ve

the mrket

pl ace

vot es and

respond

to

them

I t

resi sts the

pu l

t oward

sent i ment al i ty, sophi sti cati on,

and

arrogance.

I t

hau s

dream i nto f ocus w th

real i ty

and

l eads to

bone

and

muscl e sol uti on

. I t

gi ves i ntegri ty

to

t he u t i mt e

p an

.

Col umi a,

by

produci ng

an

out st andi ng

prof i t ,

we speak

l oud and cl ear

to the

ci ty- bu l di ng i ndustry.

I t

wl l i nduce at t ent i on to

a

good

envi ronment

as

the

ri ght

product

i n

ci ty

bu l d ng.

I t wl l

warn

agai nst

the

unmrket abi l i ty

of

spraw.

I t

wl l

l i f t at t ent i on

to

genu ne

respect For nat ure

and the

f aml y.

Fai l ure, or

even

moderat e

success,

woul d be a

bl ow

to bett er

hopes

f or

urban

growh

.

I t

wou d

support

the

mth

that

i t i s

not economc to

produce

a

good

envi ronment.

By

the f al l of

1961

the

p an

was

comp eted

and

present ed

to

the

peop e

and

the

County

government

of

Howar d

County

A sket ch

of Col umi a

woul d

show

a sml l

ci ty consi st i ng

of

n ne

vi l l ages

or

sml l towns w th 10, 000 to

15, 000

peop e

each, around a

downt own

core.

Thi s

syst em

of

vi l l ages

that

we

cal l

a

ci ty

str et ches n ne ml es east and west ,

and

roughl y

f i ve ml es nort h and

sout h al ong

US.

29,

whi ch bi sects t he

l and

area

.

The

vi l l ages

are

separat ed

by

stream

val l eys,

parks

and

bri dl e

paths

that l ace

t hrough

the

ci ty

They

are served

by

Col umi a s bus

system

whi ch

wl l

run

on

i ts own

ri ght-of-way,

connecti ng

the

vi l l age

cent ers, the

maj or

emp oyment

cent ers

and

downt own.

Fort y

percent

of the f aml i es

wl l l i ve

wt hi n a fewmnut es wal k

of

the

bus l i ne.


9/12

A

vi l lage

wll consist of four to six

neighborhoods

of

500

to

700

f m l i

s

each. At thecenter

of each

neighborhood

i s

an

elemntary

school

a

commnty

room ch ld care center

playground swmmng poo

and

a smll

store that i s

a cross between

a

neighborhood drug

store

and

a

country grocery

store. A

path systemseparated

fromthe

roads

wll

mke the

neighborhood

center

easi ly

accessibe as a

neighborhood meting place

for

teachers

parents

kids and

their

friends

. Even little kids

wl l be

abe

to

walk

to school

wthout

fighting

the

automble

The

neighborhoods

cluster around

a

vi l lage

center

where

there

i s

brought

together

I n a

singe place

the

faci l ities that

typically

today

are

splattered

across the

landscape

. Hgh

school

mdde school

l ibrary

audtorium churches

mdcal

cl inc;

together

wth

supermrket

service

stores

and

gasol ine

service

stationare

grouped

around

a

vi l lage green

to

provide

a

l ivey

center for the 10000 to

15000 people

i n the

vil lage

Thus

teachers

parents

andkids

mnsters mrchants doctors and patients

al

the

people

of a

vi l lage engage

one

another

i n

the

dai ly

course

of

life.

The

opportunty

i s created to

met

and

know

oneanother; to share

probem;

to

commncate

yearnngs.

The

path system

feeds into

the

vi l lage

center

by

underpasses

that

al low

kids

to ride bkes; older

people

to wak; mthers to

push baby carriages

into

the heart

of

the

vi l lage

l i fe. The

physical

plan

emncipates

mn women

and

ch ldren

to

a wder

range

of

choices and a richer

variety

of

life.

How

mny

kids i n

themssive

spraw

around

our

bg

cities can

walk

or

ride a

bke

to school to a

l ibrary

to aconcert

or msic

lesson to a streamto

fish to a lake to sai l to

a store

to

shop

to

themvies the threatre?

The

choices wl l be avai labe i n Columba

by

foot bke or bus. And i t takes no

mracle or

subsidy

to do

it simly thoughtful plannng

over

a

large

enough

land

area

to

account for the

thngs

that

people

want and

need to live

a fu l

and

enrichng

l i f e.

At the heart of Columba

serving

al its

people

wl l be the town center wth

departmnt

stores

and

specialty shops

restaurants

mvies theatre concert

hal l offices hotels a

college

a

hospital

themin

l ibrary

a town

center

park

and

lake i t

wl l

be a

beautiful

l ively

efficient

downtown

.

You

can

see

that a number of

mths

have

already

been

exploded

.

The land was

assembed

.

The

financing

was

arranged

.

The

zonng

was

obtained

. A

new

economc mdel

i s

comleted

each

quarter projecting

the cost and the incom

of

developing

Columba to

comletion.

Theeconomcs

have not

yet

been

proven

but the

progress

i s

encouragng

and there

i s

sound reason to bel ieve that we

wll be abe to

prove

i t

i s

mre

profitabe

to bui ld a

good

environmnt

than

a bad one.

I t i s

the

size

and scale of

Columba

and the

comrehensi veness

of the

plannng

that has

exploded

these

mths.

The

plannng

showed the

peope

of Howard

County

that stream

valleys

and

forests

could be

preserved

;

that

a

wde

range

of recreational cultural andeducational faci l i ti es couldbe

provided;

that

places

to

work

and

shop

could be

brought

covenently

closeat

hand

;

and

perhaps

mst

imortant

that

a balanced

growh

of

business

along

wth

housing

would

provide

a sounder base for taxes to

support

the cost of

governmnt.

Thus

i n

a

county

that

was

fighting

md

about the

ravages

of

urban

spraw


10/12

-9

-

and

aroused

by

tumul tuous

zoning

battl es Columbia offered

a

better

al ternati ve

.

At

the crucial

hearing

on

Columbia s

original

zoning proposal

not a

single

resi dent

of the

County appeared

I n

opposition

.

The

prospect

of a new

ci ty-the

opportuni ty

to

bui ld

fromscratch i n a new

envi ronment-has stimulated

a

wonderful l y

creati ve

response

in

the

school s,

the

churches,

in

heal th

and cul ture

.

1

County

School

Boards

facing

random

surgi ng

growh,

are

l argel y

commtted

to

big

consol i dated

school s

because

they

have

no

other

choi ce.

They

must

l ocate

school s where

they

wl l

be

accessibl e

to

the

developments

as

they pop up-

-unplanned

and

unscheduled

. The kids are

bused in

But

in Columbia

we

have been able

to

l ay

out for the

next

15

years

the school

si tes

for

thi s

part

of

Howard

County

.

The School

Board

has

accepted

the

concept

of

neighborhood

and

vi l l age

school s

. The

el imnation

of school

busses

alone i s

estimated to

save

over a

ml l ion

dol l ars

per

year,

at

current

busi ng

costs,

by

1980.

Stimulated

by

the

prospect

of new

possibi l i ti es

in

educati on, a

special

study

has

been

made

for the

Howard

County

School Board

by

Drs

.

Anderson

of

Harvard and

Aexander of

Flori da. Thi s

report

focuses

attenti on

on

the

importance

of

developing

the

chi l d

as

an

i ndividual

.

I t

proposes

ungraded

school s,

team

teachi ng

and other

program

i ntended

to

strengthen

and

update

the

educational

effort i n Howard

County.

The

Ford Foundation

has

grants

to

the

Howard

County

School

Board

to

desi gn

new

elementary

and

mddle

school s

that wl l

be

responsi ve

to the newcurri culum

proposal s.

The

fi rst

of

these

i s nowunder constructi on

in

Columbia s

fi rst

neighborhood

.

The Howard

County

School

Board

has announced that

the

Howard

County

communi ty col l ege

wl l

be

l ocated

in

the

heart

of

downtown Columbia

.

Thi s

Insti tuti on i s

expected

to

offer

wde

range

of

adul t

educati on and

vocational

training

program

to the

community,

as wel l

as the

fi rst

two

years

of

col l ege

to

high

school

graduates

.

2.

Twelve

major

Protestant denomnations

have

j oi ned

together

in

a

program

wthout

precedent

in

America.

They

have formed

Rel igious

Faci l i ti es

Corporati on

which

wll own

al l

the church

bui l dings

i n

Columbia, thus

el imnati ng competi ti on

for

church

status

and

permtti ng

large-scale

economes

through

mul ti pl e

use of

faci l i ti es.

They plan joint

centers

of

rel igi ous

i nstructi on

and

joint

mssion efforts

on

both

l ocal

and

a

worl d basis

.

The

mnisters wl l

belong

to

Cooperati ve Mnistry

sharing

staff

and

j oi ni ng

forces

in

program

of

counsel i ng

and

service

to

the

community

.

Cardinal Shehan

has announced the

i nterest

of

the

Cathol i c Archdi ocese i n

j oining

the

Protestants

in

the

Rel igious

Faci l i ti es

Corporati on

so that

Cathol i c and Protestant churches

wl l

j oi ntl y

own

and

share

faci l i ti es.

Cathol i cs, Protestants and Jews

have formed

the

Columbia

Interfai th

Housi ng Corporati on

to

bui ld

and rent

housi ng

to

l owincome

faml ies

.


11/12

-10-

3.

The

J ohns

Hopki ns

Medi cal

School and

Hospi tal

has

announced

I ts

Interest

i n

establ i shing

a

comprehensive

heal th

care

system

for

Columbia

resi dents

. A

study

to determne economc

feasibi l i ty

i s

now

under

way.

I f

the announced

hopes

of the

study

are

ful fi l l ed,

thi s

great

medi cal

Insti tuti on

wl l

provide

on

a

monthl y payment

basi s to

Columbia

resi dents

a

comprehensi ve

system

of

heal th

care fromhome

nursing

servi ce to

medi cal

cl i ni cs

to

hospi tal i zati on,

wth

extensi ve

provi sion

for

community

-wde

heal th

educati on. One of the

prime purposes

of

thi s

heal th

system

would be

to test

out

the

bel i ef

that

a

comprehensi ve

system

of

heal th educati on,

earl y diagnosis,

preventi ve

medici ne, can

be

financial l y

supported

by

the

dol l ars saved

from

hospi tal i zati on

and

cri si s

medi cal

care

.

I n other words, Columbia

medi ci ne

wl l

be

working

oi

the

possibi l i ty

that

i t costs

no

more

to

bui l d a

heal thy

communi ty

bharsto treat

a

si ck

one

.

Thi s

could

be an

i mportant

advance

i n medi cal

t

heal th

system

i n Ameri ca.

Washington s

Nati onal

Symphony

has

si gned

a

30

year

contract to

provide

a

mnimum

of 20

concerts

a

season

i n the

Merriweather

Post

Pavi l i on

of

Musi c

i n

the

heart

of

downtown Col umbia

.

Thi s

i n

turn has

triggered

a

chain reacti on

of

hopes

and

prospects

i n

the fi el d of

musi c, theatre

and

art

which

hold

out

every prospect

of

a

ri ch

cul tural

l i f e

i n

thi s

new

ci ty

5

Oher

studi es

and

negoti ati ons

are

under

way

wth

respect

to

the

l i brary

system

communicati ons,

banki ng

transportati on

and

retai l i ng

which

can

resul t

I n

important

new

steps

i n

the

servi ces

made

avai l able

to

the

people

of

Col umbi a.

Each of

these

important

and

stimulati ng

new

hopes

for

Columbia i s

born

out

of

what

we

have come

to

cal l The

Columbia

Process. i t i s a

process

that

begins

wth

an

honest

attempt

to l earn

what

mght

work best

for

the

people

who wl l

l i ve

there

and

then to

di scover

by physi cal

planning

and

by

study

and

negoti ati on

wth

l eaders

i n

the

school s and churches i n

the

heal th cul tural and

recreati on i nsti tuti ons how these

hopes mght

best

be

achi eved

.

Thi s

process

i s

fundamental

to

good

planni ng

and effecti ve

devel opment

whether

i t

be for the

accommodation

of

outl yi ng

growh

or f or t he renewal of the ol d

work

-out i nner

ci ty.

The

task

i s

to

produce

community

-

-communi ty

i n

whi ch a

man

hi s

wfe,

and

chi l dren

are

i mportant;

come

fi rst-

-ahead of

bui l dings,

streets and

automobi l es--communi ty

which, i n

physi cal

form

they

can

I denti fy

;

fi nd

boundaries to

;

feel

responsible

for; be

proud

of-

-communi ty

whi ch i n

human term cares about

them suffers

wth

them

prays

for them

The search for thi s ki nd of

communi ty

wl l

l ead

to

questi ons;

produce

answers;

generate

plans

that wl l

work

for

people--di fferent

pl ans

i n

di fferent

ci rcumtances, but

al ways

plans

to nouri sh and

support

the

growh

and

digni ty

of the

i ndi vidual

human

being

and hi s

faml y.

Thi s

i s the

only

l egi timate

purpose

for

our

ci ti es or

our ci vi l i zati on--to

grow

better

people--more

concerned,

i nspi red

ful fi l l ed

-

-more

l ovi ng people.

We are

l i vi ng

i n

the

mdst

of

what

hi story may

fi nd

to

have

been

the

most

i mportant

revoluti on

i n

the

history

of man.

I t i s

the

upheaval

which

has

l i fted to new

hei ghts

man s

respect

for the

digni ty

and

importance

of hi s

fel l owman. I nsti tuti ons

which

degrade

man and

barri ers whi ch

separate

men


12/12

from

one another are under

relentl ess

assaul t

. Thus

the

cold

grim

oppressi veness

of

the

scal el ess

i nhuman

ci ti es

i s

under

attack

on

many

fronts

.

The

i ndi vi dual

ski rmshes

flare

up

i n

term

of

bad

housi ng,

unemployment

crime,

dope,

del i quency

even

ri ots. But these are

only

symptom of

battl e

raging

at

much

deeper

l evels that wll be

won

by

the

bui l ding

of new

ci ti es

and,

even

more

dramati cal l y by

the

rebui l ding

and

restructi ng

of our ol der ci tes. The

key

wl l be

restructi ng

i n

such

manner that the

ci ty

wl l

support growh

i nstead

of

working

erosion

i n

human

personal i ty

.

Thi s

new

ci ty

wl l l ook

di fferent

because

i t

wl l

be

broken

up by parks, open

spaces,

,school s,

playgrounds

transportati on

system,

etc. ,

i nto definabl e

communi ti es

i n

whi ch

people

are

important.

Together

these

communi ti es

wl l

make

up

a new

kind

of

ci ty-

-dynamc

and humane.

Thi s

revoluti on i s

barel y

under

way

.

The

tool s

for

carrying

Mo4j t

have

been

forged

over the

past

several

decades

. W

are now

developi4

the

wLq

-.

to

pi ck up

the

tool s and

put

them

to work.

Over the next ten

yebts

we

wl l see

an

urban

revoluti on

that wl l

l ead al l men--ri ch

and

poorc J ck

and

whi te

-

-to

take

possessi on

of thei r

ci ti es

and

make them

work

orm

people

who

l i ve

there.

cities that work for man -- victory ahead

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